Sir Paul McCartney got the idea for his epic song “Let It Be” from a dream. During a difficult time in his life, he was asleep one night, and he had a dream in which his mother came to him and spoke to him. Paul’s mother died of cancer when Paul was only 14 years old, and her name was Mary. So the lyric in the song that goes, “Mother Mary comes to me,” is about McCartney’s mother. In the dream, his mother told him that everything was going to be OK. When he awoke the next morning, he was trying to remember, “What was it, mother said? Oh, yes. She said ‘Just let it be.'” When he remembered what she said, Paul got up and wrote down the lyrics.
Some years later, Paul McCartney said that he felt blessed to have had that dream. He said that it was great to visit with his mother again. Another reason “Let It Be” is significant in McCartney’s life is that it’s the last song the Beales recorded before he announced that he was leaving the Beatles. Although both Paul McCartney and John Lennon are credited with writing the song, John Lennon said in a 1980 interview with Playboy magazine that he wasn’t involved with writing it. He said that it was all Paul and that he didn’t know what McCartney was thinking when he wrote: “Let It Be.”
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In the video below, when the piano strains of the beginning, “Let It Be” starts, the crowd goes wild, knowing they’re going to hear something special as Sir Paul McCartney plays the piano and begins to sing. Billy Joel joins in to sing the chorus in harmony with the backup singers. Then, to everyone’s surprise, Joel hops up onto the grand piano and has a seat.
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When Billy Joel joins Paul in singing, it just sounds so perfect. Watch this unforgettable performance below.
