This is the first in a series of occasional talk pieces on Beatles and solo Beatles LPs. We'll give our opinions and you're welcome to leave yours. Feel free to agree or disagree.
"John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band," which passed the 40th anniversary of its release on Dec. 11, was an LP that had a profound impact. It couldn't help but do anything else as it was so incredibly powerful, not to mention good.
For one thing, it was very personal. John tore open his soul. He talked about his mother, the Beatles and his philosophy of life. If the 1971 Rolling Stone interview revealed him to be angry, "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band" also revealed him to be emotionally vulnerable.
As anyone who remembers the vinyl era knows, it was easy to damage them, but it wasn't all that easy to wear one out by just playing it (unless, of course, you had a very dull needle). You had to play them an awful lot.
We didn't wear out very many albums to where we had to replace them for that reason alone. But we wore out our copy of JLPOB.
(Added note: Yoko Ono released her own Plastic Ono Band album at the same time. It's probably one of the most accessible albums in her catalog and it's also very powerful.)
- The 1971 Rolling Stone interview with John Lennon (from Yoko Ono's Imagine Peace website)
Comments
Yes, it was Lennon baring it all, you can't get any more honest than that! Genius ! I wore out 2 copies of the LP myself! 40 years, it boggles the mind. I remember like it was yesterday, all those years ago.
That album just blew me over completely. It all started with the BONG! BONG! BONG! at the beginning of "Mother."
I remember listening to this album and being haunted by that line from the song "God", "I don't believe in Beatles." That really hit home for me that, in all likelilhood, the greatest band ever would never reform.
You could take that line two ways -- as you did -- or that people shouldn't take the Beatles ultra seriously. I think there's a little of both there. George Harrison expressed the same kind of sentiment about not taking the Beatles seriously, too.
I had just turned nine the day the POB albums came out. I didn't hear John's for about ten years, and didn't hear Yoko's for another 12. They're both incredible. Ringo deserves recognition for his spot-on drumming on both records, as does Klaus Voormann for some fantastic bass lines. John's guitar work ain't too shabby, either.
Yoko's is really an amazing surprise.
"Love" is still one of John's most beautiful songs.
What a masterpiece... John in full range. Remember, God, Working Class Hero, Well, Well, Well... I can hear it in my head. Powerful. John Lennon also added a Cookie Monster (go ahead and listen for it). I love this LP... Which made it sad b/c he did put out SometimeinNYC and Mind Games... 2 really bad efforts in my POV. Is JLPOB his best solo effort? Mmmm. It is in the top two. Imagine and Walls & Bridges are there as well.
It says a lot about an album when you can say you don't skip any songs when you listen to it. That being said I'm not always in the mood for "Well Well Well". But this was an amazing statement considering all that had gone before. I've said all I could possibly say here:
http://everybodysdummy.blogspot.com/2008/07/john-lennon-2-john-lennonpla...
Thanks, Steve, for keeping the discussion going.
I agree with Pitchfork on this album. I get why it's confessional nature was groundbreaking for the time. But it's hard to listen to this album without being reminded of that great parody, Magical Misery Tour. And then you realize this is a multimillionaire whining about his mommy issues.
Funny you mention that song. I hadn't really thought about it again up till now. But yeah, that was very funny.
The album SCARED THE HELL out of me at the time! I had never heard THIS John Lennon before! Had to be sure my mother didn't hear the bad words in it when I was playing the record!!
Yeah, I couldn't play that song when my folks were around, either. :)
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Imagine are the two best Beatles solo albums. Rounding out the top ten are 3) All Things Must Pass 4) Band on the Run 5) George Harrison 6) Brainwashed 7) Ringo 8) Walls and Bridges 9) Chaos and Creation in the Backyard 10) Beaucoups of Blues
Lennon said that Plastic Ono Band was his "Sgt. Lennon," ie. his great statement. Musically, the songs on it are close to his work on The White Album...stripped down, alternately harsh and tender. It's one of the great poignant self-portrait albums, along with Joni Mitchell's Blue and Nick Drake's Pink Moon. Great, great album.
Interesting list. My list has Ram at the top of it. A brilliant, beautiful, angry record. It also includes McCartney I.
I must say: Imagine is an album that does not hold up well at all. Where Ram sounds fresh, like it could have been made this year, Imagine sounds so dated.
And you've got way too much Harrison on that list, for my taste. A little of George's voice goes a looongg way. But that's just my humble opinion.
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