{"id":19665,"date":"2020-10-09T05:30:17","date_gmt":"2020-10-09T09:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=19665"},"modified":"2020-10-09T11:20:49","modified_gmt":"2020-10-09T15:20:49","slug":"album-review-jem-records-celebrates-john-lennon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2020\/10\/09\/album-review-jem-records-celebrates-john-lennon\/","title":{"rendered":"Album Review: Jem Records Celebrates John Lennon"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Today would have been John Lennon\u2019s 80th<\/sup> birthday.<\/b><\/p>\n

Cover versions that stick very close to the original version have their place: witness the appeal of tribute bands. But beyond the hey-I-can-do-it angle, they\u2019re more an exercise for the artist than a rewarding experience for the listener. Much better are reinventions, musical excursions whereby an artist find what\u2019s special (to them) within a song, seizes on that and runs with it, creating something new in the process.<\/p>\n

Of course there\u2019s a kind of reverence that exists around the work of the Beatles; that worship \u2013 well-founded as it may be \u2013 seems often to discourage those kinds of creative endeavors. But the artists who\u2019ve taken the chance have often created intriguing works. Way back in 1976, art-rock supergroup 801 conjured up their own radical reading of Revolver<\/i>\u2019s \u201cTomorrow Never Knows\u201d \u2013 calling it \u201cT.N.K\u201d \u2013 and released it on 801 Live<\/i><\/a>. And a few others have tried and succeeded.<\/p>\n

When it comes to multi-artist tribute albums \u2013 especially, it seems, within the powerpop subgenre \u2013 the artists involved tend to play things safe, making the end result less than compelling. What that means, however, is that exceptions stand out, shining perhaps more brightly than they would otherwise. And to a great extent, that\u2019s the case with a new release, Jem Records Celebrates John Lennon<\/em>. Seven artists, thirteen tracks, drawing both from Lennon\u2019s Beatles and solo work, this collection features artists who are (at least some of the time) willing to push the boundaries.<\/p>\n

And quite often the results of their efforts bear up. For their part, The Weeklings have carved out a corner of the musical landscape based on that very concept of re-imagining Beatles songs. So they can be expected to deliver here. \u201cThe Word\u201d is transformed nearly beyond the point of recognition. The original version had a beguilingly curious is-it-major-or-is-it-minor nature; the Weeklings lean hard into the minor key. The beat is quite different as well, and the overall arrangement has a harder, more sinister edge.<\/p>\n

Beyond its (for many years) rarity, the original recording of \u201cWhat\u2019s the New Mary Jane\u201d is of limited value; it\u2019s more of a song fragment extended to song length. But The Weeklings make it into a rocker as well, with a rhythm bed that borrows heavily (and cleverly) from the \u201cI am the Walrus.\u201d It\u2019s as if all of the sonic elements of that classic were applied to the \u201cMary Jane.\u201d As an exercise, it\u2019s nothing short of brilliant. As a song<\/i>, well, it\u2019s still \u201cWhat\u2019s the New Mary Jane,\u201d so one can only expect so much. Still, bravo.<\/p>\n

A New York City group taking its name from a classic Badfinger song turns in three tunes for Jem Records Celebrates John Lennon<\/i>. A bit strangely, The Midnight Callers tackle two Lennon compositions that are actually the same song: \u201cChild of Nature\u201d from the 1968 Esher tapes was re-imagined by Lennon himself a few years later on Imagine<\/i> as \u201cJealous Guy.\u201d The latter was superbly covered by Roxy Music on their The High Road<\/i> EP, and any artist would be hard-pressed to better that version.<\/p>\n

The Midnight Callers play \u201cJealous Guy\u201d pretty straight, hewing rather close to the Imagine<\/i> version; their brief acoustic reading of \u201cChild of Nature\u201d is more interesting, though it doesn\u2019t seek to innovate, either. The group fares far better with a cover of \u201cIt Won\u2019t Be Long,\u201d an underappreciated early Beatles track. The group rocks it up, and flourishes of Rickenbacker suggest how the Fab Four might have done it in \u201866. (The Midnight Callers\u2019 debut album is set for release later this year.)<\/p>\n

The Grip Weeds are perhaps the most celebrated act to appear on this collection. Their trademark Who-meets-layered-powerpop approach is never, ever, ever<\/i> less than compelling. They tear into \u201cYou Can\u2019t Do That\u201d while keeping the signature 12-string riff intact. But they add muscle and some delightful combo organ textures to the arrangement. A searing guitar solo pulls the oldie into modern-day, and the \u2018Weeds\u2019 harmonies are spot-on as always.<\/p>\n

\u201cStrawberry Fields Forever\u201d is a risky choice to cover. Even the estimable Todd Rundgren<\/a> couldn’t offer much in terms of ideas when he covered it on 1976\u2019s Faithful<\/i>. So the Grip Weeds earn points for even trying. The original song has so many signature components \u2013 Ringo\u2019s fills, the \u201cflute\u201d Mellotron, the overall vibe \u2013 that there\u2019s not really much one can do with it. But the group still manages to rally, adding some electric sitar where the original had conventional electric guitar, and bits of Leslie\u2019d and slide guitar textures, sonic elements more readily associated with late-period Beatles. As the song progresses, they also lean into the beat a good bit harder. The string orchestration is replaced by a rock ensemble (and more electirc sitar) playing the familiar parts. And they wisely dispense with the false ending.<\/p>\n

Nashville power popper Jonathan Pushkar turns in a pair of Lennon tunes, one solo and one from the early Beatles era. Although its significance would change in the wake of Lennon\u2019s tragic and senseless death, but at its core \u201c(Just Like) Starting Over\u201d is a \u201850s pastiche. Pushkar\u2019s cover is lovely in and of itself, but offers precisely nothing in terms of new ideas or originality. (Some minor tinkering with the vocal melody doesn\u2019t count.) Oddly, the backing vocals on this decidedly retro tune sound as if they\u2019re the product of the chorus setting of a Mellotron.<\/p>\n

Pushkar fares only slightly better with \u201cI Call Your Name.\u201d He changes the key and uses a guitar sound that lacks the original’s jangle. Again, there\u2019s nothing at all wrong with his reading; it\u2019s just that it doesn\u2019t go to any length to justify its existence. The orignal\u2019s ersatz ska interlude is replaced by something more ordinary as well.<\/p>\n

The Anderson Council\u2019s name is an in-joke familiar to Pink Floyd fans. But the band\u2019s music sounds not a bit like the Floyd. Here, it doesn\u2019t sound much like Lennon, either. John Lennon \/ Plastic Ono Band<\/i>\u2019s \u201cI Found Out\u201d is a spare, stark number. The Anderson Council skillfully fleshes out the arrangement, putting their own stamp on it; the result is vaguely suggestive of how one imagines Lenny Kravitz might have done it. The solo is one of the rocking-est moments on the album.<\/p>\n

The sole UK-based act on this collection, The Gold Needles tackle three tunes in the space of two. In their hands, \u201cNo Reply\u201d sports a character halfway between soaring \u201890s Britpop and \u201860s Merseybeat. The backing for the \u201cI nearly died\u201d passage is heavy stuff reminiscent of Blur or Oasis.<\/p>\n

The Gold Needles hit the creative bullseye with a medley of \u201cCold Turkey\u201d and \u201cHey Bulldog\u201d as well. The inventive manner in which they hybridize the tunes recalls some of Giles Martin\u2019s tape-splicing work on the Beatles\u2019 Love<\/i>, but The Gold Needles\u2019 approach is more organic (and harder rocking). It may well be the best track on this solid collection.<\/p>\n

Speaking of medleys, Richard Barone (The Bongos) weighs in with a two-for-one of his own, a reading of incendiary tunes: \u201cRevolution\u201d and \u201cPower to the People.\u201d There\u2019s certainly a thematic link between the songs \u2013 though they were written four years apart \u2013 and putting them together would seem inspired, especially in 2020, when the idea of resistance against the entrenched powers resonates. But Barone seems to have other ideas. The bouncy, peppy keyboard on \u201cRevolution\u201d \u2013 the only instrument not played by Barone \u2013 does seem a bit out of place, and the manner in which the massed vocal chorus sings \u201cPower to the People\u201d may to some strike an odd, too-cheery-by-half tone as well. Still\/however, viewed outside the context of the lyrical intent, it\u2019s a fun recording that’s worthy of praise.<\/p>\n

Taken as a whole, Jem Records Celebrates John Lennon<\/i> is several notches above most other projects of a similar stripe. At its weakest, it\u2019s harmless, inoffensive and entertaining. At it best \u2013 which I’m happy to report is represented by a good deal of its content \u2013 it offers fresh and original takes on the music of a legendary figure. It’s a fitting tribute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today would have been John Lennon\u2019s 80th birthday. Cover versions that stick very close to the original version have their place: witness the appeal of tribute bands. But beyond the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19666,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,55,62,65],"tags":[278,4321,1183,4325,1833,4323,4324,3634,4326,4322],"class_list":["post-19665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-compilation","category-powerpop","category-rawk","category-review","tag-beatles","tag-jem-records","tag-john-lennon","tag-jonathan-pushkar","tag-richard-barone","tag-the-anderson-council","tag-the-gold-needles","tag-the-grip-weeds","tag-the-midnight-callers","tag-the-weeklings","cat-19-id","cat-55-id","cat-62-id","cat-65-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19665"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19665\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19847,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19665\/revisions\/19847"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}