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Since shortly before The Second Disc began in 2010, we’ve seen a swath of major reissues, overhauls and catalog deliveries of the works of both The Beatles, together and separately, too. This fall, it’s time to take a look at the catalogue of one of The Beatles’ most intriguing associates: Yoko Ono.
John Lennon’s second wife is not “the woman who broke up The Beatles,” as has been famously charged. But John’s devotion to her as expressed in much of his solo music, as well as her own challenging solo works, has ruffled a few feathers along the way. No matter–this fall, audiences will have a chance to hear her classic records anew, when the Secretly Canadian label kicks off a reissue project spanning her discography from 1968 to 1985.
The first batch of reissues, due on vinyl, CD and (for the first time) digitally November 11, will include the avant-garde releases Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins (1968) and Unfinished Music No. 2: Life with the Lions (1969)–both recorded with Lennon–and 1970’s solo Plastic Ono Band, released simultaneously with John’s debut solo album of the same name and ensemble, months after The Beatles’ dissolution. All are newly remastered and expanded, with reconstructed packaging and never-before-seen archival photos.
A further eight albums, spanning from Fly (1971) to Starpeace (1985) and also including 1969’s experimental Lennon-Ono collaboration Wedding Album, will follow in 2017. See pre-order links below!
Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins (originally released as Apple/Track Record SAPCOR 2 (U.K.)/Apple/Tetragrammaton T-5001 (U.S.), 1968 – reissued Secretly Canadian/Chimera Music, 2016)
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
- Two Virgins Side 1 (No. 1/Together/No. 2/No. 3/No. 4/No. 5)
- Two Virgins Side 2 (No. 6/Hushabye Hushabye/No. 7/No. 8/No. 9/No. 10)
- Remember Love (B-side to “Give Peace a Chance,” Apple Records 13 (U.K.), 1969)
Unfinished Music No. 2: Life with the Lions (originally released as Zapple 01 (U.K.)/ST-3357 (U.S.), 1969 – reissued Secretly Canadian/Chimera Music, 2016)
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
- Cambridge 1969
- No Bed for Beatle John
- Baby’s Heartbeat
- Two Minutes Silence
- Radio Play
- Song for John (from Rykodisc/Zapple reissue RCD 10412, 1997)
- Mulberry (from Rykodisc/Zapple reissue RCD 10412, 1997)
Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band (originally released as Apple SAPCOR 17 (U.K.)/SW-3373 (U.S.), 1970 – reissued Secretly Canadian/Chimera Music, 2016)
CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K.
- Why
- Why Not
- Greenfield Morning I Pushed An Empty Baby Carriage All Over the City
- Aos
- Touch Me
- Paper Shoes
- Open Your Box (from Rykodisc reissue RCD 10414, 1997)
- Something More Abstract (from Rykodisc reissue RCD 10414, 1997)
- Why (Extended Version) *
- The South Wind (from Rykodisc reissue RCD 10414, 1997)
From Them To You: The Beatles To Release New Vinyl Singles Box
Live As One: “Above Us Only Sky” Documentary Explores Creative Process Behind Lennon’s “Imagine”
Salt of the Earth: ABKCO Revisits “The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus” With Expanded Deluxe Sets
Release Round-Up: Week of March 22
Certainly a reissue series to be missed!
Gee, I hope they are made available as 78s so they can be smashed more easily!
Really looking forward to these reissues. I do wish the bonus tracks went a bit deeper than the 1997 editions (apart from the new extended version of Why – one of Lennon’s greatest guitar performances).
I was going to say “Cue the Yoko bashers!” but I see I’m too late.
Anyone who bashes Yoko is just plain ignorant and uncool. She rules.
I have most of the Ryko stuff including the box. I was poor then that’s why i never bought the rest. Also have loads of her singles. But yeah, I’ll get the rest
I don’t mind Yoko’s music but how on earth can these albums be described as “classic”
I think anything over 20 years old is classic.
I really like Yoko’s later work. The LP’s with John (“Two Virgins”, “Life With the Lions”, “Wedding Album”) were just noise, honestly, and the first Yoko solo album, “Plastic Ono Band,” was just too out there for even my taste. Her later Apple LP’s, from “Fly” onward, each had some really good songs on them, though Yoko’s words were often hard to grasp, and her voice hard to cozy up to. Her Geffen and Polydor albums, which came after John’s death, were actually quite good, despite what some may say. I think people, overall, have been extremely unkind to Yoko as an artist. She is very talented, though she is definitely an acquired taste! I look forward to the later reissues…. (Hope they re-issue the Yoko-tribute album, “Every Man Has A Woman,” at some point. The versions of Yoko songs performed by other artists, were super good. Rosanne Cash’s version of “Nobody Sees Me Like You You Do” was a stand-out, as was “Goodbye Sadness” by Roberta Flack, and I loved the Harry Nilsson versions of Yoko’s songs. That makes me think that maybe the problem with Yoko’s music is that SHE performs it. In the hands of others, her songs are really good.)
It can be interesting to play the EMHAW CD amongst the Yoko haters… they actually LIKE most of it until they discover it’s Yoko music, and only then does the bashing begin. Had a friend who used to play the male duet version of “Never Say Goodbye” (from “New York Rock”) incessantly, until he found out Yoko wrote it. (sigh…)
she was better than linda…thats for sure…
I hope they reissue Onobox.
If you don’t already have these albums on original vinyl or the Rykodisc CD series(but I DO!), then there may be reason to buy the new reissues, but one previously unreleased bonus track is not (for me) reason to buy these CD’s. They are, otherwise, verbatim reissues of the Rykodisc CD’s.
Some idiotic and just stupid bash Yoko comments here.
For a start – leaving aside the 1968-69 albums of her and John farting about (sadly literally) – her post-1970 albums are an incredible voyage of experimentation, fearlessly pushing boundaries and incredibly – given the critics great music.
Some thoughts for the cynics:
1. Yoko musically post-Fab Four is much more interesting than any of them;
2. Walking on Thin Ice is on a par with anything the post-Fab Four did;
3. Yoko got better with age; her most recent albums in her late 70s and now 80s are truly fantastic and filled with great songs.
4. And of course in the last 10-15 years Yoko has become this cause celeb of US dance remixers – something that was always possible from Walking on Thin Ice.
Musical squares never like things that are out there or disrupters; Yoko has certainly annoyed those types for over 50 years.
I made the mistake of selling off my Ryko reissues some years back; the only one I held on to was “Season of Glass.” I’ve been lucky to find a couple of the others for relatively decent prices lately (including “Every Man Has a Woman”) but maybe I can finally re-acquire some of these without breaking the bank. It would be nice if there were also something like the “Walking on Thin Ice” compilation to collect the extended Geffen / Polydor singles.