Re: Yoko (was Re: Yoko-enthusiast Ann Magnuson (fwd))

[progbear@aol.com (Progbear)]

>I'm not a big enough fan to be on Ono-net, but I do like some of her 
>stuff. I have the compilation _Walking on Thin Ice_ (the one-CD 
>Rykodisc comp from a few years back). I love the "new wavish" and 
>experimental stuff (like "Yangyang"), but I *hate* the sappy 
>ballad-type stuff (no insult to those Yoko fans who love that sort of 
>stuff), so I've been afraid to buy a whole album (as opposed to a 
>comp), since I'm not sure which ones are which. 

     Ick! Does ANYONE like her sappy ballad stuff? Just *thinking* of "My Man"
 thrusts my blood-sugar levels dangerously high. I'd recommend staying away
 from the post-John 1980's stuff altogether (like _Starpeace_), too much of it
 is really saccharine stuff like "I See Rainbows". For me, her last good song
 until the Yoko/Ima album (can't remember the title offhand) came out was "I'm
 Moving On" from _Double Fantasy_. It seems you ought to like _Double Fantasy_
 since you like "Kiss Kiss Kiss" (I didn't). I highly recommend the new album
 (with IMA), it really rocks! "Ask The Dragon" is her best song in a long time!
 Considering you like "Yangyang", I'd recommend _Approximately Infinite
 Universe_ and _Feeling The Space_. _Feeling The Space_ is the best bet,
 probably; it's shorter and has a greater percentage of good tracks ("Coffin
 Car" is another favourite).

>I noticed a bunch 
>were rereleased recently. Are there any you would >recommend? 

     Hmmm...hard to say. Her early stuff (like _Fly_ and _Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono
 Band_) was still very entrenched in avantgarde music, and is not dissimilar in
 style to other avant-garde vocalists of the time (like Cathy Berberian and
 Meredith Monk). That stuff is very strange, but if you have the stamina for
 it, very rewarding as well. The infamous "Don't Worry Kyoko" dates from that
 period, which a friend of mine correctly observes "seems to be the only Yoko
 Ono song anyone has heard".

                         MIKE

"What fools we are to fall so far from the truth." --Annette Peacock
"Parece cosa de maligno. Los pianos no estallan por casualidad." --Gabriel
 Garcia Marquez
"I just think it would be a much better world if the scientists could keep
 their slide-rules in their pants!" --Scott Thompson

N.P.:"Trip on Metro"- D. F. A. / L a v o r i  i n  C o r s o