"Mother" & "God"

Nothing sadder than John's plaintive opening cries: "Mother, you had me, but I never had you..." Especially when you know the history of what happened with his mother, and father.

On "God", I don't agree with his conclusions on God, Jesus and the Bible, BUT the rest of it "I don't believe in Elvis-Kings-Zimmerman-Kennedy", and inexorably on to the most stunning: "I DON'T BELIEVE IN BEATLES -AND SO, DEAR FRIENDS, YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO CARRY ON-THE DREAM IS OVER." This statement was intended to get people to realize that he, the Beatles, and all those who we put on a pedestal, are just fallible people and not gods, so get over it! Stunning.

John Lennon: The Musical Mastermind

Plastic Ono Band, Inspired by his primal scream therapy with Dr. Walter Janov, Lennon created a harrowing set of unflinchingly personal songs, laying out all of his fears and angers for everyone to hear. It was a revolutionary record -- never before had a record been so explicitly introspective, and very few records made absolutely no concession to the audience's expectations, daring the listeners to meet all the artist's demands. Which isn't to say that the record is unlistenable. Lennon's songs range from tough rock & rollers to piano-based ballads and spare folk songs, and his melodies remain strong and memorable, which actually intensifies the pain and rage of the songs. Not much about Plastic Ono Band is hidden. Lennon presents everything on the surface, and the song titles -- "Mother," "I Found Out," "Working Class Hero," "Isolation," "God," "My Mummy's Dead" -- illustrate what each song is about, and charts his loss of faith in his parents, country, friends, fans, and idols. It's an unflinching document of bare-bones despair and pain, but for all its nihilism, it is ultimately life-affirming; it is unique not only in Lennon's catalog, but in all of popular music. Few albums are ever as harrowing, difficult, and rewarding as Plastic Ono Band

Lennon's solo debut

Plastic Ono Band (1970.) John Lennon's first solo album.

In 1970, the Beatles finally broke up after a number of clashing differences within the band. Fortunately though, the break up of the band did little to discourage fans - all four members went on to successful solo careers. John Lennon had created several solo projects prior to the break up (the Unfinished Music releases, the Wedding Album, etc.), but none of them were really albums - they were more sound collages than anything else. But, following those blunders that even Beatles die-hards tend to overlook, Lennon put together the first incarnation of his solo band, which he dubbed the Plastic Ono Band. On this, his first solo album, his old Beatles comrade Ringo Starr plays drums, and his old buddy Klaus Voorman plays bass (John met Klaus back when the Beatles were a lesser-known group and they were touring Germany. He is the person that drew the Revolver album cover.) How does John's first solo album measure up? Read on and find out.

Admittingly, this album lacks the polish and the popularity of its follow-up, Imagine, but it's a solid album for the most part. One of the biggest hits of his solo career, Mother, can be found on this album. In this track, John expresses frustration toward his father deserting him and his mother dying at a fairly young age. An alternative, edited version of this song was issued as a single (the edited single version can be found on the Lennon Legend hits compilation.) Another fairly popular song that can be found on this album is Working Class Hero. In the middle-era of the Beatles career, John was heavily influenced by Bob Dylan, and that influence really shows on this track. Here, he manages to create an excellent song with excellent lyrics. A number of other, lesser popular but still excellent tracks can also be found on the album. Billy Preston, a guest pianist on Beatle albums from the latter years, also makes an appearance on this album. As the album progresses, it comes off as uneven in places, but still, many of the songs are excellent.

This compact disc reissue of the album includes two bonus tracks that were not on the original LP. The first one is Power To The People, a fairly big hit for Lennon. The track is very popular, but until now it had only been available on compilations and singles, so it's good to finally have it on an album. Next up is the highly-bizzare Do The Oz. This is a weird track which John and Yoko wrote together. Although strange, this is a better track than some people give it credit for being. Give it a chance, and it will grow on you. There were other non-LP tracks from this era that would have made good bonus tracks, too, and I wish they would have made the cut. Also, on the case, it doesn't say anywhere that these are bonus tracks, which can lead to confusion for new fans. Another thing missing from the case (which also isn't anywhere in the liner notes) is the original album release date - this album was originally released toward the end of 1970.

Overall, John Lennon's first true album as a solo artist is a good one. It's WAY better than Ringo's Sentimental Journey, slightly better than Paul McCartney's McCartney, but not nearly as good as George Harrison's All Things Must Pass (all four of these are their solo debut albums, released in the year 1970, which is why I'm comparing THEM.) If you're a Lennon fan and you've got an open mind, give Plastic Ono Band a listen. But if you're a fan who is more on the casual side, go directly to Lennon's second solo album, Imagine. Don't bother with hits compilations; they just don't do him justice.

lo mejor de lennon!!!!!!

este es el mejor disco que el beatle john lennon grabo en toda su corta vida.las mejores canciones interpretadas por la banda plastic ono(ringo starr,lennon,yoko y alan white,no esta clapton ok?')la produccion suena cruda ,como me gusta sin esas cuerdas de spector.canciones como mother,working class hero,hold on,son todas buenisimas.yo tengo la version remaster del cd ,suena mucho mejor que la original.este plastic ono es la quinta produccion de lennon como solista y no hay nada como el ,tal vez imagine sea el segundo mejor.este disco no es solo el mejor disco de lennon si no tambien uno de los mejores de cualquier beatle como solista.comprenlo ya!!!! q estan esperando.

Not Plastic At All

Of all the ex-Beatles solo albums none match the rawness and charm of John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band. While George Harrison's three-LP All Things Must Pass sounds dated, Plastic Ono Band still holds up today. This is because of its honesty and simplicity.



With this album (made in 1969) John Lennon officially pulls the plug on The Beatles when he sings "the dream is over". He declares his devotion to his new love Yoko. Luckily we are spared Yoko's "songs" that would contaminate Lennon's later albums.



If you're a fan of The Beatles "White Album" then you'll also love this CD. Fans of earlier Beatles (she loves you yeah, yeah, yeah...) should be warned that this brutally frank album is more of a personal diary than a pop songbook.



Get it.



[DW]

One of Lennon's best albums-or Lennon invents modern punk

Although previously reissued, this version of POB uses the best technology to deliver the best sound for a CD possible. While the Capitol version sounds great there is slightly better depth, warmth and clarity on this edition of the album.

Personally, I would have preferred to see MFS reissue this great album with both the remixed and original mix of the album (pretty easy to do as the album runs around 39 minutes if you take off the awful bonus tracks from a single which should have been on "Sometime in New York City" and not this great album. "Instant Karma" and "Cold Turkey" would have fit much, much better).

I've also listened to this great album since I first purchased it on vinyl many years ago and, I'll be honest, the remix and clean up are great. The remixing stays pretty true to the overall original mix but takes advantage of digital technology to create better depth and sound quality. The mix is a bit more sterile sounding than the original but, on the whole, it's an improvement sonically. Nevertheless, it would have made far better sense to release both versions of the album on one since the original CD has been deleted.

I think it's ironic to complain that this isn't a SACD hybrid disc since SACD essentially remixes the original album for a 5.1 format. Like the Harrison reissues, this probably should have been issued in 5.1 to begin with. Regardless, this is still an essential album from Lennon's checkered but always interesting solo career.