Elvis Costello Called The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’ ‘Jagged’

Elvis Costello once wrote an essay explaining why The Beatles were so important. In it, he expressed his opinion of The Beatles’ Let It Be. Interestingly, John Lennon said a hit from that album received too much attention.

Elvis Costello called ‘Let It Be’ The Beatles’ ‘breakup album’

In 2010, Rolling Stone released its list of the 100 best artists. The Beatles were No. 1, and Costello wrote an essay about the Fab Four’s greatness for the magazine. 

“Every record was a shock when it came out,” Costello wrote. “Compared to rabid R&B evangelists like The Rolling Stones, The Beatles arrived sounding like nothing else. They had already absorbed Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers, and Chuck Berry, but they were also writing their own songs. They made writing your own material expected, rather than exceptional.”

Costello discussed Let It Be and the documentary of the same name. “Their breakup album, Let It Be, contains songs both gorgeous and jagged,” Costello opined. “I remember going to Leicester Square and seeing the film of Let It Be in 1970. I left with a melancholy feeling.”

By saying Let It Be includes “songs both gorgeous and jagged,” Costello was likely highlighting both its lush tracks like “Let It Be” and “The Long and Winding Road,” as well as its lo-fi bluesy tunes like “Get Back” and “One After 909.”

Elvis Costello revealed his opinions of the individual Beatles

In Costello’s opinion, each member of the band helped make it special. “John Lennon and Paul McCartney were exceptional songwriters; McCartney was, and is, a truly virtuoso musician; George Harrison wasn’t the kind of guitar player who tore off wild, unpredictable solos, but you can sing the melodies of nearly all of his breaks,” he wrote. “Most important, they always fit right into the arrangement. 

“Ringo Starr played the drums with an incredibly unique feel that nobody can really copy,” Costello added. He also praised John and Paul for being exceptional singers. In Costello’s view, their singing was the most important aspect of The Beatles.

John Lennon said 1 of the songs from ‘Let It Be’ eclipsed other Fab Four tunes

The book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono features an interview from 1980. In it, John was asked if he had any favorite albums. He said he wasn’t satisfied with any of The Beatles’ albums as a whole. However, he expressed some fondness for five of their records: Please Please Me, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and The White Album.

John didn’t include Let It Be among the albums he liked. We can only speculate what he felt about Let It Be when he gave that interview. However, he did say that the title track of the album — as well as other hits like “A Hard Day’s Night,” “Help!,” and “Something” — received too much attention at the expense of other great Beatles songs. 

Regardless of what John thought of the album Let It Be, Costello was able to appreciate its beauty and its harshness.