5 of the Best - The Plastic Ono Band

As dear old Yoko has now reached the grand age of 80, let's have a look at 5otB to be released under the moniker of The Plastic Ono Band.

'Mother': Lennon's impassioned, primal scream therapy-like cry at his parents is an emotional whirlwind like no other. He summon's all of his poetic force, channeling Sylvia Plath in her excruciating, forceful 'Daddy' and as he bellows out "Mama don't go, Daddy come home" at his estranged parents at the song's climax he leaves one also feeling angry at his parents. A stunning song which goes to show many young artists that when they think they're the first to be covering a topic, it's probably best to check the back catalogue of Dylan, Lennon and Morrissey. Right, Mr Mathers?


Mother

'Working Class Hero': I don't have a favourite John Lennon song (there's far too much to choose from), and there certainly isn't one that I would say speaks to me more than any other, but if I was absolutely pushed I might choose this. The stanza in which Lennon discusses the way they "keep you doped with religion and sex an TV, 'til you think you're so clever and classless and free" and goes on to sneer "but you're still fucking peasants as far as I see" stands up against any lyric ever committed to a pop song.

'Jealous Guy': This straight apology from John to Yoko for his green-eyed antics and stupidity is such a beautiful love song in its simplicity and overwrought begging for forgiveness. The feeling is in the words, yes, but also in that pained vocal timbre that Lennon had - see Roxy Music's cover for proof (as much as I admire Bryan Ferry, his is a poor imitation, perhaps it's one of those that shouldn't be covered as it was done so well the first time).


Jealous Guy

'God': Come on. Read the post below this (home page). You'll see why I picked this song.

'Love': When he wasn't prosthletysing the pious over to the way that says "we don't know for sure, but we can't just make a God up because of that", putting parental issues to poetry or summing up the awful feeling that one is left with after acting on a jealous impulse, Lennon was also able to sum up exactly what love is at a human level: "love is needing to be loved". The great thing about all of this wonderful music and numerous other songs in The Plastic Ono Band canon is not just the philosophical, poetic, polemical force of it all lyrically, but the finely realised melodic counterpoints and intriguing harmonic movements. The 'g' word is bandied around far too often, but nobody can deny that John Lennon was indeed that: a genius.


Love

So that's Yoko's birthday celebrated then, sadly by five songs written by her dead husband. Sorry Yoko, but he was fucking good. Peace.

The Pop Quest for Love

Love is probably the most covered subject in popular music. Lyricists have agonised over love, celebrated it, condemned it, embraced it and nearly all have discussed it at some point.

The quest for love is something which is hard to define. Everybody wants to be loved; lyricists both recognise this and display it constantly. Within love many may discuss lust and hate in equal measure.

Certainly the two finest examples I can think of where a lyricist explains what love is as an emotion - and, importantly, how humans react to it - are Morrissey's line in How Soon Is Now "I am human and I need to be loved/just like everybody else does" and John Lennon's summarising in this topic's eponymous masterpiece "Love is needing to be loved".


John Lennon amongst his 'loved ones'

Lennon also told us that "love is all you need", but is it? Certainly a case could be put forward for hate's necessity in art, especially pop. Without hate would Lennon's contemporary Bob Dylan have written tracks such as A Hard Rain's Gonna' Fall? Then again, "love is one of the necessary components you need, but is not the only" isn't nearly as catchy now is it?

The reason I'm pondering and discussing all this is due to listening to the aforementioned Love by John Lennon and being overpowered by its resonance. It just goes to show that a song you've heard hundreds of times can still move you to distraction. Which is exactly why I love music.


John Lennon - Love