Lennon, John - Imagine

Year of Release: 2003
Label: Mobile Fidelity
Catalog Number: 759
Format: CD
Total Time: 39:25:00

The legend of John Lennon as a Beatle and solo artist is common history to anyone that knows anything at all about music.[*] The account of his personal life has made some history of its own when things were not going so well in his life. I remember when he split with Yoko and all the stories about his public displays of drunkenness and disorderly conduct filled the tabloids. Whether or not any of it was true does not matter. What was evident at that time in his life was that John was a lost soul without Yoko. One listen to ?Jealous Guy? and ?Crippled Inside? on his greatest solo album Imagine tells the story.

Mobile Fidelity gives this classic rendering of rock 'n' roll the Ultra Disc II Gold Disc treatment. I had not heard this album in years, but I do remember when it came out and how it was always playing at a friend's house. The title track was such a prolific message coming from a rock star ? Imagine no heaven, no possessions, no countries, and no religion, too. This was John's vision of a world living on equal terms. It is unfortunate that we can only imagine a world such as this, alas it is simply not realistic in these complicated times.

To say that this album sounds better than ever is a given, it is as vital and moving today as it was when it first came out in 1971 (Parlaphone, 46641), which is an additional credit to its merit as an all time classic rock album. Lennon was a true to form icon, a real poet with a cause. His music and lyrics were soaked in the essence of emotion and spiritualism with frustration and anger coming out the other side of that. It is a wonder how he wrote all of these songs, separated, and identified all of those feelings then set it all to music.

If you look at the roster present for these sessions it comes as no surprise why this was such a inexhaustible recording filled with excellence. George Harrison, Nicky Hopkins, King Curtis, Jim Keltner, Alan White, Phil Spector ? anyone that was someone in music sat in with Lennon on this album. Mobile Fidelity you have done it again, and what a great pick for the wonderful series of Original Master Recordings. The sound is as pristine and clear as a freshly fallen shod of snow and the separation of instruments in accord with Lennon's voice could not be much better than what you will hear on this disc. Great musicianship, songwriting and production, what else is there? To hear it in such near perfect form is just a knock out.

[* Brief anecdote from the editor: When in a Tower Records about 10-15 years ago I was approached by a young man about 17-18 years old, holding a Lennon greatest hits package. He asked me if Lennon was any good; all he knew was the song from the Nike commercial? though he didn't know what the title was? I was flabbergasted and I'm sure John was turning over in his grave (so to speak).]


Tracklisting:
Imagine (3:03) / Crippled Inside (3:49) / Jealous Guy (4:14) / It's So Hard (2:27) / I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier Mama (6:08) / Gimme Some Truth (3:16) / Oh My Love (2:45) / How Do You Sleep? (5:36) / How? (3:45) / Oh Yoko! (4:23)

Musicians:
George Harrison - dobro, guitar, slide guitar
John Lennon - guitar, harmonica, piano, electric guitar, keyboards, vocals, whistling, mouth organ
Michael Pinder - percussion, tambourine
King Curtis - saxophone
Nicky Hopkins - piano, keyboards, electric piano
Alan White - percussion, drums, vibraphone, Tibetan finger cymbals
Jim Keltner - drums
Joey Molland - acoustic guitar, guitar
Jim Gordon - drums
Andy - acoustic guitar
John Barham - harmonium, keyboards, vibraphone
Steve Brendell - bass, maracas, upright bass
Tom Evans - guitar
Rod Linton - acoustic guitar, guitar
John Tout - acoustic guitar
Ted Turner - acoustic guitar, guitar
Klaus Voormann - bass, upright bass
Torrie Zito - orchestration
Tommy Banfinger - acoustic guitar

Discography:
Two Virgins: Unfinished Music No. 1 (1968)
Life With The Lions: Unfinished Music No. 2 (1969)
Live Peace In Toronto 1969 (1969)
Wedding Album (1969)
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970)
Imagine (1971)
Sometime In New York City (1972)
Mind Games (1973)
Walls And Bridges (1974)
Rock N' Roll (1975/2004)
Shaved Fish (1975)
Double Fantasy (1980)
The John Lennon Collection (1982)
Milk & Honey (1984/2001)
Live In New York City (1986)
Menlove Ave (1986)
Imagine: John Lennon (Original Soundtrack) (1988)
Lennon (1990)
Acoustic (2004)

Sweet Toronto (2002)
Legend (The Very Best Of John Lennon) (2003)

Genre: Rock

Origin UK

Added: August 24th 2003
Reviewer: Keith "Muzikman" Hannaleck
Score:
Artist website:
Hits: 2165
Language: english