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thisisstephenbetts's review
2.0
A very disappointing introduction to the 33 1/3 series. Much of this book read like a pre-first draft — as if the roughly chronological notes had to be turned into sentences and rushed to the printer, without anyone having tried to impose any narrative structure, or stylistic polish. Far too many straight lists of songs rehearsed on a particular day; speculation that may have been informed, but giving no indication that it was; weird, disorienting skips in time of just a few days; no new insight, nor, really, any particular reason for this book to exist. It's almost impressive to have turned a tumultuous period of the most important band in popular music into something so dull. At some point I realised I was only reading in order that these notes on the book could at least be informed (that and it is mercifully short). To be totally fair, it did get slightly more interesting in the 2nd half, but that praise is faint indeed.
scoobyramone's review
3.0
These 33 1/3 books are proving to be much slighter than I hoped. This one is rarely insightful about the album or the recording process, more often just regurgitating names & dates. As a companion to the recent Get Back documentary, the books fills in some gaps I appreciated. But I can imagine how frustratingly surface level this write-up would have been before the doc was released.
There’s a lot of interesting information in here, but the emphasis on the day-by-day log of which songs were rehearsed and recorded is exhausting to read.
There’s a lot of interesting information in here, but the emphasis on the day-by-day log of which songs were rehearsed and recorded is exhausting to read.
mattrabpc's review
3.0
A pretty average entry in the series. This is probably the most focused book I've read in the series and does one thing mostly well. This is half genuinely interesting and mostly succinct history of how this album came to be and half laundry list of all the people who worked to make this album happen. The barrage of names can get overwhelming but if you power through that it effectively paints a picture of how many people it took to make this album.
plaidbrarian's review
3.0
Even more minutiae-heavy than I was expecting. Ever wanted to know what 3 guitars Paul may have played on day 3 of recording? No? Well, you'll find out anyway. It also pre-supposes that the reader comes in knowing the basics of the Beatles' "Get Back" project and how that eventually begat the albums "Abbey Road" and "Let It Be." That all makes sense, I guess - any series of books on the history and/or themes of famous records probably isn't meant for the casual fan - but it's still a lot to assume. I like the Beatles a lot, but even I'm a little fuzzy on the history. But all that aside, it's well-written, mostly accessible, and undeniably thorough, so it's worth checking out if you're so inclined.
booksnguitars's review against another edition
3.0
Some cool tech info about recording and instruments, along with a bit of bootleg info. Preferred the Lewison Recording Sessions book.
missnicelady's review against another edition
3.0
Matteo reveals some interesting tidbits of backstory surrounding the writing and recording of "Let It Be" (both film and album), but there's a bit too much detail about makes and models of equipment. At least for my tastes. I'm sure someone somewhere cares that John played a stripped Epiphone Casino instead of the rosewood Telecaster that George preferred.
plaidbrarian's review against another edition
3.0
Even more minutiae-heavy than I was expecting. Ever wanted to know what 3 guitars Paul may have played on day 3 of recording? No? Well, you'll find out anyway. It also pre-supposes that the reader comes in knowing the basics of the Beatles' "Get Back" project and how that eventually begat the albums "Abbey Road" and "Let It Be." That all makes sense, I guess - any series of books on the history and/or themes of famous records probably isn't meant for the casual fan - but it's still a lot to assume. I like the Beatles a lot, but even I'm a little fuzzy on the history. But all that aside, it's well-written, mostly accessible, and undeniably thorough, so it's worth checking out if you're so inclined.