On March 6, 1970, The Beatles released “Let It Be” as a single. It was the group’s final single before Paul McCartney announced his departure. Here’s what Paul had to say about the hit in his book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present.
Many things inspired Paul McCartney when he wrote The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’
In The Lyrics, Paul said that the context in which he wrote The Beatles’ “Let It Be” was “one of stress.” It was a difficult and tense time for The Beatles, who were heading toward breaking up. Suddenly, there was a lot of change, and no one wanted to work together.
John Lennon constantly wanted to be with Yoko Ono. George Harrison wanted to move to India and live like a yogi. Paul wanted to get back to the group’s roots, hoping it’d save them from breaking up. Ringo Starr was down for anything.
Concerning the Yoko problem, Paul said they all had to deal with her being in the recording studio. They had to let it be unless any of them had a serious reason why she couldn’t be there. Since none of them were confrontational, they bottled it all up.
The tense situation in the recording studio and having to let it all be wasn’t all that inspired Paul to write the song. Paul remembers reading Hamlet in high school, specifically the lines: “0, I could tell you – But let it be. – Horatio, I am dead.” Paul suspects those lines subconsciously planted themselves in his memory.
Paul McCartney based The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’ on a dream he had of his mother, Mary
With things being as they were between him and his band, Paul was “run ragged” and exhausted. The fighting and the horrible business meetings took their toll. “The band, me – we were all going through times of trouble, as the song goes, and there didn’t seem to be any way out of the mess,” Paul said.
One night, he fell asleep exhausted and had a dream: his mother, Mary, who died when he was a teen, came to him. Paul said it felt real, as if she’d always been there. It was a profound moment, seeing his mother’s kind face and being with her in a peaceful place. It comforted him in his time of need. He “immediately felt at ease, and loved and protected.”
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Paul wrote that Mary “seemed to realize I was worried about what was going on in my life and what would happen, and she said to me, ‘Everything will be all right. Let it be.’”
He woke up thinking about what his mother had said to him in the dream and thought it’d be a great subject for a song. Then, he used his troubles with his band as a focus too.
The Beatles’ “Let It Be” is like a gospel song. “Mother Mary” in the lyrics is often interpreted as a reference to Mary, the Virgin Mother of God. Paul’s mother was Catholic, and he and his brother Michael were Christened. So, Paul is influenced by Christianity. He likes to think that a higher power is out there to help.
Paul is sad that the group never got to perform the song live
The singer-songwriter thinks the sad thing is that The Beatles never got to perform “Let It Be” live. However, Paul played it during his Live Aid performance. Paul thinks it’s good in live shows because it’s communal and works well with a crowd.
Paul explained that “Let It Be” becomes a mini-prayer. “There’s a yearning somewhere at its heart,” he wrote. “And the word ‘amen’ itself means ‘so be it’ – or let it be.’
“But ‘Let It Be’ isn’t about being complacent, or complicit. It’s about having a sense of the complete picture, about being resigned to the global view.”
