Classic Album: Plastic Ono Band

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Editorial Reviews:

Description
"John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band" was John Lennon's first solo studio album after the break up of The Beatles. Both John & Yoko had been undergoing primal scream therapy in the lead up to the recording of the album and both this and Yoko Ono's companion album ("Yoko Ono / Plastic Ono Band") were deeply influenced by their therapy. This latest addition to Eagle's acclaimed Classic Albums series explores the creation of this groundbreaking album through new interviews, archive footage and detailed analysis of the original multi-track masters. Interviewees include Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono and bass player Klaus Voorman.

TRACK LISTING: Features excerpts from: Mother - Hold On - Isolation - I Found Out - Love - God - Working Class Hero - and more...

Customer Reviews: Read 6 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Essential purchase for Lennon collectors April 11, 2008
41 out of 42 found this review helpful

The 'Classic Albums' series document the making of seminal pop albums
(Paul Simon's 'Graceland', Bob Marley's 'Catch a Fire', Fleetwood
Mac's 'Rumours', to name but a few of the previous releases) through
interviews with participants and associates and the playing of master
tapes (more on that later). This new 52' feature documents the making
of John Lennon's first 'proper' (i.e. accessible to the public at
large) studio album, 'John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band', recorded in the
fall of 1970 and released in December of that year.

Although light on the rare video side of things - there appears to be
no available footage of the sessions, so the producers have collected
little-seen (but previously circulating) clips of John attending the
Alexandra Palace psychedelic event in London (29 April 1967) and
sequences from the BBC '24 Hour' documentary (shown on 15 December
1969) -, the real treat for Beatles videos collectors are
previously-unseen excerpts of John and Yoko's appearance on
'Parkinson' (17 July 1971) which, to my knowledge, haven't been seen
since the original transmission. Other clips from that show have been
included in various programmes over the years, notably 'Imagine'
(1972) and 'Imagine, John Lennon' (1988) but the ones on this DVD are
different.

We also get new interviews with people involved in the making of the
album (Yoko Ono, Ringo Starr, Klaus Vormann, engineers Phil McDonald
and John Leckie), music critics (Jann Wenner, who interviewed Lennon
at length in December 1970 for 'Rolling Stone,' and Richard Williams),
the man responsible for inspiring the album (Dr. Arthur Janov,
proponent of the primal scream theory, whose seminar John and Yoko had
attended in the summer of 1970), Beatle historian Mark Lewisohn
(author of the superb 'The Beatles' Recording Sessions' and 'The
Complete Beatles Chronicles'), as well as Elliot Mintz, who was not
involved with the album at all. My impression is that the latter's
inclusion is due to the fact that he appears to be groomed, as Yoko's
PR man, to take over as guardian of John's legacy the day she passes
away. Here's someone else who'll be ready on day one...

But the main drawing point of this DVD, and what makes it in my
opinion an essential addition to any Lennon fan's collection, is the
playing of the original multitrack tapes at Abbey Road by the
engineers who worked on the album. As they isolate various tracks, we
get to hear John's spine-chilling voice on its own or the various
instruments on the - very spare - backing tracks (which usually
consisted simply of John on guitar or piano, Ringo on drums and Klaus
on bass).

We also get shots of various EMI Tape boxes, indicating the precise
recording dates of various songs on the album. Up until now, the only
known session date for a particular song was 9 October 1970, John's
30th birthday, when he recorded 'Remember'. Here are the dates we now
have:

26 Sep 1970: 'Mother' (take 61 -- possibly an in-joke, as this was the
first day of recording), 'Working Class Hero' (takes 1-9)

27 Sep 1970: 'God' (takes 1-2 of an alternate, acoustic guitar-based
version), 'Well Well Well' (takes 3-4)

30 Sep 1970: 'Hold On' (takes 1-6)

7 Oct 1970: 'Look at Me' (take 1), 'God' (takes 1-8 of a remake, still
guitar-based)

9 Oct 1970: 'Remember' (takes 1-4)

17 Oct 1970: 'Mother' (possibly a vocal overdub session)

24 Oct 1970: 'Mother' (another possible vocal overdub session)

There is another session sheet, but the date is cropped out in the
documentary. On that unspecified date (probably late September), they
recorded 'Isolation' (takes 24-29) and 'Well Well Well' (takes 5-6 of
a remake).

In addition to the 52' documentary, there's 35' of bonus
footage. On many DVDs, this is filled with boring stuff
considered not good enough to be included in the main feature. Here,
though, it's simply more great isolation mixes, two clips from John's
1972 concert at Madison Square Garden ('Well Well Well' and 'Mother'),
and the 'holding up signs' version of 'Instant Karma!' (broadcast on
'Top of the Pops' on 19 February 1970) in pristine quality.

* Spoiler alert! Don't read any further if you want to be
surprised by the musical contents of this DVD! *

The multitracks played are:

- a mostly complete 'Remember' (with some stop-and-starts and a recent
clip of Klaus playing the bass line at home) and an earlier (fun,
faster) take, which was partially released on 'John Lennon Anthology'
in 1998. This multitrack mixdown starts earlier, though.

- isolated tracks of 'Well Well Well', 'Working Class Hero', 'God'
(the released version and an alternate, acoustic guitar-based take),
'Mother', 'Isolation', 'Love.'

Bamiyan
Beatles on DVD

3 out of 5 stars

Primal Therapy Cut Short May 3, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

In watching this program I must say that the bonus material was what should have been the basis of the actual program itself, meaning that both engineers Phil McDonald and Richard Lush gave more insight into the making of this seminal album than that of the surviving performers. A lot of visuals were regurgitated from "Lennon Legend" using in fact most of the videos made for "Mother" and "Working Class Hero" and countless familiar clips used before (although they seemed restored for this presentation), that gave a sense of not exploring personal sentiments further once again proveing that the power of Lennon's voiceover drove this documentary. The moments that stood out for me was Phil McDonald playing back a alternative version of "God" that was slightly play faster and with a different vocal style truly what this program needed to unearth more of.

Still having the alternative version of "Instant Karma" from "Top Of The Pops" and the film segments from "Live In New York City" the One To One concert (pristine quality ones hopes the full concert will see the light of day soon!) is shall we say a redeeming factor that can be justidified in the purchase of this product.

4 out of 5 stars

Not the Lennon of "Yesterday" or "Imagine" May 5, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

The "Classic Albums" series slowed down for a few years but is gearing up again and this DVD is one of the newest releases. Like the others in the series it focuses on ONE landmark Lp and discusses each track in order. Usually the engineer who worked on the recording gets significant screen time. (The series emphasizes the importance of the albums Producer and Sound Engineers in making the album a "Classic").

This program is no different. The problem is that when the album was made in 1970, artists were not filming their every move in the studio and so there's not as much vintage footage of Lennon recording, as many fans would want. Much comes from promo videos.

This was John Lennon's "breakout" solo album after the Beatles split up and he had the change to explore the "hard rock" side of himself. And Yoko Ono is an integral part of the album as well, and a major influence on Lennon's music. There are a lot of new interviews with her as well as Ringo. We also hear from Dr. Arthur Janov, the therapist who developed "scream therapy".

The bonus interviews are - as mentioned by another reviewer - even more insightful than those included in the hour long documentary.

This DVD will appeal to true Lennon fans. McCartney music lovers will probably find it less interesting.

It's good to see the "Classic Albums" series continue. There are lots more albums which need these in-depth treatments.

Steve Ramm

"Anything Phonographic"

4 out of 5 stars

Plastic Ono Band May 22, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This is a well organized documentary of one of the greatest albums ever made. Having Ringo Starr and Klaus Voorman included with recent recollations of this landmark John Lennon solo album are priceless. My only complaint is that it is not in 5.1 surround sound or at least I haven't found a way to play it in 5.1 sound.

5 out of 5 stars

Thank You Yoko! May 29, 2008
Without Yoko entering John's life this album would not have been made. Maybe the best recorded album ever. RAW! Three instruments and a load of emotions. This DVD isolates John's voice and guitar seperately. Ringo's drumming is his best and the song "God" is as fine a song as there is! Bassist Klaus Voorman adds some insite into John's life during that period.
If you don't own the CD then don't get this. You must experience the CD and this will be the topper.
Other classics are "Isolation" and the guitar parts and sounds are incredible. How it was recorded is informative and on this "Classic Album" they let the tape roll throughout most of the song. They just sit there and listen and appreciate. AWESOME!

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