"Oh Yoko!" | |
---|---|
Song by John Lennon | |
from the album Imagine | |
Released | 9 September 1971 (US) 8 October 1971 (UK) |
Recorded | 25 May–5 July 1971 |
Genre | Rock [1] |
Length | 4:20 |
Label | Apple/EMI |
Songwriter(s) | John Lennon |
Producer(s) | John Lennon, Yoko Ono, and Phil Spector |
"Oh Yoko!" is a 1971 song written and performed by John Lennon. It was first released on his album Imagine , and was later included in the greatest hits compilation Working Class Hero: The Definitive Lennon .
The song was written about his wife Yoko Ono, and features Nicky Hopkins on piano and co-producer Phil Spector on harmony vocal. Lennon plays harmonica for the first time on a solo recording (since the Beatles' "Rocky Raccoon"), [2] and it would also be the last time he used the instrument in a released recording.
Lennon began writing the song in 1968 during the Beatles' visit to India, but was not fully completed until the sessions for Imagine three years later. [2] The melody was inspired by Lonnie Donegan's "Lost John", a song Lennon enjoyed and played often. [2] The song was recorded on 25 May 1971 at Ascot Sound Studios. [3] The song has been described as "a carefree ditty expressing love for his wife." [4] Robert Christgau called it "an instant folk song worthy of Rosie & the Originals". [5]
An uncompleted version of the song can be heard and was recorded on tape at the Sheraton Oceanus Hotel in Freeport, Bahamas, on 25 May 1969.
EMI wanted to release the song as a single but Lennon refused. The only single issued from Imagine was the title track in the United States; none was issued in the United Kingdom. [2]
Stereogum contributors Timothy and Elizabeth Bracy rated it as Lennon's 9th best solo song, saying that "Few romantic ballads hit home as hard as 'Oh Yoko!,' a lilting testimony to enduring passion, every bit as melancholy as it is devotional." [6] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Stephen Lewis rated it as Lennon's 10th greatest solo love song, saying that "A jaunty and swinging tune, with a breathless Nicky Hopkins piano line, the tune beats with a warm, positive optimism." [7]
Imagine is the second solo studio album by British musician John Lennon, released on 9 September 1971 by Apple Records. Co-produced by Lennon, his wife Yoko Ono and Phil Spector, the album's elaborate sound contrasts the basic, small-group arrangements of his first album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970), while the opening title track is widely considered to be his signature song.
Some Time in New York City is a part-studio, part-live double album by John Lennon and Yoko Ono as Plastic Ono Band that included backing by the American rock band Elephant's Memory. Released in June 1972 in the US and in September 1972 in the UK on Apple Records, it is Lennon's sixth album to be released under his own name, and his fourth with Ono. Like Lennon's previous solo albums, it was co-produced by Lennon, Ono and Phil Spector. The album's agitprop lyrics are politically charged compared to its predecessors, addressing political and social issues and topics such as sexism, incarceration, colonialism, and racism.
"How Do You Sleep?" is a song by English rock musician John Lennon from his 1971 album Imagine.
"Jealous Guy" is a song written and originally recorded by the English rock musician John Lennon from his second studio album Imagine (1971). Not released as a single during Lennon's lifetime, it became an international hit in a version by Roxy Music issued in early 1981; this version reached #1 in the UK and Australia, and was a top 10 hit in several European countries. Lennon's own version was subsequently issued as a single, and charted in the US and UK.
"Instant Karma!" is a song by English rock musician John Lennon, released as a single on Apple Records in February 1970. The lyrics focus on a concept in which the consequences of one's actions are immediate rather than borne out over a lifetime. The single was credited to "Lennon/Ono with the Plastic Ono Band", apart from in the US, where the credit was "John Ono Lennon". The song reached the top five in the British and American charts, competing with the Beatles' "Let It Be" in the US, where it became the first solo single by a member of the band to sell a million copies.
"Cold Turkey" is a song written by English singer-songwriter John Lennon, released as a single in 1969 by the Plastic Ono Band on Apple Records, catalogue Apples 1001 in the United Kingdom, Apple 1813 in the United States. It is the second solo single issued by Lennon and it peaked at number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 14 on the UK Singles Chart. The song's first appearance on an album was Live Peace in Toronto 1969 where the song had been performed live on 13 September 1969 with Lennon reading the lyrics off a clip-board.
"Working Class Hero" is a song by John Lennon from his 1970 album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, his first album after the break-up of the Beatles.
"I'll Get You" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and released by the Beatles as the B-side of their 1963 single "She Loves You". The song was initially titled "Get You in the End".
"Power to the People" is a song written by John Lennon, released as a single in 1971, credited to John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. It was issued on Apple Records and charted at #6 on the British singles chart, at number 10 on the Cashbox Top 100, and at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 The song's first appearance on album was the 1975 compilation Shaved Fish.
"Mother" is a song by English musician John Lennon, first released on his 1970 album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. An edited version of the song was issued as a single in the United States on Apple Records, on 28 December 1970. The single edit runs 1:41 shorter than the album due to removing the tolling bells that start the song and a quicker fade-out. The B-side features "Why" by Yoko Ono. The song peaked in the United States at number 19 on the Cashbox Top 100 and number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100. In Canada the song reached number 12.
"Woman" is a song written and performed by English singer John Lennon from his 1980 album Double Fantasy. The track was chosen by Lennon to be the second single released from the Double Fantasy album, and it was the first Lennon single issued after his murder on 8 December 1980. The B-side of the single is Ono's song "Beautiful Boys".
"Love" is a song written and performed by John Lennon, originally released on his debut solo album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970). The song's theme is more upbeat than most of the songs on Plastic Ono Band.
"I Don't Wanna Be a Soldier, Mama" is a song written and performed by John Lennon, and released in 1971 as the fifth track on his second studio album, Imagine. The song's lyrics oppose the expectations of society.
"Isolation" is a 1970 song appearing on John Lennon's first official solo album release, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. It ends side one of the album, and is the fifth track. In the Philippines, Apple Records released "Isolation" as the B-side to "Mother", the single off John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, in contrast to most countries where the B-side was Yoko Ono's "Why". It was also released on an EP in Mexico along with "Mother", "Look at Me" and "My Mummy's Dead".
"Gimme Some Truth" is a protest song written and performed by John Lennon. It was first released on his 1971 album Imagine. "Gimme Some Truth" contains various political references emerging from the time it was written, during the latter years of the Vietnam War. Co-produced by Phil Spector, the recording includes a slide guitar solo played by George Harrison, Lennon's former bandmate in the Beatles.
"I Found Out" is a song by the English musician John Lennon from his 1970 album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band.
"Oh My Love" is a song written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono that appeared on Lennon's Imagine album in 1971.
"Imagine" is a song by the English rock musician John Lennon from his 1971 album of the same name. The best-selling single of his solo career, the lyrics encourage listeners to imagine a world of peace, without materialism, without borders separating nations and without religion. Shortly before his death, Lennon said that much of the song's lyrics and content came from his wife, Yoko Ono, and in 2017 she received cowriting credit.
"Out the Blue" is a song written by John Lennon and originally released on his 1973 album Mind Games. The song is included on the 1990 boxset Lennon, the 2005 two-disc compilation Working Class Hero: The Definitive Lennon, the 2010 album Gimme Some Truth and the 2020 compilation album Gimme Some Truth. The Ultimate Mixes.
"Bless You" is a song written by John Lennon that was first released on his 1974 album Walls and Bridges. It is a ballad expressing his love for his wife Yoko Ono, from whom he was separated at the time. Alternative versions appeared on the compilation albums Menlove Ave. and John Lennon Anthology.