that is funny (insofar as you can misread it as implying that Yoko didn't write any songs for Ringo to sing) - but I sorta bristled at the implication that Yoko couldn't function in John's idiom. Witness this piece of absolute brilliance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8k4lN3Kd28
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:33 (thirteen years ago) link
No, I disagree (I love M&H's "You're The One") – I just love the terseness of his dismissal, especially after that long sentence.
― raging hetero lifechill (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:36 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah I can understand this, being bombarded with his cultural omnipresence every 10 years will do that
and yet I always hope that I'm going to stumble upon Lennon's stuff in a way that will somehow cause all of it make more sense than it does. why? he's dead! I've already heard everything!
― Dominique, Friday, 22 October 2010 18:38 (thirteen years ago) link
have you heard Pussycats?
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:39 (thirteen years ago) link
not that it will make anything "make more sense" - really it's just another piece in the incomprehensible puzzle - but what a fun, great-sounding, bleakly funny piece it is
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:40 (thirteen years ago) link
The problem is, it's always the same dozen or so songs, when he did extremely minimalist and challenging stuff that is being ignored by the music industry. His first two solo albums aren't even being reissued! Thom Yorke just recently ripped off "Two Minutes Silence".
They should let Thom handle Lennon's music LOL
― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:42 (thirteen years ago) link
pussy cats
yes, and yeah it's just more haze. I came at it from the Nilsson point of view, in which case it's both inspired and tragic. thru a lennon lens, less tragic, more benevolent albeit w/less invested in the end result of HN's general well being...?
― Dominique, Friday, 22 October 2010 18:43 (thirteen years ago) link
Wow, "Radio Play" is a straight up Animal Collective instrumental.
― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:44 (thirteen years ago) link
wait Dom are you blaming HN's drinking on Lennon...?
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:46 (thirteen years ago) link
Yeah that's wrong
― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:50 (thirteen years ago) link
I mean I know the story that Nilsson busted a vocal chord on that album and went on recording anyway (ostensibly because he didn't want to admit it to Lennon?) but I dunno if that's the kind of thing you can really lay at John's feet.
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 18:58 (thirteen years ago) link
Liveblogging "Life with the Lions" first play. Just listened to John Lennon pushing the 'off' and 'on' buttons & volume knobds on a radio for 12 minutes! amazing!!!! "Radio Play" is incredible.
'On a windy day let's go on flyingThere may be no trees to rest onthere may be no clouds to ride'
"Song for John" is AMAZING.
― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Friday, 22 October 2010 19:02 (thirteen years ago) link
"Mulberry", this is some nice stuff. Noise acoustic guitar with a slide, Yoko singing sadly but softly. Brilliant.
― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Friday, 22 October 2010 19:05 (thirteen years ago) link
Love the fast playing at 3.33
no, not blaming his drinking, but more like, lennon kind of riding the train w/him, and in the end lennon had a fortitude that nilsson didn't, and hence didn't have to pay the same kind of consequences
― Dominique, Friday, 22 October 2010 19:06 (thirteen years ago) link
I wonder if John experimenting with alternate tunings in the 60s or if he just was too fucked up to notice the guitars were tuned oddly.
― Telephoneface (Adam Bruneau), Friday, 22 October 2010 19:06 (thirteen years ago) link
John was totally familiar with multiple tuning styles and he uses a bunch of different ones throughout the Beatles catalog
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 19:25 (thirteen years ago) link
Dear Prudence uses both open D and drop D iirc
"No Bed For Beatle John" consists of John and Yoko singing the text of press clippings about themselves, in a cappella chant style.
lol
― the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 22 October 2010 19:28 (thirteen years ago) link
have we had a thread about Lennon solo books? just slightly off topic but has anyone read the new(ish) Philip Norman biog?
― piscesx, Saturday, 23 October 2010 20:45 (thirteen years ago) link
There should be a poll. The Pete Shotton one is amazing.
― nate woolls, Saturday, 23 October 2010 20:47 (thirteen years ago) link
Classic Lennon books:
Pete Shotton - probably the best one out thereMay Pang - good account which brings out a lot of the flaws, but makes him more humanFred Seaman - needs to be treated with some caution, but has an air of authenticity about it for the most part
I did read the Philip Norman one when it came out - but found it quite a dull read. And disappointingly he seems to go for the Eliot Mintz PR line about the Lost Weekend.
― Bob Six, Saturday, 23 October 2010 21:03 (thirteen years ago) link
Yeah my interest in Shotton was piqued by the Nowhere Boy film. I must get that. I was only vaguely familiar with him but he was clearly more of an important figure than i realised. Or at least you know the film appears to suggest as much.
What's the Eliot Mintz line Bob? And indeed who's he?!
― piscesx, Saturday, 23 October 2010 21:09 (thirteen years ago) link
holy fuck amazon:John Lennon: In My Life by Pete Shotton and Nicholas Schaffner (Hardcover - Nov 1994) 2 used from $165.00
that's a shame
― KC & the sunshine banned (outdoor_miner), Saturday, 23 October 2010 21:13 (thirteen years ago) link
I paid £12 for a paperback on Amazon about 3 months ago.
― nate woolls, Saturday, 23 October 2010 21:17 (thirteen years ago) link
$165 ! wow how long has it been put of print?
― piscesx, Saturday, 23 October 2010 21:21 (thirteen years ago) link
*out
Elliot Mintz is, or was, effectively PR for Yoko - and constantly put out a stream of stories patching up the mythology of John and Yoko as the great romance, minimising the Lost Weekend period, and glossing over John's depression of the mid-to late 70s.
Fred Seaman's assessment:
"She (Yoko) told Mintz to play up her role as businesswoman and to publicize her reliance on psychics. Mintz had once told me that he did not think that press reports about Yoko's confidence in psychics were good for her image. I was therefore astonished when he agreed with everything Yoko said. He was a consummate sycophant."
― Bob Six, Saturday, 23 October 2010 21:47 (thirteen years ago) link
Really into Walls and Bridges today, especially this one:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSS2ABconDg
― austinato (Austin), Wednesday, 14 October 2015 00:00 (eight years ago) link
I'm...not fond of Woman.
― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 03:30 (six years ago) link
if i recall, the original demo on the lennon anthology has some real power, but the MOR production on double fantasy really takes the life out of it.
― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 03:56 (six years ago) link
I'm...not fond of Woman🕸.
― Naive Teen Idol, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 04:15 (six years ago) link
was just thinking about how pathetic double fantasy & the interviews he gave in 1980 would be seen if he had lived longer
― flappy bird, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 04:29 (six years ago) link
the contrast between the playfulness and inventiveness of lennon's earlier lyrics and shit like "after all, it is written in the stars" is p depressing to me. and yeah the "little child inside the man" stuff suggests that lennon spent a little too much time absorbing, i don't know, self-help books and psychobabble during his period of exile. the double fantasy stuff i honestly enjoy most is the lighthearted stuff like "starting over."
― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 04:52 (six years ago) link
CLEANUP TIME
― timellison, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 05:44 (six years ago) link
I love 'Woman' - beautiful song. Lennon was pretty much spent creatively by 1972, but he still turned out the odd gem.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 07:00 (six years ago) link
Love it too, mostly for sentimental reasons
― Week of Wonders (Ross), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 15:53 (six years ago) link
I mostly prefer Yoko's tracks on Double Fantasy to John's, though.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 17:24 (six years ago) link
Season of Glass is a better album
― AdamVania (Adam Bruneau), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:06 (six years ago) link
yes and yes
― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:31 (six years ago) link
I would have voted for John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band like everyone else, but second choice would have been Walls & Bridges, surprised it got no votes.
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:36 (six years ago) link
I think there's three great songs on Walls & Bridges, and two of 'em were singles.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:40 (six years ago) link
been thinking how being freed from the Beatles really invigorated his songwriting, so many great songs (and def a fair amount of his best) came out in that '69-'72 period. And then around when he splits with Yoko he seemed to mostly lose the plot.
― Οὖτις, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:42 (six years ago) link
Yeah, '69-'72 was a great period for him artistically (with the exception of Some Time in New York City,I guess.
But: 'Give Peace a Chance', 'Instant Karma!', 'Cold Turkey', 'Mother', 'Working Class Hero', 'Imagine', 'Jealous Guy', 'Oh My Love', 'Gimme Some Truth', 'Happy Xmas (War is Over)' ... I mean, you can't fuck with any of those.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:54 (six years ago) link
and that production/mixing style he hit on with Spector with the pounding rhythm section + slapback vocal echo was such a great combo. Gives the grooves in things like "How Do You Sleep" a real oomph.
xp
― Οὖτις, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:55 (six years ago) link
Lennon loved slap-back on his voice, didn't he? It's on his better Double Fantasy songs. Too bad the drum sound is so awful on that record.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:58 (six years ago) link
Well, you can, but that much should be obvious.
― Terry Micawber (Tom D.), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 18:59 (six years ago) link
Even after that there was 'Mind Games', '#9 Dream', 'What You Got', 'Woman' and 'Nobody Told Me' ... he could still write a great song, just not as many of them. The arrangements of a lot of Lennon's solo stuff can render a lot of it feeling really samey, though. I wish his solo career was a touch more diverse.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 19:01 (six years ago) link
xpost:
Nah, all of those tracks are flawless. Perfect.
― Gholdfish Killah (Turrican), Wednesday, 15 November 2017 19:02 (six years ago) link
yeah his sound got really limp w out Ringo and Voorman and Spector imo
― Οὖτις, Wednesday, 15 November 2017 19:03 (six years ago) link