The other day I bought the new, stripped down CD of The Beatles 1970 release, Let It Be. Subtitled “Naked,” the album was released the way The Beatles recorded it, without all of the post production over dubs, strings and background vocals which were added a few years after the Beatles recorded the music.

When I popped the CD into my player and heard the songs “Two of Us” and “I’ve Got a Feeling,” instantly I was back in my parent’s house, hearing the brand new album that my sisters Barbra and Chris just got and were playing on the stereo. Let it Be was one of the first albums that I can remember listening to and thinking how great the music was. Looking back, that experience probably was a big influence on my love of music.

As for the music on the new disc, I would have to say some of the songs are improved with the minimalist approach and some are not. Two tracks illustrate this hit-and-miss assessment very clearly. Without the (some might say schmaltzy) background vocals and strings, the beauty of music and craft of the songwriting really comes through on “The Long and Winding Road.” However, the paired down version of “Across the Universe” sounds more like a studio demo without the added background vocals and instrumental fill-ins, which bring an emotional intensity to the song.