Sometime in New York City/Live Jam [Live] [Original recording remastered]

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Agitprop political sensibilities have seldom made for great rock music, even in the hands of a genius like John Lennon. Or perhaps we should say especially in the hands of Lennon. Coming as it did on the heels of Imagine, arguably his most balanced and artistically accomplished solo record, this album-length harangue (with a "bonus" live disc that felt more like a booby prize) takes on all the de rigueur victims and causes of the day, from feminist hardships ("Woman Is the Nigger of the World") to American injustice ("John Sinclair," "Born in a Prison," "Attica") and the Irish Troubles ("Sunday Bloody Sunday," "Luck of the Irish") and comes off as tedious as it is ham-fisted. Though it features many of Lennon's stellar Plastic Ono Band sidemen (Billy Preston, Nicky Hopkins, Klaus Voorman, Eric Clapton, Jim Keltner) and the presence of legendary producer Phil Spector at the helm, none were brave or wise enough to yank the soapbox from beneath Lennon just once during the sessions. A telling chapter in any Lennon character study, though more an exercise in caricature than an album. --Jerry McCulley

Sometime in New York City,John Lennon,Yoko Ono,Capitol,Pop,Pop/Rock,Rock,Rock/Pop,Singer/Songwriter

Sometime in New York City/Live Jam [Live] [Original recording remastered]

Average customer rating:

John's worst EVER
Lennon's best post-Beatles album
nostalgia and finally in my price range!
A very mixed bag
Even Yoko's songs aren't THAT awful, what a pleasant surprise STINYC is!

Some Time in New York City/Live Jam
John Lennon , and Yoko Ono
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000AZ6N5G
Release Date: 2005-11-22

Tracks:

Woman Is The Nigger Of The World
Sisters, O Sisters
Attica State
Born In A Prison
New York City
Sunday Bloody Sunday
The Luck Of The Irish
John Sinclair
Angela
We're All Water
Cold Turkey (The Plastic Ono Band live at the Lyceum Ballroom 1969)
Don't Worry, Kyoko (The Plastic Ono Band live at the Lyceum Ballroom 1969)
Well (Baby Please Don't Go) [John & Yoko and The Mothers of Invention live at the Fillmore East 1971)
Listen, The Snow is Falling
Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

Amazon.com

Agitprop political sensibilities have seldom made for great rock music, even in the hands of a genius like John Lennon. Or perhaps we should say especially in the hands of Lennon. Coming as it did on the heels of Imagine, arguably his most balanced and artistically accomplished solo record, this album-length harangue (with a "bonus" live disc that felt more like a booby prize) takes on all the de rigueur victims and causes of the day, from feminist hardships ("Woman Is the Nigger of the World") to American injustice ("John Sinclair," "Born in a Prison," "Attica") and the Irish Troubles ("Sunday Bloody Sunday," "Luck of the Irish") and comes off as tedious as it is ham-fisted. Though it features many of Lennon's stellar Plastic Ono Band sidemen (Billy Preston, Nicky Hopkins, Klaus Voorman, Eric Clapton, Jim Keltner) and the presence of legendary producer Phil Spector at the helm, none were brave or wise enough to yank the soapbox from beneath Lennon just once during the sessions. A telling chapter in any Lennon character study, though more an exercise in caricature than an album. --Jerry McCulley

Amazon.com

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Customer Reviews:

John's worst EVER.......2007-06-26

Political statements that explicitly reflect their time period tend to have a very short shelf life. Here's an example. Okay, I love protest songs, but nobody in 2007 wants to hear about John Sinclair (especially not with John going "John Sin-Sin-Sin-Sin-Sin-Sin-Sinsinsinsinsinsinsinsinsinsinclair"), Angela Davis or Attica State. It doesn't mean a damn thing anymore. Think that's bad? Yoko's songs aren't much better. I have nothing against her - her voice doesn't bug me at all (other than the occasional random wailing), and I have a lot of respect for her uncompromising experimental attitude. I just don't think pop music is her thing (Even then, she contributed some real winners to Double Fantasy), and neither Sisters, O Sisters nor Born in a Prison really stand out to me (though to be fair, they're better than Sunday Bloody Sunday or The Luck of the Irish). I will say, though, that I really like We're All Water, one of her better songs. The live jam is simply insulting - a quarter-hour of Yoko wailing (Don't Worry Kyoko), an overlong, overloud, stoned run-through of Cold Turkey and an awful blues cover - Well (Baby Please Don't Go). There are two, maybe three, songs I like on this mess: the feminist anthem Woman is the N#%!#! of the world (not intended to be racist, instead used as an allegory for "slave") - even then, the huge production is overbearing. Phil Spector must be dragged out and beaten, because he's easily the most overrated producer in history. I also like the aforementioned We're All Water, and about half of New York City. But it quickly peters out into a horrible boogie-rocker without... I don't know, a BRIDGE, a CHORUS, or anything ELSE to break the monotony. To make things worse, the Elephant's Memory Band are among the least talented musicians I've ever heard, Bobby Keyes excepted. Even then, he overplays on this album. And I'm a fan of his.
You'll probably want to listen to this album once, just to see how bad it really is. After that, I wouldn't blame you for filing this away for years to come.

Lennon's best post-Beatles album.......2006-12-26

John Lennon wrote several great songs during his solo career. As a whole, however, his solo albums are a far cry from the best Beatles albums. Sometime in New York City maybe shouldn't be called a Lennon solo album as half of the songs are by Yoko Ono. One of them, "Sister, O Sister" is the best song on the album and all the others are among the best. Lennon's best song on the album is "Woman Is the Nigger of the World". Unfortunately American PC people completely misunderstood the message of the lyrics and only saw the N-word which was considered a taboo. One reason that makes the album so good is the co-production by the great Phil Spector. It sounds more like a real Spector production than the other Spector produced Lennon albums.

The original LP release of Sometime in New York City included another LP with a live jam with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. Only a part of this jam is included on this CD release. The CD also includes the single "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" / "Listen the Snow is Falling" as bonus tracks.

nostalgia and finally in my price range!.......2006-09-02

another fine restoration supervised by Yoko Ono. I think this was a commercial and career disaster for Lennon when it was released at some sky high price during the 1972 election campaign. Now it's an interesting period piece. Feminism was the hot topic that year, and Lennon sang about it like a recent convert in "Woman is the Nigger". Lyrics get silly but the vocal and production are first rate. Elephant's Memory was a nice backing group with at least one radio hit of their own ("Mongoose" I think). Yoko's "Sisters O Sisters" is lyrically quaint and musically very witty as it sort of evokes the Phil Spector heyday. And I love the singing couple on "Born in a Prison" although the lyric gets very silly. And Yoko does ruin "Luck of the Irish" with her "blarney." And her willful avoidance of western pop singing tradition can seem very strange. She also misses rhythm and meter on the "Water" song. The best Lennon numbers from this record are on the new soundtrack about his persecution from the U.S. federal government. But you'd miss the great live vocal on "Baby Please Don't Go".

Basically Ono went for broadly general artistic statements and Lennon wrote songs as almost a visceral response to heavy handed violence practiced by various governments. Unfortunately his fascination with all things "instant" prevented him from rounding these protests into strong songs.

A very mixed bag.......2006-08-31

For me, and I may be alone on this, the comedic highlight of the album is in the live portion when John is tearing through "Baby Please Don't Go" and in between the Lennon's phrases Yoko injects her, and I use the term lightly here, "singing". It just has to be heard to be believed. You could not make this kind of stuff up. You could NOT make it up. The remaster sounds good and the big surprise is that this album rocks. I go around humming "Attica State" sometimes and there are a lot of nice musical touches, the slide guitars on John Sinclair or the chord changes of "Woman is the Nigger of the World". The new CD is cut (this does not include all of the original album) but does sound pretty good. I had an original 8-track of this album, still laying around the house somewhere, and I don't think the cuts will be missed much unless you just have to hear everything.
This is a very mixed bag but John is in spectacular voice. If anyone else had done this album it would have been a total bomb (why does this remind me of Elvis' early 1960s recordings). This is not the place to start digging into Lennon's albums, "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band" would be my vote for that, but it does have enough merit to venture a listen to, a very quirky cause-of-the-moment kind of album.

Even Yoko's songs aren't THAT awful, what a pleasant surprise STINYC is!.......2006-07-17

John Sinclair and Angela are good!
New York City and Luck of the Irish, & Attica State aren't bad either; The dated, topical nature of these songs may turn some people off..
The politics may turn off some people too, I don't much like "Woman Is the Nigger of the World" because it's abrasive, but that's what Lennon was trying to achieve on that song: shock value!
(If you're a right-wing Beatle fan don't bother with this album. I've never understood your peculiar breed. And so you don't feel offended, I don't like your Lawrence Welk either, though Pat Boone's "In a Metal Mood" is funny!)

Average customer rating:

A 4-Star and a 2-Star
Ghastly Ham-Fisted Hammery
An actually good disc with Yoko songs! and then the 2nd disc.Waa, Waa
great music
It's No 'Imagine', I'll Put It That Way...

Some Time in New York City/Live Jam
John Lennon , and Yoko Ono
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000002UW9
Release Date: 1990-03-16

Tracks:

Woman Is the Nigger of the World
Sisters, O Sisters
Attica State
Born in a Prison
New York City
Sunday Bloody Sunday - Elephant's Memory, Invisible Strings, Plastic Ono Band
Luck of the Irish
John Sinclair
Angela
We're All Water

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Cold Turkey [Live] - John Lennon, Mothers of Invention, John Lennon & the Plastic Ono Band, John Lennon & the Plastic Ono Band
Don't Worry Kyoko [Live] - John Lennon, Mothers of Invention, John Lennon & the Plastic Ono Band
Well (Baby Please Don't Go) [Live] - John Lennon, Mothers of Invention,
Jamrag [Live] - John Lennon, Mothers of Invention,
Scumbag [Live] - John Lennon & Yoko Ono, Mothers of Invention, Plastic Ono Band,
Au [Live] - John Lennon, Mothers of Invention,

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Customer Reviews:

A 4-Star and a 2-Star.......2006-07-27

I avoided buying the album for years and years. The songs got little radio play, and the cover just didn't make it for me. It struck me as "this is one album where Yoko's pulling all the strings". When I finally bought it along about 2000, I must admit I was pleasantly surprised. Like many of the reviewers, the album features some good stuff from Yoko.

Angela, John Sinclair, and Born in A Prison provide haunting melodies to rival George Harrison's most melancholy moments.

I will have to agree with the general review of CD2. I do love the live version of Cold Turkey more than the studio version. And, "Well (Baby Please Don't Go)" almost redeems the entire second CD. A real gem.

Thanks to reading these reviews, and the CD notes a little more closely, I now realize that George Harrison appears on the Live Jam - will listen more closely for him today. I may even go and buy the remaster and see what new stuff is there.

Hey, what's the deal with "Live Jam" and George's "Apple Jam" anyway? The Beatles were good arrangers, songwriters - but not great solo instrumentalists. The only way George and John could have pulled this stuff off, in my view, was to have Paul and Ringo in and not all their other mates. They need each other for this sort of thing.

I do enjoy listening to the CD in its entirety. But hey, John's an ex-Beatle and has much higher standards than this! Buy it if you are a Beatles completist, pop history buff, or John Lennon nut that kinda likes Yoko. The rest of you, don't risk it.

Ghastly Ham-Fisted Hammery.......2006-02-28

This record is so bad, it's embarrassing to think it was ever recorded, must less recorded by a rock legend of Lennon's stature.

The politics are hokey-dopey, the musicianship sloppy, the attitude humorless. Yoko's "tortured child screech" mars nearly every cut, making the album refuse on those grounds alone. The only listenable song is Lennon's homage to his new home, "New York City" on which Yoko does not vocalize. The live cuts are poorly recorded, overlong, half-baked jams, in the manner of the extra disc on Harrison's "All Things Must Pass" album.

It's astounding to think this is the same musician who wrote all those songs on the White Album. But then again, Dylan followed up his best 60s work with some horrid early 70s releases too.

An actually good disc with Yoko songs! and then the 2nd disc.Waa, Waa.......2006-01-24

I'm gonna make a bold statement here, and say that Yoko ono has the worst singing voice in the history of mankind. Maybe it's not true, so if you can find one that's worse let me know. Still, somehow, on disc one there is actually a...(here we go)good yoko song. AAAA!! that's right. I was pleasantly surprised to not here her screeching and wailing, like a cow in heat, and instead actually trying to sing. The song is "Born in a Prison," and is probably my favorite song on the album. As for the Lennon songs, they are pretty good, as most of his solo stuff is, lacking a tad bit of originality, and with too many horns. What's with lennon and the horns? All the songs are social protest songs, which i have no problem with. I just thought i'd let you know. It's very 60's though it is from the 70's. At least it's ideas. The second disc is awful and full of yoko wailing; it hurts the ears. You can't help but skip it. The songs are long, and full of so much pointless jamming that it drags on. Truly, the songs are just not enjoyable. Sort of a mesh of monotiny. I spelled that wrong, but anyways...overall, not bad

great music.......2005-08-18

I haven`t heard this since around 1983 or so .I loved this record as a teenager in the 70`s ,I wasn`t into all the jam stuff back then,maybe now I would like it.Angela is a great track as well as John Sinclair,Born In A Prison is a great track too.I just bought this cd and can`t wait til it gets hear so I can hear it again.

It's No 'Imagine', I'll Put It That Way..........2005-06-19

Coming straight after the album that some people consider to be John Lennon's best, it was bound to be disappointing, but, sadly, John had lost a lot of his inspiration for this album and it comes off quite poor.

It starts off with Woman Is The Nigger Of The World which, although a good rock song, is hardly up to the standards that the Plastic Ono Band and Imagine albums had set in the previous years. The lyrics aren't all too memorable either and it seems as if John was really forcing himself to write during this time.

Two of his more memorable songs on this album, I think, are New York City and The Luck Of The Irish. New York City's a fun little rocker and while The Luck Of The Irish is known for some very, very bad lyrics, it also has some pretty good, harsh ones too. My favorite being:

"You blame it all on the kids and the IRA,
as the bastards commit genocide"

Simple, but good.

In my opinion, it's Yoko who shines more on this album. Sisters O Sisters is one of her best feminist songs, and We're All Water is a great way to end the album. Sadly, even those can't save the album, but there's still another disc to go.

Disc 2 takes from two live Lennon performances. Cold Turkey and Don't Worry Kyoko are taken from the Plastic Ono Band's second live show in 1969 (with extra musicians including George Harrison and Keith Moon), while the rest of the songs are culled from a surprise live appearance John and Yoko did with Frank Zappa in 1971.

The first two songs are probably the best live stuff that John and Yoko ever did. They're both loud and leave you drained after hearing them, which is the sign of a good, powerful rock song, at least I think so.

The rest is good, but a little shaky. Zappa was always a great live performer though, so he can bring out the best in John sometimes, and Well (Baby Please Don't Go) is a great old rock and roll cover. An interesting note about this live show is that there are three different versions that exist. John's version which appears here, Zappa's version on the 1993 Playground Psychotics album, and the original, unedited form, which can be found on bootleg CDs and videos.

Sometime In New York City is always considered to be the worst John Lennon album and, sadly, I can't argue with that. It definitely represents a slump in his career. Understandable, considering his phones were being tapped at the time, and he was in danger of being deported, but still sad. I only recommend getting this if you're a devoted lennon fan, although the first two tracks of the Live Jam disc are quite rewarding.

Average customer rating:

NEW JAZZ HAS HOPE
GREAT BAND - never mind the ignorant nay-sayer below
Can these guys solo in more then one key? NO!!!!
The future of jazz?
Some people.......just don't get it

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Customer Reviews:

NEW JAZZ HAS HOPE.......2007-01-04

Finally something NEW and exciting, a European approach to the elecytric jazz. Proghressive post-jaz-rock at its best.

GREAT BAND - never mind the ignorant nay-sayer below.......2005-06-11

I'm confused by the remarks of the reviewer below, who calls himself M Zito. He accuses Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey of not playing jazz, and of having nothing to do with the jazz tradition. I'd like to refer him to their 2003 release "Slow Breath Silent Mind" where they perform the works of Duke Ellington, Wayne Shorter, John Coltrane, Dave Brubeck, Thelonius Monk, and Freddie Hubbard, among others. In concert I've heard them play songs by Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, Pat Metheney, and Jaco Pastorius, as well as a number of 'show-tune' standards. This is not....what did you call them?...JAM ROCK GARBAGE. You, sir, seem a bit insecure and eager to bring down musicians who have worked hard and are seeing some success. Too bad. The players in Jacob Fred improvise over changes and complex forms with ease and originality. Perhaps M. Zito has been so damaged by all the Tribal Tech he's ingested that he's forgotten that all the masters of the jazz tradition have a few things in common...THEY ALL HAD THEIR OWN VOICE, they all created their own musical vocabulary and integrated it with elements of the past, and they all reflected the sounds of the society they found themselves in. Oh, and like Jacob Fred, they were all put down and slandered by those who were too afraid or simply too ignorant to hear the beautiful sound of evolution. In the words of Lao Tzu, "If the fool did not laugh at the Tao, it would not be the Tao." I'm sorry Jacob Fred hurt your feelings, M Zito. Personally, I like their music quite a bit. I find it to be wholly congruent with the music of Ellington, Shorter, Monk, Mehldau, Frisell, and many other great masters of jazz. I recommend their most recent album "Walking With Giants," and their live album of standards, "Slow Breath Silent Mind" over "All Is One," but A.I.O. is a fine album, featuring some of JFJO's best loved compositions. Oh, and Mr Zito, if you want to have any credibility, perhaps "Three Sheets to the Wind" isn't the BEST choice of an alias. And you might want to move out of Vegas. :)

Can these guys solo in more then one key? NO!!!!.......2005-05-10

I opened for these guys in Vegas and let me tell you these guys ARE NOT PLAYING ANYTHING THAT RESEMBLES JAZZ!! The band I play with does music ranging from Holdsworth, Corea, Metheny and Tribal Tek to Dregs -> Herbie to Trane, Shorter etc.. THAT'S JAZZ. JACOB FRED HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH JAZZ OR FUSION!!! IT'S ROCK JAM GARBAGE!!! THEY DON'T SOLO OVER CHANGES. THEY SOLO OVER BOARING LONG ONE KEY VAMPS.
To the guy that makes the insulting remark about going back and listening to the Dave Matthews band if you don't get these guys. WELL LET ME TELL YOU I LISTEN AND HAVE LISTENED AND PEFROMED MUSIC WAY OVER THE HEADS OF ANYONE IN THAT BAND.
THESE GUYS ARE LAME AND DEAF

The future of jazz?.......2004-03-28

The phrase, "future of jazz", has been tossed around a lot in the last couple years. I think it is tough to really say who is gonna take it to the next level, but I think these guys really have something going. More traditional jazz fans may be skeptical of their younger and somewhat rock-oriented audience, but these guys are no joke. Brian Hass' keyboard work is off the charts. He knows how to be just dissonant enough and then throw in a lick that will just knock you back. I like Reed Mathis' bass work a lot too, very unique. I heard that they recently got a new drummer, which makes at least 3 in the last couple years so I hope they get that figured out. This live disc is great. All their shows are so different but this gives a real good taste of what they are capable of. "Vernal Equinox" is probably my favorite track on this disc, it just hits me every time. Check this out if you are into MMW, Soulive, or any of the new groove kind of groups, although their sound is probably based more in the avante garde jazz of the 70s. Also, if you haven't gotten into much new jazz, take a listen, you may be surprised as hell at what you hear.

Some people.......just don't get it.......2004-01-24

JFJO is a TRULY(!) amazing band - one of the best live acts out there. If you have not seen them live, you are missing a truly amazing spectacle. Brian Haas, Reed Mathis and Jason Smart are brilliant musicians who collectively produce what is essentially an interpretation of the styles popularized by T. Monk and early-to-mid 60s Miles Davis. Dissonant in places? Yep! Restless stops and starts? You bet! These guys and their fans (as well as fans of the aforementioned Monk and Davis) would not have it any other way.

Unfortunately, there are those who happen upon a JFJO show and simply "don't get it". That's not a slam - everyone has his/her own opinions. It's just that some opinions struggle to extend beyond the constraints of 4/4 time. For those individuals, JFJO is probably not for them. They would do well to stick to John Mayer or Dave Matthews. At least they can still relate to frat boys and sorority chicks that way.

As for the CD itself, it exists as a fine representation of what it is like to aurally experience this band live. However, there is simply no way one can experience this band live without SEEING them. To only hear them is to miss seeing Brian Haas' dizzying vocoder head-bobbing and Fender Rhodes abuse. It is also to miss seeing Reed Mathis strap on a cello and play it as if it were an electric bass.

Do yourself a favor - buy this CD and GO SEE THEM LIVE! Or, if you prefer, stick to Mayer-Matthews and to the confines of all that is safe and boring. The choice is up to you.

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