Let It Bee

This article is about the Voice of the Beehive album. For other uses, see Let It Be.

Let It Bee
Studio album by Voice of the Beehive
Released	20 June 1988 [1]
Recorded	1987–1988
Genre	Alternative rock pop
Length	45:03 (U.S. version)
Label	London
Producer	Pete Collins Marvin Etzioni Hugh Jones
Voice of the Beehive chronology
Let It Bee (1988) Honey Lingers (1991)
Singles from Let It Bee
"Just a City" Released: 1987 "I Say Nothing" Released: 1987 "I Walk the Earth" Released: 1988 "Don't Call Me Baby" Released: 1988 "I Say Nothing (reissue)" Released: 1988 "I Walk the Earth (reissue)" Released: 1988 "Man in the Moon" Released: 1988

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Record Collector	[3]
The Village Voice	A− [4]

Let It Bee is the debut album by American alternative pop rock band Voice of the Beehive. Released in 1988 on London Records, the album earned positive reviews from music critics and was a success on U.S. college radio stations. In the UK, the album reached No. 13 on the albums chart in its debut week ending 2 July 1988. ^[5] The album peaked at No. 53 in Australia on the ARIA albums chart, ^[6] and No. 40 in New Zealand. ^[7]

The group had their first top 40 hit single in the UK with "Don't Call Me Baby" from the album, which reached No. 15. ^[5] Let It Bee contained two bonus tracks on the U.S. edition (they were not listed on the CD cover, but were listed within the text on the disc).

Track listing

1. "The Beat of Love" (Tracey Bryn, Brad Nack, temptation rap by Melissa Brooke) – 4:08
2. "Sorrow Floats" (Bryn) – 4:23
3. "Don't Call Me Baby" (Bryn, Mike Jones) – 3:11
4. "Man in the Moon" (Bryn, Brooke) – 3:16
5. "What You Have Is Enough" (Bryn) – 2:38
6. "Oh Love" (Brooke, Jones) – 2:59
7. "I Walk the Earth" (Nack) – 3:42
8. "Trust Me" (Bryn) – 3:22
9. "I Say Nothing" (Bryn, Jones) – 3:32
10. "There's a Barbarian in the Back of My Car" (Bryn, Zodiac Mindwarp) – 2:38
11. "Just a City" (Bryn, Jones) – 4:27
12. "This Weak" (Bryn, Jones) (bonus track, U.S. only) – 3:14
13. "Jesus" (Lou Reed) (bonus track, U.S. only) – 3:24

Personnel

The band

• Tracey Bryn – vocals and guitar
• Melissa Brooke Belland – vocals
• Mike Jones – guitars, vocals, keyboards, and keyboard programming
• Martin Brett – bass guitar and piano
• D. M. Woodgate – drums, percussion, triggers, and keyboard programming

Additional musicians

• Henrick – keyboards
• Dave Swarbrick – fiddle
• The Kick – horns, Ladbroke Grove Man on "The Beat of Love" intro
• Marvin Etzioni – mandolin, piano

Production

• Pete Collins – "The Beat of Love", "Sorrow Floats", "Don't Call Me Baby", "Man in the Moon", "I Walk the Earth", "Trust Me" and "I Say Nothing"
• Hugh Jones – "Just a City", "There's a Barbarian in the Back of My Car" and "What You Have Is Enough"
• Marvin Etzioni – "Oh Love"
• Mike Jones – "This Weak" and "Jesus"

Charts

Chart (1988)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA Charts) [8]	53
New Zealand (RIANZ)	40
United Kingdom (Official Charts Company)	13

2022 deluxe edition

Chart (2022)	Peak position
Scottish Albums (OCC) [9]	52
UK Album Sales Chart (OCC) [10]	53
UK Independent Albums (OCC) [11]	15

Singles

• 1987 "Just a City" No.154 UK
• 1987 "I Say Nothing" No. 45 UK, ^[5] No. 73 AUS ^[12]
• 1988 "I Walk the Earth" No. 42 UK ^[5]
• 1988 "Don't Call Me Baby" No. 15 UK, ^[5] No. 48 AUS, ^[13] No. 25 NZ ^[7]
• 1988 "I Say Nothing" (re-issue) No. 22 UK, ^[5] No. 11 U.S. Modern Rock Tracks ^[14]
• 1988 "I Walk the Earth" (re-issue) No. 46 UK ^[5]
• 1988 "Man in the Moon" No. 93 UK ^[5]

References

1. "New Albums". Music Week . 18 June 1988. p. 8.
2. Let It Bee at AllMusic
3. Staunton, Terry (October 2022). "From The Vaults". Record Collector (536): 118.
4. Christgau, Robert (14 March 1989). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice . New York. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
5. "Official Charts > Voice of the Beehive". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
6. "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 2015-07-15". Imgur. Archived from the original on 16 July 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
7. "charts.nz > Voice of the Beehive". charts.nz Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
8. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
9. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
10. "Official Album Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
11. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
12. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). Sydney: Australian Chart Book. p. 330. ISBN   0-646-11917-6. N.B. This chart was licensed by ARIA until they commenced producing the chart in-house from 26 June 1988.
13. "Australian Charts > Voice of the Beehive". australian-charts.com Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
14. "Billboard Artists / Voice of the Beehive: Alternative Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 7 October 2015.