Retro Reviews: John Lennon: Imagine

    I decided to launch a new series to imagine myself as a critic at the end of the 60s and start of the 70s, and to rectify certain reviews from Rolling Stone magazine and Creem. This not meant to be contrarian, but to offer a more balanced perspective. All the albums reviewed are indeed classic albums.

John Lennon and Plastic Ono Band – Imagine (1971)

***

Producers: Phil Spector, John Lennon, Yoko Ono

Musicians: John Lennon, George Harrison, Nicky Hopkins, Klaus Voormann, Alan White, Jim Keltner, Jim Gordon, Ted Turner, Rod Lynton, Joey Molland, Tom Evans, Andy Davis, Steve Brendell, John Tout, King Curtis, Bobby Keys, John Barham, Mike Pinder, Phil Spector

Songs: Imagine, Crippled Inside, Jealous Guy, It’s So Hard, I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier, Gimmie Some Truth, Oh My Love, How Do You Sleep?, How?, Oh Yoko

Reviewed By Matthew Anthony Allair

    I am struggling to access this album as much as I was when I did the review to his prior Plastic Ono Band, and once again it is not about blaming Yoko Ono for some issues. John is his own man, an adult, and responsibility should be placed on his decisions. The follow up to the stripped-down Plastic Ono Band is filled with an all star cast of players and Phil Spector has brought his full sound to the album, unlike the first one. Yet some of the material feels empty. although John is, mostly, a brilliant lyricist, when John is on his game, it works brilliantly, but this is offset with some material that feels under-cooked with their ideas. The music should matter as much as the lyrics, something that George Harrison understood with his exceptional All Things Must Pass. There are places on this album where it struggles to be edgy, yet accessible, and with any other artist, that could get a pass, but this John Lennon after all, a figure whose past innovation with The Beatles defined the music of the 60s. One feels it should have been a little more.

    There’s little debate that the perennial singles “Imagine” and “Jealous Guy” will remain favorites on the radio for years to come. I believe “Jealous Guy” is built on a number from their India sojourn period in 68. “Crippled Inside” opens with a nice picking pattern before it shifts to a light country number. It almost feels like the arrangement undercuts the lyric, and it’s a little whimsical but that might make feel a little too precious, admittedly a catchy number, but it just makes you wonder. The blues rocker, “It’s So Hard”, opens in the same territory as “Cold Turkey”, the real problem is that it is aiming for a stripped-down sound, yet the added strings feel mildly jarring. The jam based, “I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier” wears out it’s welcome at about the half way point. For a longer based song, where is the inventiveness of “Everybody’s Got Something To Hide” or “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”? Where's the rhythmic inventiveness, his ability with play with time signatures in his playing, it's not there, it needed a few more surprises.

     “Gimmie Some Truth” is at least more concise, and George’s slide makes it a little more interesting. “Oh My Love” is one of the prettiest numbers on the album and reveals John is capable of matching Paul’s melodic instincts. Then there’s “How Do You Sleep?” - it has a funky groove, but thematically there’s a drudgery to it, as well as something puerile. Obviously, it’s about his former Beatles bandmate. There’s a line that is revealing, “You live with straights who tell you, you was king.”, Well, wait John, how that’s not apply to you as well? How do we know you aren’t surrounded by sycophants who tell you what you want to hear? Pardon for the following point being crass; I am certain that John’s duodenal movements are as odious as anyone else’s. The lack of self-awareness is a little surprising, 

    The ballads are some of the best things on the album, “How?” is a moving piece that should have been tightened up, the second bridge doesn’t seem needed. The closer is the country flavored “Oh Yoko!”, while it has a similar feel as “Crippled”, at least the tone is more consistent, while the Dylan nod is cute with the Harmonica, this track needed to be shorter. Phil didn’t offer enough of a filter; George Martin might have. There are moments where John sounds a little complacent here, perhaps Jann Wenner has been enabling the discussion, one wonders where is the higher bar. This album is filled with good moments, there’s no arguing that, but it’s also filled with areas where the potential wasn’t realized.

Yoko Ono – Fly (1971)

**1/2

Producers: Yoko Ono, John Lennon

Musicians: Yoko Ono, John Lennon, Klaus Voormann, Bobby Keys, Eric Clapton, Jim Keltner, Ringo Starr, Jim Gordon, Chris Osborne, Joe Jones

Songs and pieces: Midsummer New York, Mind Train, Mind Holes, Don’t Worry Kyoko, Mrs. Lennon, Hirake, Toilet Piece, O’Wind (Body is The Scar Of The Mind), Airmale, Don’t Count The Waves, You, Fly, Telephone Piece

Yoko has released a sprawling double album of mostly ideas, evidently, her husband’s namesake probably helped realize this, it is what it is and she did had a legacy with the Fluxus group, she is just using music to visualize ‘ideas’, There was a helpful press kit and article that explained much of this, she described side one and two as “Songs To dance to, rock songs with a physical beat,” She described  side three and four “Songs to listen to, mind music and mind beat”. She described the long title track, as section one being a Monologue, section two features John’s backward guitar, John’s backwards guitar is more present with section three. The cut is basically Yoko vocalizing certain insect and animal noises, this was the accompaniment to their experimental film. There’s two proper songs with “Midsummer New York” which is a blues, and the ballad “Mrs. Lennon”, this second vocal is actually quite good, she can properly sing when she wants to. “Don’t Worry, Kyoko” is another studio recording with Starr and Clapton along for the ride. I can’t say it’s any better than the 69 B side, or the Toronto performance, just different.

 “You” is probably the most interesting track as it uses multiple random instruments created by Fluxus colleague Joe Jones. Different random percussion builds up as it progresses. “Mind Holes” has some droning acoustic guitars. “Hirake” has a funky groove, and a sort of variation of  the prior “Open Your Box”. “Mind Train” takes some of the prior rock backing ideas from the past album. “O’Wind (Body Is The Scar Of The Mind)” uses tabla, guitar, and what comes across as a Japanese prayer. The piece “Airmale” was used in another Experimental film, this and “You” seem to represent gender opposites. The moody “Don’t Count The Waves” uses delayed percussion and her vocal to leave a strange picture. She has managed to use different venues to explore sound vocal ideas, but I have to wonder if she has exhausted what she can do with her tactics. I hope the proper songs hint at a new direction. This won’t be for everyone, but if you are in the mood for it.