The Replacements – Let It Be LP

Description

Let It Belooms large among ’80s rock albums, generally regarded as one of the greatest records of the decade. So large is its legend and so universal its acclaim that all the praise tends to give the impression thatthe Replacements‘ fourth album was designed as a major statement, intended to be something important when its genius, like so many things involvingthe ‘Mats, feels accidental. Compared to other underground landmarks from 1984,Let It Befeels small scale, as it lacks the grand, sprawling ambition ofthe Minutemen‘sDouble Nickels on the Dimeor the dramatic intensity ofHsker D‘sZen Arcade, or if the other side of the Atlantic is taken into equation, the clean sense of purpose ofThe Smiths. Nothing aboutLet It Beis clean; it’s all a ragged mess, careening wildly from dirty jokes to wounded ballads, from utter throwaways to songs haunting in their power. Unlike other classics,Let It Beneeds those throwaways — thatKisscover, those songs aboutTommygetting his tonsils out and Gary’s boner, that rant about phony rock & roll — to lighten the mood and give the album its breathless pacing, but also because without these asides, the album wouldn’t be true tothe Replacements, who never separated high and low culture, who celebrated pure junk and reluctantly bared their soul. This blend of bluster and vulnerability is whythe Replacementswere perhaps the most beloved band of their era, as they captured all the chaos and confusion of coming of age in the midst ofReaganomics, andLet It Beis nothing if not a coming-of-age album, perched precisely between adolescence and adulthood. There’s just enough angst and tastelessness to have the album speak to teenagers of all generations and just enough complicated emotion to make this music resonate with listeners long past those awkward years, whether they grew up with this album or not. -All Music Guide