Thursday, September 18, 2014
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Special Anniversary Presentation:Live Peace From Toronto 1969
This weekend is the 45th anniversary of John Lennon's performance at Varsity Stadium in the University of Toronto.It was his first solo performance,and the first ever live recording project by a Beatle.On September 13,1969,John Lennon and friends went onstage as "Plastic Ono Band" and performed a set of old rockers,plus some newer Lennon songs."Yer Blues" wasn't totally new,having been included in the White Album;but this was its first live performance."Cold Turkey" was totally new,and "Give Peace A Chance" had just been issued as a Beatles single.*
The live set had been hastily arranged when the concert promoters invited Lennon to appear the day before the event.He rounded up guitarist Eric Clapton,bassist Klaus Voorman and drummer Alan White,and they rehearsed while flying in from London to Toronto,as well as one time at the festival.Alan White initially thought Lennon was an imposter when he called to invite him along,and Eric Clapton at first wasn't sure what was going on.In the event,they gelled pretty well,considering the circumstances.*
Other performers at the Toronto festival included Chuck Berry,Fats Domino,The Doors and Chicago.*
Lennon went back to Abbey Road Studios in London and mixed the LP basically in one day,although he returned to studio and refined the mix in October.The Beatles' American label Capitol Records was reluctant to distribute the slapdash project,but Lennon prevailed in the end.The album rose to number 10 in the Billboard Top 200 chart.It failed to make the British charts,however.*
Some disliked Yoko Ono's screaming on some of the tracks.To this blog,her screaming was appropriate for the songs "Cold Turkey" and "Yer Blues," as they are about emotional and physical pain.On an historical level,the concert and its album marked a turning point in Lennon's career;never again would he perform with The Beatles.Musically,the set was an engaging blend of past and present,the familiar and the foreign.
The live set had been hastily arranged when the concert promoters invited Lennon to appear the day before the event.He rounded up guitarist Eric Clapton,bassist Klaus Voorman and drummer Alan White,and they rehearsed while flying in from London to Toronto,as well as one time at the festival.Alan White initially thought Lennon was an imposter when he called to invite him along,and Eric Clapton at first wasn't sure what was going on.In the event,they gelled pretty well,considering the circumstances.*
Other performers at the Toronto festival included Chuck Berry,Fats Domino,The Doors and Chicago.*
Lennon went back to Abbey Road Studios in London and mixed the LP basically in one day,although he returned to studio and refined the mix in October.The Beatles' American label Capitol Records was reluctant to distribute the slapdash project,but Lennon prevailed in the end.The album rose to number 10 in the Billboard Top 200 chart.It failed to make the British charts,however.*
Some disliked Yoko Ono's screaming on some of the tracks.To this blog,her screaming was appropriate for the songs "Cold Turkey" and "Yer Blues," as they are about emotional and physical pain.On an historical level,the concert and its album marked a turning point in Lennon's career;never again would he perform with The Beatles.Musically,the set was an engaging blend of past and present,the familiar and the foreign.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Saturday, September 6, 2014
What Is Life and the Album It Came From
George Harrison's "What Is Life" is from what he considered to be his first solo album,the three-disc set "All Things Must Pass." It was recorded in 1970-partially in the same Abbey Road,London studios The Beatles used to record their last album in 1969;but was musically distinguished by the slide guitar style of playing which Harrison learned from his friend,fellow guitarist Delaney Bramlett.
Two discs of the album were songs,and the third consisted of jam sessions.The collection's two biggest hits were "My Sweet Lord" and "What Is Life." The LP was co-produced by legendary American Phil Spector,known for his "Wall of Sound" approach,which entails building a thick tapestry of sound through intensive overdubbing.That certainly comes through in "What Is Life."
"All Things Must Pass," which was remastered and partially re-recorded in 2001,the year of Harrison's death from cancer at age 58,hit number one on the album charts worldwide.It went on to be the most commercially and artistically successful of any of The Beatles' solo albums,being highly regarded by critics to this day.In the US alone,it has gone 6x platinum.
Among the album's vast roster of contributors were Phil Collins,Eric Clapton,Ginger Baker,Ringo Starr,Dave Mason,Bobby Keys and orchestral and choral arranger John Barham.It was nominated for the Album of the Year Grammy Award in 1972.
I have offered two versions of the song "What Is Life":one with an India-inspired photo of Harrison;the other featuring a slide show of photos of Harrison,Phil Spector and longtime Beatles assistant Mal Evans.
Two discs of the album were songs,and the third consisted of jam sessions.The collection's two biggest hits were "My Sweet Lord" and "What Is Life." The LP was co-produced by legendary American Phil Spector,known for his "Wall of Sound" approach,which entails building a thick tapestry of sound through intensive overdubbing.That certainly comes through in "What Is Life."
"All Things Must Pass," which was remastered and partially re-recorded in 2001,the year of Harrison's death from cancer at age 58,hit number one on the album charts worldwide.It went on to be the most commercially and artistically successful of any of The Beatles' solo albums,being highly regarded by critics to this day.In the US alone,it has gone 6x platinum.
Among the album's vast roster of contributors were Phil Collins,Eric Clapton,Ginger Baker,Ringo Starr,Dave Mason,Bobby Keys and orchestral and choral arranger John Barham.It was nominated for the Album of the Year Grammy Award in 1972.
I have offered two versions of the song "What Is Life":one with an India-inspired photo of Harrison;the other featuring a slide show of photos of Harrison,Phil Spector and longtime Beatles assistant Mal Evans.
Friday, September 5, 2014
Thursday, September 4, 2014
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