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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
National
Aaron Curran

Paul McCartney 'hated' Beatles final number one

As the Beatles drifted apart towards the end of the 1960s, Let It Be would prove to be the band's final album.

The Fab Four's final number one, The Long and Winding Road, caused further conflict within the outfit as Paul McCartney had major reservations about alterations made to the track. The final album was largely mixed by Phil Spector, with McCartney- no longer on good terms with the rest of the band- remaining scarce.

Spector took issue with the recorded tapes for the track and so decided to mix it with string and choir overdubs. Before the record went to press, Paul received a copy and did not like what he heard. Much of McCartney’s anger was directed toward the Beatles manager Allen Klein.

READ MORE: Beatles song rejected by film director that left John Lennon hurt

In an interview with the Evening Standard, Paul said: "No one asked me what I thought. I couldn’t believe it. I would never have female voices on a Beatles record.” He also sent Klein a letter demanding changes.

The letter, which was featured in Anthology, included four points. The first two asked that the orchestration be toned down a bit, while the third demanded the removal of the harp sections. The fourth and final point simply read, “Don’t do it again.”

Despite Paul's anger, the track reached Number one on the US Billboard 100. McCartney cited the alterations as one of the reasons for the band's split.

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