John Lennon 1940-1980
Two of the tracks on Anthology were recorded live in December 1971 at a
benefit at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem for the families of the prisoners
who were killed during an insurrection at the Attica Correctional Facility
in upstate New York... explaining to the rapturous crowd that "I lost my
old band - or left it," Lennon delivers a gorgeous rendition of "Imagine"
solo on acoustic guitar. In that gritty context the song�s yearning for a
better world takes on powerful new meanings.
...on the stark version of "Nobody Loves You (When You�re Down And Out),"
Lennon howls, "Then I�m lying in the darkness and I know I can�t get to
sleep," almost as if he were a child in the clutches of a nightmare�s
terror. The song makes apparent the degree to which Lennon�s outbursts of
anger, bitterness and cynicism ("Everybody�s hustlin�for a buck and a
dime/I�ll scratch your back and you knife mine") were his hard-shelled
defense against his fears of being left alone. "But still you ask me do I
love, what it is, what is/All I can tell you is it�s all show biz," he
sings in a voice that sounds weary of life itself. It�s a song unlike any
other he ever wrote - delivered from the standpoint of a broken-down hack
entertainer at the very bottom of his game - and it�s a chilling
performance to match.
...this Anthology removes Lennon from the realm of myth that he so
despised, and reveals the splendid making of his works and days... This is
the unadulterated Lennon, a man who wrote brave, timeless songs out of his
struggles in the world and inside himself, as well as in his rare,
precious moments of peace.
His death is a loss from which we have yet to recover - as if we ever
could. His work inspires and consoles, but there is one sad truth it
cannot change:� We shall not look upon his like again.
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