Getting back to 'Let It Be': An interview with author Doug Sulpy

  Doug Sulpy, author of "Drugs,
  Divorce and a Slipping Image."
   (Photo courtesy Doug Sulpy.)

If there's anyone besides the Beatles who has listened to the almost exhaustive (and exhausting to listen to) "Get Back"/"Let It Be" sessions more than Doug Sulpy, they're keeping it to themselves.  "Drugs, Divorce and a Slipping Image - The Complete, Unauthorized Story of The Beatles' 'Get Back' Sessions," by Sulpy and Ray Schweighardt, is the closest and most comprehensive look there is at what happened 40 years ago this month.

We asked Doug, who is well known in the Beatle collecting community for his 910 newsletter and other books that study the Beatles released and unreleased catalog, some questions via email on the sessions and other issues.

Q. In your view, who or what was the biggest problem in the "Let It Be"  sessions?

Doug Sulpy: In all seriousness, I think the biggest mistake was having the sessions in the first place. Remember, The Beatles initially intended to perform a live show to promote the "White Album," which had been released a month or so earlier. If they had stuck to that, things might have gone more smoothly, but, instead, they decided to rehearse all new material for the show ­ a dreadful mistake, since their creative juices were at an all-time low after spending most of the previous year recording the "White Album."

Q. Given all the talk that Yoko was a big interference, the footage of the jam session with her and the Beatles is fascinating. What do you think about this?

Doug Sulpy: Whenever they had nothing much else to do, it seems that Yoko would step up to the mike and wail. In this particular instance, George had just quit the group, and they found themselves with an afternoon to fill and nothing to rehearse. This isn't the "catharsis" it's made out to be, by the way ­- that's just more spin. There are similarly delightful Yoko performances scattered throughout the sessions.

Q. Who or what do you think is holding up the release of "Let It Be" on DVD?

Doug Sulpy: Who knows. Obviously, they have the raw material to put together a package as impressive as BMG's astounding DVD of Elvis' "'68 Comeback Special" ­ - apart from the film itself, imagine how wonderful it would be to see the rushes, and experience the rooftop concert remixed into 5.1 surround sound! I was working with them, briefly, when the project was just beginning, but evidently they shelved it to concentrate their attention on that silly circus act. These days, I guess they're too busy with overpriced fountain pens and jigsaw puzzles.

Q. What has your interest in the "Let It Be" sessions done to your psyche all these years? (:

Doug Sulpy: As the saying goes, "That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger." I've since had the opportunity to catalog unreleased material by other artists and... I can do it, because whenever something seems a bit tedious I always think back to those "Get Back" reels and say: "however bad THIS is, it doesn't hold a candle to THAT."

Q. What did you think of "Let It Be ... Naked"?

Doug Sulpy: It was pathetic. It seems the original idea was to give us an "unvarnished" version of the "Let It Be" album, but then they decided to edit takes together, add reverb, chop things out ­ you get the picture. And don't even get me started on the so-called "bonus" disc. All that material to choose from, and THAT'S the best they could come up with? Really?

Q. What unreleased session (or sessions, if you want) is the most significant for fans to hear?

Doug Sulpy: Well, I'd love to see a Bear Family-type box of the BBC sessions, or even a complete collection of the studio sessions ­ yes, folks, The Beatles are THAT important. ­ But if I had to pick a single disc, I'd go with the 1968 home demos for the "White Album," a number of which were released on "Anthology," and many of which have been bootlegged in inferior quality. There's a lovely, group feel to those demos which didn't carry over once they recorded them in the studio, the sound quality is excellent, and I think it'd make a great "Unplugged"-type release.

Q. How long did "Drugs, Divorce and a Slipping Image" take to write?

Doug Sulpy: Five years, plus the half year or so it took for me to write the revised edition. Remember, when we initially wrote the book, it was long before the near-complete set of tapes surfaced, and much of our time was spent trying to piece together fragments of material which had been spread among bootlegs, or whatever tapes we could dig up. I'm happy that we got so much of it right!

Q. Where does "Let It Be" and LIBN rank in the Beatles canon, in your opinion?

Doug Sulpy: Personally, I'd put "Let It Be" ahead of several of their other albums. In spite of the reputation it has, it's really not all that bad. ­ It's just that, unlike every other album they made, it really didn't push the envelope, musically. Also, I think that Phil Spector should get the credit he deserves. ­ He really did take a bunch of uninspired tapes and manage to create a listenable product out of them.