Let It Be (Deluxe Edition)

The Replacements

Rhino, 2008

http://www.facebook.com/TheReplacements

REVIEW BY: Sean McCarthy

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 09/11/2008

Raucous, smartass, and heartbreakingly honest, The Replacements’ Let It Be is an album that is at once miles away from their Sorry Ma, Forgot To Take Out The Trash heyday and at same time, embodies the drunken, brazen attitude that made the band so endearing. In interviews, Paul Westerberg said he imagined some ‘Mats fans being off-put by the new direction the band took with this disc. The songwriting got a lot more personal, the music got a bit more refined, and the overall feel of the album seemed to that of the inevitable move toward maturity.

The post-Let It Be period of The Replacements had songs that were more polished and geared toward a possible hit single. The pre-Let It Be period was a drunken train wreck of punk, classic rock, and even a bit of blues thrown in. The mash-up of these two stages of the band came to a head in the forty-or-so odd minutes that is Let It Be. The hardcore rockers, championed by guitarist Bob Stinson were there with “We’re Comin’ Out” and “Tommy Gets His Tonsils Out.” Their Midwestern-raised fear of taking themselves too seriously was also on display. After all, it is sort of hard to convince people who haven’t been exposed to The Replacements that this album is a masterpiece with a song title like “my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250 Gary’s Got a Boner” and a cover of KISS’ “Black Diamond.”

But these songs only make the serious ones hit all the harder. “Sixteen Blue” is an aching ode to teen angst, and Westerberg goes far beyond the traditional “life sucks” lyrics to utter something as confessional as “Everything is sexually vague / Now you’re wondering to yourself / If you might be gay.” And “Unsatisfied” is one of those songs that you’ll never get tired of hearing so long as depression is a part human existence. When Westerberg shouts, “I’m so, I’m so unsatisfied” until he’s hoarse, no other words need to be said. Music-wise, the album had the band exploring styles that were hinted on Hootenanny. The slower songs proved the band could handle ballads just as easy as barroom anthems. Listening to “I Will Dare,” you’d be hard pressed to differentiate guest guitarist Peter Buck from Bob Stinson.

The Replacements and Hüsker Dü were The Beatles and The Rolling Stones of the Minneapolis music scene in the mid-‘80s. For every masterpiece Hüsker Dü released, the ‘Mats were pushed to do the same. Let It Be definitely qualifies as a masterpiece without any hint of studio wrangling and retooling. Even the album cover, a simple shot of the four on top of the Stinsons’ parents’ house, seems iconic at first glance.

So, how can Rhino improve on this album? They can’t. Arm yourself with an iPod and create a separate playlist to ensure Let It Be ends the way it always has: with “Answering Machine.” But the six tracks here are far from throwaways. “Temptation Eyes” sounds like it could have been a great track on Pleased To Meet Me. An alternative take of “Answering Machine” sounds like something Steve Albani would have produced. And their cover of T Rex’s “20th Century Boy” is almost as good as their cover of Hank Williams’ “Hey Good Lookin’.”

Is this enough to buy Let It Be twice? Well, for those who already have the album, the CD should be scratched to hell already and in need of replacing. For those who don’t have Let It Be, shame on you.

Rating: A

User Rating: Not Yet Rated


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© 2008 Sean McCarthy and The Daily Vault. All rights reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of Rhino, and is used for informational purposes only.