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John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band - Live In Toronto ’69
Lennon, up close and on the cusp of finishing The Beatles
According to legend, after organisers of September 1969’s Toronto Rock’n’Roll Revival Festival unsuccessfully courted The Beatles, John and Yoko (who had recently recorded Cold Turkey with Eric Clapton, bassist Klaus Voorman and drummer Alan White) took Lennon’s newly-formed Plastic Ono Band on a plane, loosely planning a set of standards they all knew. The event, held on 13 September at the University Of Toronto’s Varsity Stadium, ran 12 hours, attracting 20,000 to see a bill headlined by The Doors, but mainly consisting of original rock’n’roll legends.
DA Pennebaker filmed the event at close quarters, releasing his Sweet Toronto movie two years later as the only live footage of the Plastic Ono Band. After warming up with Bo Diddley on primal form, a disdainful Jerry Lee Lewis and glammed-up Little Richard, the director runs the group’s whole set: Blue Suede Shoes, Money, a close-to-home Cold Turkey, Yer Blues, Give Peace A Chance (“This is what we came for”) and Dizzy Miss Lizzy. Then Yoko gets out of her bag.
At this time, she was blamed for taking Lennon away from The Beatles, boos greeting her disembodied wailing, while Lennon and a wired-looking Clapton feedback their guitars. As pivotal music history, it’s priceless: Lennon then returned to The Beatles and informed them he was leaving.
Wienerworld | WNRD 2464
Reviewed by Kris Needs
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