John Lennon published this record In 1971, soon after the “end” of the Beatles; it is a record still remaining in history most of all because of the renowned title track and the other hit “Jealous Guy”. Compared to the previous “Plastic Ono Band”, in this record Lennon’s musical arrangements are much more airy, and diversified, indulging to a public more and more inclined to George’s and Paul’s melodies than to his own tartness. He gathers excellent musicians round him: King Curtis’ sax is enthralling in “I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier”, and Harrison’s guitar is magic as ever in “How Do You Sleep” and “Gimme SomeTruth”. In spite of this, the texts are sometimes conflicting: the political commitment is well on evidence in “Gimme SomeTruth” and “I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier”; the hatred to McCartney (and it comes from a man singing “Imagine all the people living life in peace”!) oozes from “How Do You Sleep” in the very same way in which the love to Yoko gives life to the country piece “Oh Yoko” and to the beautiful ballads “Jealous Guy” and “Oh, My Love”. And then we have “Imagine”, considered to be one of the most pleasant songs of the last century, the very summary of what Lennon used to believe in. A song wrapped in a fascinating and easy listening music but in fact suggesting the ordinary and indefinite, though charming still, “Peace & Love” utopia, being it late even with respect to that hippy age failed in the Woodstock mud. A song hoping for a world where all the people live free from worries and responsibilities, a world in which there is no religion to believe in and nothing to fight for…
But how could one foresee a different world and affirm in the meantime that nothing is to be done to change it (“imagine all the people living for today”)? This is maybe not well realized by the people thinking to “Imagine” as to a song to be taken as a way of life.


John lennon - IMAGINE (1971)

1. Imagine {Lennon} (3:04)
2. Crippled Inside {Lennon} (3:50)
3. Jealous Guy {Lennon} (4:15)
4. It's So Hard {Lennon} (2:28)
5. I Don't Want To Be A Soldier Mama, I Don't Want To Die {Lennon} (6:08)
6. Give Me Some Truth {Lennon} (3:17)
7. Oh My Love {Lennon/Yoko Ono} (2:45)
8. How Do You Sleep? {Lennon} (5:36)
9. How? {Lennon} (3:44)
10.Oh Yoko! {Lennon} (4:17)


Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living fot today...
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us

And the world will live as one.


PAGINE 70
Lucio Mazzi

Translated by Antonio Monteduro