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1986

John Lennon Live in New York City

‘What a bad ass city…’

– John Lennon, 1972

John Lennon
Produced by Yoko Ono

Track Listing

  1. New York City
    3:39
  2. It’s So Hard
    3:18
  3. Woman Is The Nigger Of The World
    5:30
  4. Well, Well, Well
    3:51
  5. Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)
    3:40
  6. Mother
    5:00
  7. Come Together
    4:21
  8. Hound Dog
    3:10
  9. Imagine
    3:17
  10. Cold Turkey
    5:29
  11. Give Peace A Chance
    0:59
John Lennon and Yoko Ono at Butterfly Studios, NYC. August 1972 Photo by Bob Gruen ©1972 Bob Gruen

‘The concert was held in Madison Square Garden, August 30th, 1972, to help improve the living conditions of the mentally handicapped children. Starting with the Toronto Peace Festival in 1969, John and I did a series of rock concerts as our statement of Peace and Love, and to spotlight various social issues effectively. All proceeds from the concerts were given to the needy. This one in Madison Square Garden turned out to be the last concert John and I did together.’

John Lennon Live In New York inner sleeve front and back

‘In ’72 the Vietnam War protest was at its height. The Feminist Movement was in a stage of awakening. Our concert material was mainly based on the album we released that spring called Some Time In New York City which was our political statement in songs a-la Bertold Brecht. The concert was filled with love of brotherhood and sisterhood. We passed out tambourines to the audience, true to our slogan “You are the Plastic Ono Band.” Everybody joined in on stage at the end when we sang ‘Give Peace A Chance’. People could not contain themselves and marched down Fifth Avenue after the performance, singing ‘Give Peace A Chance’,

This concert was our effort in Grassroot Politics. It embodied what John and I strongly believed in – “Rock for Peace and Enlightenment.”’

– Yoko Ono Lennon ’86

Recorded: August 30th 1972, Madison Square Garden, NYC
Released UK: 24 Feb 1986
Released USA: 24 Jan 1986

Sleeve notes

Plastic Ono Elephants Memory Band:
John Lennon: guitars, keyboards
Yoko Ono: keyboards
Stan Bronstein: saxophone
Wayne “Tex” Gabriel: lead guitar
John Ward: bass
Gary Van Scyoc: bass
Jim Keltner: drums
Rick Frank: drums
Adam Ippolito: keyboards

Produced by Yoko Ono
Recording Supervisor 1972: Phil Spector
Recording Engineers: Paul Hamingson, Tim Crich

Mixed by Rob Stevens, 1 Stone Productions Ltd.

 

Music and Sound Editing: Jonathan Wyporath
Mixed at Right Track, NYC
Mastering Engineer: Greg Colby
Mastered at Sterling Sound, NYC

Recorded on August 30, 1972 at Madison Square Garden

Original recordings have been digitally remastered

Original Ticket Stub courtesy of Lynn Crawford

First Released 24 January 1986

 

 

Versions Available

1986 – Original Stereo version: LP, CD, 8 Track & cassette

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New York City

Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people

Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people

Standing on the corner
Just me and Yoko Ono
We was waiting for Horaldo to land
Up come a man with a guitar in his hand
"Have a marijuana if you can"
His name was David Peel
And we found that he was real
"The Pope smokes dope every day"
Up come a policeman shoved us up the street
Singing, "Power to the people today!"

New York City Madison Square Gardens
What's Happening, man?

Well down to Max's Kansas City
Got down the nitty gritty
With the Elephants Memory Band
Laid something down
As the news spread around
About the Plastic Ono Elephants Memory Band!
And we played some tutti frutti
And played some funky boogie
"Long Tall Sally's a man."
Up come a preacherman trying to be a teacher
Singing, "God's a red herring in drag!"

New York City... New York City... New York City
Que pasa, New York?
Que pasa, New York?

New York City... New York City... New York City

New York City... Down in the village... New York City

One more

What a Badass city

Written by John Lennon

It’s So Hard

You got to eat
You got to drink
You've got to do something
You got to worry
But it's so hard, you know it's hard
Sometimes I feel like going down

You got to live
You got to love
You got to be somebody you got to shove
But it's hard, you know it's hard
Sometimes I feel like going down

But when it's good you know it's good
And when I hold you in arms baby
Sometimes I feel like going down

You got to run
You got to hide
You got to keep your woman satisfied
But you know it's hard, it's hard to get hard
Sometimes I feel like going down

You got to run
You got to hide
You got to keep your woman satisfied
But you know it's hard, it gets so hard
Sometimes I feel like going down

Written by John Lennon

Woman Is The Nigger Of The World

Woman is the nigger of the world
Yes, she is, think about it
Woman is the nigger of the world
Think about it, do something about it

We make her paint her face and dance
If she won't be a slave, we say that she don't love us
If she's real, we say she's trying to be a man
While putting her down we pretend so hard that she's above us

Woman is the nigger of the world, yes, she is
If you don't believe me
Take a look at the one you're with
Woman is the slave of the slaves
Ah yeah, if you believe me you better scream about it

We make her bear and raise our children
And then we leave her flat for being a fat old mother hen
We tell her home is the only place she should be
Then we complain that she's too unworldly to be our friend

Woman is the nigger of the world, yes
If you believe me
Take a look at the one you're with
Woman is the slave to the slaves
Yeah, you better scream it

We insult her every day on TV
And wonder why she has no guts or confidence
When she's young we kill her will to be free
While putting her down for being dumb, we put her down for being so dumb

Woman is the nigger of the world, yes, she is
If you don't believe me, take a look at the one you're with
Woman is the slave to the slaves, oh yeah
If you believe me, you better scream about it

We make her paint her face and dance
We make her paint her face and dance
Dance, dance, dance!
Dance, dance, dance!

We make her paint her face and dance...

Written by John Lennon & Yoko Ono

Well, Well, Well

Well Well Well Oh Well
Well Well Well Oh Well

I took my loved one out to dinner
So we could get a bite to eat
And though we both had been much thinner
She looked so beautiful I could eat her, I did

Well Well Well Oh Well
Well Well Well Oh Well

We sat and talked of revolution
Just like to liberals in the sun
We talked of women's liberation
And how the hell we could get things done

Well Well Well Oh Well
Well Well Well Oh Well

I took my loved one to a big field
So we could watch the English sky
And both were nervous, feeling guilty
And neither one of us knew just why

Well Well Well Oh Well
Well Well Well Oh Well

Well Well Well Oh Well
Well Well Well Oh Well

Well Well Well
Well Well Well

Well

Well

Well

Oh Well

Well

Written by John Lennon & Yoko Ono

Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)

Instant karma's gonna get you,
Gonna knock you right in the head.
You better get yourself together,
Pretty soon you're gonna be dead.

What in the world you thinking of
Laughing in the face of love?
What on earth you trying to do?
It's up to you, yeah, you!

Instant karma's gonna get you,
Gonna knock you right in the face.
You better get yourself together, darling
Join the human race.

How in the world you gonna see,
Laughing at fools like me?
Who on earth do you think you are,
A superstar? Well, all right, you are!

Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
On and on (and on and on) come on, yeah!

All right,
Oh!
Yeah!

Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun,
Yeah, we all shine on,
On and on and on and on.

Instant karma's gonna get you,
It's gonna knock you off your feet.
You better recognise your brother,
It's everyone you meet.

Why on earth are we here?
Surely not to live in pain and fear.
And why on earth are you there?
When you're everywhere, come and get your share.

Well, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
On and on and on and on.

Yeah, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
On and on and one more time!

Yeah, we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah, we all shine on,
On and on and on and on, on and on and on

Ha! Ha! We'll get it right next time!

Written by John Lennon

Mother

Mother, you had me, but I never had you
I wanted you, you didn't want me
So I, I just got to tell you
Goodbye, goodbye

Father, you left me, but I never left you
I needed you so bad, you didn't need me oh no
So I, I just got to tell you
Goodbye, goodbye

Children, don't do what I have done
I couldn't walk, and I tried to run
So I, I just got to tell you
Goodbye, goodbye

Mama, don't go, daddy, come home
Mama, don't go, daddy, come home
Mama, don't go, daddy, come home

Mama, don't go, daddy, come home
Mama, don't go, daddy, come home
Mama, don't go, daddy, come home

Written by John Lennon

Come Together

You might remember this better than I do, actually.

-Okay? ...something about a flat top that's all I know...
One, two, aah-one, two, three, four-


Here come ol' flat top, he come groovin' up slowly
He got joo joo eyeball, he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knees
Got to be a joker 'cause he's so hard to please

He wear no shoeshine, he got walrus gum boot
He got monkey finger, he shoot cola cola
He say I know you, you know me
One thing I can tell you is you got to be free

Come together, right now
Over you

(Just for a change...)

He Bag Production, he got Ono sideboard
He one spinal cracker, he got early walkers
He say hair, beneath, under his knees
Hold you in his arms yeah you can feel his disease

Come together, right now
Over me

He roller coaster, he got early warning
He got muddy water, he want mojo filter
He say one and one and one is three
Got to be good looking cause he's so hard to see

Come together, right now
Over me
Over you
Over there

Come together,
Come together,
Come together,

-Thank you, thank you... I nearly got all the words right too!

Written by John Lennon & Paul McCartney

Hound Dog

We like to do the last number and go and recover.

One, two, three, four!

You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time;
You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time.
You ain't never caught a rabbit
And you ain't no friend of mine.

You said that you was high class,
That was just a lie;
Well you said that you was high class,
That was just a lie.
You ain't never caught a rabbit,
You ain't no friend of mine.

You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time;
You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time.
You ain't never caught a rabbit
You ain't no friend of mine.

You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time;
You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time.
You ain't never caught a rabbit
You ain't no friend of mine.

Well, they said that you was high class,
Well, that was just a lie;
Well, they said that you was high class, babe,
You know it's a lie.
You ain't never caught no rabbit,
You ain't no friend of mine.

You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time;
You ain't nothin' but a hound dog,
Cryin' all the time.
Elvis, I love you!!
You ain't never caught no rabbit
You ain't no friend of mine

Written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller

Imagine

Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky

Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too

Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if we can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood and sisterhood of man

Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Written by John Lennon & Yoko Ono

Cold Turkey

Temperature's rising
Fever is high
Can't see no future
Can't see no sky

My feet are so heavy
So is my head
I wish I was a baby
I wish I was dead

Cold turkey has got me on the run

My body is aching
Goose-pimple bone
Can't see nobody
Leave me alone

My eyes are wide open
Can't get to sleep
One thing I'm sure of
I'm in at the deep freeze

Cold turkey you know its got me on the run

Cold turkey has got me on the run

Thirty-six moons
Rolling in pain
Praying to someone
Free me again

Oh, I'll be a good boy
Please make me well
I promise you anything
Get me out of this hell

Cold turkey has got me on the run

Written by John Lennon

Give Peace A Chance

All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

Written by John Lennon