Pizzuti 1 Ryan Pizzuti Ms.

Olding English 203 3 February, 2014 Let it Be Lyrical Analysis In the first section of this course we have already studied several very famous and very influential artists. All of which are legendary in the music world because of the incredible effect they had on shaping music history. However, one of these stands head and shoulders above the rest, The Beatles. Forming in 1960 the band dominated the music industry for the entire decade, becoming a global sensation and an immortal figure in music. Their wildly successful reign in music ended in 1970 when they released their final Album, Let it Be whos title song is one my favorite Beatles songs (Wikipedia). The song embodies the ideals of glam because it has a large base in drug exploration with a hint of exploration of self. The Beatles lead singer and chief song writer was Sir Paul McCartney born in Liverpool England to Parents James and his mother, Mary (Wikipedia). Growing up his mother worked as a midwife traveling around to houses on a bike (Wikipedia). Unfortunately Mary died when Paul was fourteen years old, which undoubtedly left a void in the young mans life (Wikipedia). His father was a musician who even led his own jazz band. James always encouraged Paul to play music and even bought him a trumpet which he traded to buy his first guitar (Wikipedia). Like most all other musicians The Beatles were drug users. John, Paul, George, and Ringo used marijuana for the first time with Bob Dylan in the prime of the bands career in 1964 (Wikipedia). McCartney fell in love with the drug after that and its widely understood that the songs Another kind of Mind and Got to Get you into my life were written solely about weed (Wikipedia). Another favorite

Pizzuti 2 of McCartneys was LSD. He frequently tripped on it was quoted saying, It opened my eyes *and+ made me more honest, more tolerant member of society (Wikipedia). Even though LSD played a role in McCartneys life, his most prevalent drug of choice has been and remains marijuana. He was fined for possession in Sweden in 1972, arrested for growing by the Scottish police, and has had numerous other incidents with law concerning weed around the world (Wikipedia). McCartney has made it very clear that hes an advocate for the legalization of marijuana and its medical use. The song Let It Be can have many different interpretations varying by the listener and their opinions. The first one that comes to mind is by far the most innocent. The song could be a tribute to his late mother, Mother Mary. Looking down on him as his guardian angel her memory could be bringing him strength, comfort, and inspiration. The love he has for his departed mother could be a comfort to him knowing she is looking down and watching over him. This is a touching thought but most likely not the meaning of the song. The loss of his mother would have more than likely created a void in him rather than bring him peace. A more realistic view of the song is that it is about drug use, specifically marijuana. A street code name for marijuana for years has been Mary Jane and that could be directly tied to the Mother Mary referred to in the song. Seeing as how he had already written two songs directly about weed its not at all unreasonable that Let It Be would also be centered on cannabis. When the song was written in 1969 was a very turbulent time. The Vietnam War was going on and the civil rights movement was at the peak of its intensity in America. With all the struggles and violence the world was seeing, people needed an outlet or comfort to make everything seem alright. The simple fact is many of people found that comfort in the high from weed. It calms you down and makes you feel chill like everythings ok, allowing you to Let It Be (McCartney). The songs generally

Pizzuti 3 mood is sense of peace of calm for no stated reason, just knowing that things will eventually be alright. This points to an artificial release or comfort, weed. Another line thats repeated throughout the song is There will be an answer. (McCartney). Again, stating that things will work out ok and there is no need to worry. Coming from the hippie era The Beatles like, everyone else, were looking for the end to the struggles of war, the light at the end of the tunnel they were in. They found it easier to be patient and wait for resolve when high. As they smoked and the calmed came over them, it had the effect of whispering words of wisdom, let it be. Another of McCartneys favorite drugs was LSD (Wikipedia). He frequently tripped while writing and recording and as I stated earlier, he believed the drug enlightened him (Wikipedia). This could give double meaning to both the Mother Mary and the answer referred to in the song. It means that the songs not just about weed but all drugs that McCartney believed positively influenced him. The words of wisdom came from the enlightenment he felt from LSD and the answers would come from that. The Let It Be side of the drug use refers to the feeling of peace knowing that hes found some answers because of the drugs, hes not worried or stressed, and the rest of the answers will come and things will work themselves out. All of this is not to say there isnt some time to his actual mother Mary. Losing her at fourteen would have created a huge void in a young boy. He wouldnt have his mother to guide him or comfort him When I find myself in times of trouble (McCartney). The drugs brought him the peace that long eluded him with his mother being gone. The Allusion to Mary his mother shows how comforting and integral the drugs really were; he could run to them like a frightened child runs to his mother, the mother that was taken from him. Given these two theories, the song is not solely about The Beatles exploration of drugs, but also McCartneys exploration of self. He realizes whats lacking from his life. His times of trouble had no refuge, no mother to turn to for support. His drug exploration bridged the gap he had in his life that

Pizzuti 4 was holding him back from his full potential. The high brings him peace essentially saying to him, its ok like a mother would. All analysis aside, the song is very calming to listen to. Without the lyrics there is a soothing piano as the main instrument and a light bass guitar and drums backing it up. The beat is slow and rhythmic to create the feeling of calm that is emphasized in the passive message of the words Let it be. The song is so relaxing that it has actually been in my playlist to help me fall asleep. The calm that it creates is similar to a relaxed high and you could drift away with no stress listening to it. The mellow instrumentals dont over-power the vocals in anyway allowing the listener to clearly hear every word. Its a relatively short song but every line is significant to the song. Clearly the most important line of them all is the title, Let It Be. Emphasizing the goal of content peace, the line is repeated multiple times throughout. Also, saying there will be an answer over again twice gives the listener a reason not to worry, to let it be. Although they didnt have a wild stage present and werent eccentrically dressed, The Beatles were also glam. The explored drugs like everyone else and although it wasnt always a focal point of their music, it was in some of their songs, such as this one. They were among the first to incorporate it into their songs and did a great job doing so. Of all of the great Beatles hits, Let It Be will always one of my favorites. Its a truly genius song that combines exploration of drugs and self into one beautiful song that I will always enjoy listening to.

Pizzuti 5 Works Cited McCartney, Paul. "Let It Be." Rec. Jan. 1969. Let It Be. The Beatles. Apple Records, 1970. Vinyl recording. "Paul McCartney." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Feb. 2014. Web. 03 Mar. 2014. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles#Abbey_Road.2C_Let_It_Be.2C_and_break-up>.