John Lennon - "Imagine" (1971)

Another one of these classic albums a record collection worthy of it’s name probably must include, whether you like the album or not. Though I must immediately admit that Imagine hasn’t been long in my collection, just a few weeks. I found it in a store for used record in Gothenburg for the excellent price of 35 Swedish kronor (= 5 USD), a bargain I couldn’t resist. The low price can be explained by the record’s semi shabby condition, but a simple cleaning of the record made it much fresher. The first half of the opening song and also the title track is not possible to listen to, thaks to a small dent (which of course affects the opening track on the B-side in the same way). Who is to blame, the previous owner or the company pressing the album?

Although I haven’t owned the album, I’ve had the music from Imagine at home since my early teens, on the classic and now extinct format cassette tape. My aunt's husband recorded this album and gave me as a Christmas present, so my relationship to the music is long despite the album’s absence in the shelf. And there is a tendency with classic albums like Imagine that you hear the songs in different contexts - radio, television, advertising, in the form of covers, old concert clips, etc. which makes it kept alive.

Imagine is produced by madman Phil Spector together with John and Yoko, and the sound is different from the predecessor John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band. At Imagine the listener gets to hear more spacious productions with fat strings and a large piano sound, something I suspect Mr. Spector should get credit for. Most of the songs are more readily available and the album is on the whole more commercially viable, a bit gentler and nicer than its predecessor. This is not to say that all the songs are easy and straightforward, also Imagine contains its more challenging creations, such as I Don’t Want To Be A Soldier.
The album was recorded in Lennon’s home studio in London, and some extra recordings were made in New York.

The two big hits Imagine and Jealous Guy are in a way quite cheezy songs to be honest. At the same time the former, in its desire for peace and equality, becomes a political statement in a turbulent time, and the latter has a dark undertone consisting of jealousy’s consequences. Although the song Imagine is one of the last hundred years most classic songs, I've heard it too much. I’ve simply grown tired of it. Therefore, the rest of the album is more interesting in my eyes and ears. If you want to hear a couple of other beautiful songs that are not as worn out I recommend How? and Oh Yoko! where the latter is more up-tempo and energizing. At the moment Give Me Some Truth is my favorite song from Imagine, a song that was around already at the time of the Beatles' recording of Let It Be. It’s a song with a political content where you hear George Harrison play guitar.

To be somewhat negative, I’ve never been fond of John’s a bit thin and nasal voice that puts its mark on most songs. To me his voice conveys bitterness, criticism and a somewhat neurotic feeling that creates a picture of a person I problably would find hard to hang out and chill with. This also goes for his more relaxed love songs. Moreover, one can debate whether the texts with an often political content is relevant today. Has the world changed? Unfortunately, a lot of what he sings about is as relevant today as it was then, although some references, eg to Nixon, are outdated. At the same time there are new politicians today representing what Nixon did then, so perhaps Lennon's contemporary criticism is timeless.

In the end, Imagine is an album I would be a sinner if I didn’t recommended. It really is a classical album and a nice piece of history from the early 70's. I don’t think all the songs are great, some are even quite boring, but it’s still a must have in the record shelf (which of course is easy for me to say now, since I finally actually own it). A lot of people claim that Imagine was the high point of Lennon’s solo career.

　
Tracklist

Side A
1. Imagine 3:01
2. Crippled Inside 3:47
3. Jealous Guy 4:14
4. It’s So Hard 2:25
5. I Don’t Want To Be A Soldier 6:05

Side B
1. Give Me Some Truth 3:16
2. Oh My Love 2:50
3. How Do You Sleep 5:36
4. How? 3:43
5. Oh Yoko! 4:20

John Lennon - "John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band" (1970)

Brutal honesty. Personal lyrics. A dose of bitterness. A dose of primal therapy. A relatively tight sound. There you’ve got some of the elements of John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band. When I as a teenager bought this album, I listened a lot to the Beatles, especially I liked their more psychedelic creations. Most of all I liked Lennon's songs. They were often both druggier and more experimental than McCartney's contributions. Therefore I was quite disappointed with this album. It was not at all druggy and psychedelic. There were no backwards guitars or LSD-induced lyrics. Instead it was quite dark and anguished music. Brutal reality.

This was Lennon's first full length album as a solo artist and was recorded at Abbey Road Studios. Much of the music was inspired by the primal therapy he underwent at this time, which explains some heavy themes in the lyrics. Ringo Starr played drums on the album, and Phil Spector plays piano on one song (Love), he’s also mentioned as co-producer. In practice, however, John and Yoko produced most of the album themselves, since Spector was often away on other assignments.

It’s not an easy album to digest and not something you play as nice background music to create a gentle atmosphere. The album requires focus and attention to be fully appreciated. McCartney’s and (sometimes) Lennon's playfulness from the Beatles' days is far away. This is serious, sad, angry, bitter and Lennon makes things clear. Very clear. The opening line from the opening song Mother tells you what it’s all about - "Mother, you had me, but I never had you.".

Probably the most famous song from the album is Working Class Hero. Another famous song is God where John lists everything and everyone he no longer believes in, and where he finally says the now classic line, "I don’t believe in Beatles, I just believe in me."

The album is considered to be one of the major albums in musical history and often gets high positions in the "Best of" lists. Personally, though, I have not had an easy ride with it. Maybe it requires too much of the listener. The lyrics are often too personal and brutally honest. The sound is a bit too cut-down and ”simple”. There are no unusual time signatures, no big arrangements or complex song structures. On the contrary, the songs are quite "simple" - verses and choruses. I miss the experimental Lennon from a few years earlier (not to say that complex song structures and adventurous musical experimentation are always good things).

At the same time I respect the album a lot just because of the above mentioned. And in many ways it’s a groundbreaking album unlike anything else in its mental nudity where nothing is hidden. In other words, more innovative and experimental than most other things made ​​at the same time or later (complex song structures, strange time signatures and backwards drums included).

Although I don’t listen to this album often I must, at the end of the day, say that this is a good album. The opposite, that it’s a lousy record, feels like a quite strange conclusion. John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band is an extremely ambitious album where you’ve got a musician / artist who is very serious about his work. It’s far from commercial radio pop, it’s more like public psychotherapy. It feels as if Lennon was really serious about this album.

Parallel with this recording Yoko Ono recorded Yoko Ono / Plastic Ono Band, which was released the same date. The same musicians and production team were used for both albums. That record hasn’t got the same attention, though.

Tracklist

Side A

1. Mother 5:34

2. Hold On 1:52

3. I Found Out 3:37

4. Working Class Hero 3:48

5. Isolation 2:51

Side B

1. Remember 4:33

2. Love 3:21

3. Well Well Well 5:59

4. Look at Me 2:53

5. God 4:09

6: My Mummy’s Dead 0:49