Let It Be

Let It Be is a single on Parlophone (catalogue R 5833), released 6 March 1970. Last Beatles single released while the band was still officially together.

Recorded during the band's Let It Be (1969–70) period, produced by George Martin (sessions); Phil Spector (post-production overdubs March/April 1970) with Glyn Johns, Phil McDonald (sessions); Peter Bown, Phil Spector engineers (post) engineering. The tracks were committed at Twickenham Film Stages (Jan 1969) on 3M M23 8-track (EMI machine, brought to Apple) via mobile EMI REDD mixers (Magic Alex's Apple console removed), later EMI TG12345.

Let It Be is a Beatles single issued in the United Kingdom on 6 March 1970 by Parlophone under catalogue number R 5833. It sits in the band's Let It Be (1969–70) period. The release arrived 161 days after the parent LP Abbey Road, placing it firmly within that album's commercial window.

Sessions were produced by George Martin (sessions); Phil Spector (post-production overdubs March/April 1970) with Glyn Johns, Phil McDonald (sessions); Peter Bown, Phil Spector engineers (post) engineering, working at Twickenham Film Stages (Jan 1969). The signal chain ran through the 3M M23 8-track (EMI machine, brought to Apple) • Mobile EMI REDD mixers (Magic Alex's Apple console removed), later EMI TG12345, with vocals captured on U47, U67, AKG C12, AKG D19, AKG D20. This combination of room, tape format and outboard chain is the same one heard across the band's other releases from the era — meaning the release shares its sonic identity with its parent LP rather than departing from it.

The release features Let It Be ★.

Documented alternate masters and remaster passes can be found via the linked entries above; the editorial position throughout Beatles Answers is that the original UK mono master is the canonical point of reference for any single from this era, with the 2009 and 50th-anniversary stereo remasters treated as documented variations rather than replacements. Catalogue numbers, label copy and matrix data are taken from EMI/Parlophone primary documentation and cross-checked against Mark Lewisohn's The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions (1988).

Each track on this single carries its own session history on the dedicated entry. The summary below pulls the most distinctive editorial detail from each:

• Let It Be ★ — Recorded on 31 January 1969 during the Apple Studio Performance sequence alongside other piano-based material unsuitable for rooftop broadcast. Nine takes were recorded using film clapperboard numbering (numbered 20–27 with take 27 consisting of two audio takes, per Lewisohn 1988, p. 170); Paul's vocal delivery conveyed spiritual conviction while maintaining pop accessibility.

• A Hard Day's Night
• All You Need Is Love
• Can't Buy Me Love
• Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out
• From Me to You
• Get Back / Don't Let Me Down