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Double Fantasy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Double Fantasy | ||
 |
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| Studio album by John Lennon and Yoko Ono | ||
| Released | 17 November 1980 | |
| Recorded | 4 August – late September 1980 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 45:05 | |
| Label | Geffen Records, Capitol Records | |
| Producer(s) | John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Jack Douglas |
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| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| John Lennon chronology | ||
| Shaved Fish (1975) |
Double Fantasy (1980) |
The John Lennon Collection (1982) |
| Yoko Ono chronology | ||
| A Story (1974) |
Double Fantasy (1980) |
Season of Glass (1981) |
Double Fantasy is the comeback album by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, released in 1980 initially on the newly-formed Geffen Records, and now through EMI, the distributor of all of Lennon's output (including his Beatles material). It is notable for being John Lennon's last authorised release, coming out just three weeks before his sudden death.
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With the birth of his son Sean in 1975, Lennon put his career on hold to raise the boy and rekindle his relationship with his older son Julian. In the summer of 1980, both Lennon and Ono felt ready to resume to work and began composing.
After five years of little musical activity, aside recording the occasional demo in his apartment at The Dakota, Lennon was absolutely bursting with creativity. He had fulfilled a lifelong ambition of learning how to sail in early 1980 and had been given fresh creative impetus in June of that year following his life-affirming experiences sailing a 43-foot sloop to Bermuda, accompanied by a small crew. Once in Bermuda he started writing songs for a new album, sometimes writing about new experiences and occasionally reworking the half finished demos that he had recorded in the Dakota building.[1]
He was also, he claimed, the most content he had ever felt in all his years, even writing a song called "Life Begins at 40" to commemorate that milestone in his life. His assuredness and love for his family came through on the retro "(Just Like) Starting Over", as well as "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" and "Woman".
Yoko Ono approached Aerosmith producer Jack Douglas, with whom both Lennon and Ono had worked before, giving him John's demos to listen to. “My immediate impressions were that I was going to have a hard time making it better than the demos because there was such intimacy in the demos,” Douglas told Uncut's Chris Hunt in 2005.[2]
Lennon, Ono and Douglas produced dozens of songs beginning that August, enough to fill Double Fantasy and beyond. A projected second album, Milk and Honey, was well into the rehearsal phase when work was halted following Lennon's assassination that December.
Ono was currently being regarded with fresh perspective after the onslaught of the late 1970's punk movement which bore similarities to her earlier work. As such, with renewed confidence, she produced many songs. Jack Douglas allegedly forced Ono to curtail her trademark shrieks and sing on pitch to give her songs a more commercial edge - reportedly to her chagrin.
Lennon and Ono made the decision to release their impending songs together on the same album, the first time they had done so since 1972's controversial Some Time in New York City. Subtitled "A Heart Play", Double Fantasy would be a collection of songs whereby John and Yoko would be singing to each other.
Signed by David Geffen, alongside Elton John and Donna Summer, for his new label, Geffen, Double Fantasy was preceded by Lennon's "(Just Like) Starting Over", which quickly became a US Top 5 hit. The album itself was received with much interest, coming after such an extended break. Double Fantasy was mildly criticized upon release for being slick, while Ono's songs were overlooked, but the musical community was glad to have Lennon back.
On the evening 8 December 1980, Mark David Chapman shot John Lennon five times as he was walking into The Dakota with Ono; Lennon died twenty minutes later. “The last time I saw John he had this incredible smile on his face,” Jack Douglas later told journalist Chris Hunt. “It was the evening we finished ‘Walking On Thin Ice’. He was just thrilled, and so was Yoko, because we all knew we had accomplished what John set out to do with that track. I walked him to the elevator and said goodnight. About 40 minutes later my girlfriend came to the studio, all white. ‘It’s just been on the radio,’ she said. ‘John was shot’.”[3]
With worldwide grief for Lennon's death on an almost unparalleled scale, Double Fantasy, as well as "(Just Like) Starting Over", immediately rose to #1 in most countries, selling several million copies, with many of Lennon's past solo and Beatles releases re-charting as well. Subsequent singles, "Woman" and "Watching the Wheels" were also big successes.
To help her deal with her grief, Ono recorded and released Season of Glass in 1981 to positive critical and commercial reaction. Her dance single, "Walking on Thin Ice", which Lennon and Ono were mixing the night of his murder, also proved a hit.
In 1989, it was ranked #29 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 1980s.
On 24 February 1982, Double Fantasy won the Grammy award for "Album of the Year", amid emotional scenes as Yoko Ono and six-year-old Sean accepted the award.
In 1989, EMI acquired the rights to Double Fantasy from Geffen.
In 2000, Yoko Ono supervised the remastering of Double Fantasy, adding three bonus tracks to its CD reissue, including "Walking on Thin Ice".
In 2003 the copy autographed by Lennon for Mark Chapman was sold for $525,000, making it the most valuable record ever.[4]
- John - Vocals and guitar.
- Yoko - Voice.
- Earl Slick - Guitar.
- Hugh McCracken - Guitar.
- Tony Levin - Bass.
- George Small - Keyboards.
- Andy Newmark - Drums.
- Arthur Jenkins Jr. - Percussion.
- Ed Walsh - Oberheim. Synthesizer
- Robert Greenidge - Steel Drum (on "Beautiful Boy").
- Matthew Cunningham - Hammer Dulcimer (on "Watching The Wheels").
- Randy Stein - English Concertina.
- Howard Johnson - Horns
- Grant Hungerford - Horns
- John Parran - Horns
- Seldon Powell - Horns
- George "Young" Opalisky - Horns
- Roger Rosenberg - Horns
- David Tofani - Horns
- Ronald Tooley - Horns
- Tony Davillo - Horn Arrangements, Musical Associate
- Michelle Simpson, Cassandra Wooten, Cheryl Mason Jacks, Eric Troyer, Benny Cummings Singers, The Kings Temple Choir - Backing Vocals
- Toshihiro Hamaya - Production Assistant
- Julie Last - Assistant Engineer
- George Marino - Original Mastering, Remastering
- Lee DeCarlo - Engineer
- Jon Smith - Assistant Engineer
- Anthony Davilio - Musical Associate
- James A. Ball - Assistant Engineer
- Bob Gruen - Photography
- Kishin Shinoyama - Cover Photo, Photography
- Karla Merrifield - Reissue Art Coordinator
- Nishi F Saimaru - Photography
- David Spindel - Photography
- Lilo Raymond - Photography
- Christopher Whorf - Artwork
- "(Just Like) Starting Over" (John Lennon) – 3:56
- "Kiss Kiss Kiss" (Yoko Ono) – 2:41
- "Cleanup Time" (John Lennon) – 2:58
- "Give Me Something" (Yoko Ono) – 1:35
- "I'm Losing You" (John Lennon) – 3:57
- "I'm Moving On" (Yoko Ono) – 2:20
- "Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" (John Lennon) – 4:02
- "Watching the Wheels" (John Lennon) – 4:00
- "Yes I'm Your Angel" (Yoko Ono) – 3:08
- "Woman" (John Lennon) – 3:32
- "Beautiful Boys" (Yoko Ono) – 2:55
- "Dear Yoko" (John Lennon) – 2:34
- "Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him" (Yoko Ono) – 4:02
- "Hard Times Are Over" (Yoko Ono) – 3:20
- "Help Me to Help Myself" (John Lennon)*
- "Walking on Thin Ice" (Yoko Ono)*
- Central Park Stroll (Dialogue)*
(*Appear on the 2000 re-issue.)
- Just Like Starting Over The Recording Of Double Fantasy by Chris Hunt, published in Uncut John Lennon Special, 2005
- ^ "Just Like Starting Over" by Chris Hunt, Uncut John Lennon Special, 2005
- ^ "Just Like Starting Over" by Chris Hunt, Uncut John Lennon Special, 2005
- ^ "Just Like Starting Over" by Chris Hunt, Uncut John Lennon Special, 2005
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3247408.stm
| Yoko Ono |
|---|
| Studio albums |
| Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band | Fly Approximately Infinite Universe | Feeling the Space | A Story Season of Glass | It's Alright (I See Rainbows) | Starpeace Rising | Blueprint for a Sunrise |
| With John Lennon |
| Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins | Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions Wedding Album | Live Peace in Toronto 1969 | Some Time in New York City Double Fantasy | Milk and Honey |
| Compilations |
| Walking on Thin Ice | Onobox |
| Other Albums |
| New York Rock | Every Man Has a Woman | Yes, I'm a Witch | Open Your Box |