A lost, decades-old interview with John Lennon sees the singer reveal that recording Let It Be was “hell”.

As the Telegraph reports, the audio interview – with Village Voice journalist Howard Smith – was recorded shortly after The Beatles had finished work on the 1969 studio album. However, it lay forgotten in Smith’s attic for nearly four decades but will now be put up for sale by RR Auction.

In the interview, Lennon – who was speaking to Smith along with his wife, Yoko Ono – says of working on the record: “We were going through hell. We often do. It’s torture every time we produce anything. The Beatles haven’t got any magic you haven’t got. We suffer like hell anytime we make anything, and we got each other to contend with. Imagine working with The Beatles, it’s tough.”

He added: “There’s just tension. It’s tense every time the red light goes on.” Lennon, who also described the LP as a “strange album”, continued: “We never really finished it. We didn’t really want to do it. Paul was hustling for us to do it. It’s The Beatles with their suits off.”

RR Auction vice president Bobby Livingston said that the tape had a minimum bid price of $300, but estimated that it could reach between $5,000 and $10,000. It is just one of 100 Beatles-related items that will go under the hammer of their Marvels Of Modern Music memorabilia sale. “It’s a frank and honest interview from one of the most revered musicians and activists of all time,” he said.