John Lennon at the airport, 1973. Photo credit Yoko Ono. |
MIND GAMES Released on October 29, 1973 in the U.S. and November 16 in the U.K., John Lennon’s fourth solo album, Mind Games, was recorded at the Record Plant in New York with the same musicians that played on Yoko Ono’s Feeling The Space record. With her songs having become more sophisticated, Yoko enlisted a group of experienced session musicians to help realize them, in place of the looser, jammier band Elephant Memory that played on John and Yoko’s Sometime In New York City the year prior. As a result of dipping into Yoko’s sessions with this amazing band of musicians, John became inspired to record a more commercial album with the same team. Humorously named the Plastic U.F.Ono Band, the group was a who’s who of New York’s elite session musicians, including guitarist David Spinozza, bassist Gordon Edwards, drummers Jim Keltner and Rick Marotta, pianist Ken Ascher, pedal-steel player “Sneaky” Pete Kleinow, saxophonist Michael Brecker, and was rounded out with beautiful, soulful backing vocals by Something Different, featuring Angel Coakley, Christine Wiltshire, Jocelyn Brown, and Kathy Mull. Writing for Mind Games was nearly as quick as its recording with John writing and working out a handful of new songs the week of July 16, 1973, just two weeks before going into the studio. Recording commenced August 1 and wrapped August 5 with overdubs taking place August 6-16, mixing August 21-September 18 and master tape assembly September 19-21. The album was self-produced by John, with production help from Yoko, and marked his first solo effort without Phil Spector at the helm. It was engineered by Roy Cicala and Dan Barbiero, with some studio assistance by a young Jimmy Iovine who started at the studio as an assistant towards the end of the sessions. Despite most of the songs being written just before they were recorded, the title track, “Mind Games,” dates back to 1970 when it had the working title of “Make Love, Not War.” John was inspired to complete the soaring pop song after reading the 1972 book “Mind Games: The Guide to Inner Space,” written by Robert Masters and Jean Houston, which stressed the tapping of our mental potential to effect global change. In the tradition of Yoko’s “Imagine” poems, it was suggesting, “mind games” as a positive and creative idea. Many of the tracks on Mind Games feature John chronicling his own life and the rocky relationship he was experiencing with Yoko at the time. The melancholic waltz “Aisumasen (I’m Sorry)” (“Aisumimasen” is Japanese for “I’m sorry”), is John at his most vulnerable, reflecting on his relationship and the remorse for the emotional pain he’s inflicted. Standout “Out The Blue” sees John expressing his doubts over the couple’s separation as the song begins with just John and a gently strummed acoustic guitar, resembling his work with The Beatles, before the band and backing singers kick in and the song builds to a soaring climax with John singing: “Like a U.F.O., you came to me/And blew away life's misery/Out the blue life's energy/Out the blue you came to me.” The lilting “One Day (At A Time),” sung by John in a rare falsetto and featuring a classic sax solo from Michael Brecker on one of his earliest sessions, is a song about enjoying the here and now and reminding that “one day at a time is all we do,” while “Tight A$” is an innuendo-laden, rollicking country rocker with the band firing on all cylinders, including some brilliant pedal steel playing by “Sneaky” Pete Kleinow. John’s politics are showcased on tracks “Bring On The Lucie (Freda People)” and “Only People,” but in a much lighter and wittier way. At the center of Mind Games lies the “Nutopian National Anthem,” a brief, silent three-second repose. Nutopia is the imaginary country created by John and Yoko in 1973 during their immigration woes – a conceptual nation that exists only in one’s mind, without borders, founded on love and open to everyone. Upon its original release Mind Games sold reasonably well, peaking in the U.S. at No. 9 on Billboard and No. 13 in the U.K. The track “Mind Games”, the only single released from the record, hit No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 26 in the UK. Although the album received mixed reviews in 1973, over the last 50 years it has become something of a cult classic among fans and positively reassessed by critics. Renowned music writer Anthony DeCurtis gave four-stars in Rolling Stone to the 2002 reissue while NME ranked it as John’s third best solo album, writing “there’s a Beatledelic vivacity to ‘I Know (I Know)’ and the glam-friendly ‘Only People’ that Lennon would rarely capture on record again.” Most recently, Rolling Stone chose “Mind Games” as #5 on their exhaustive list of “The 100 Best Beatles Solo Songs,” declaring, “John brings all his cosmic benevolence to ‘Mind Games’, his peace-and-love anthem. ‘Mind Games’ is John at his most unfiltered: his boyish excitement, his slide guitar, his madcap humor, his spiritual yearning, his walrus-adjacent poetry," adding, “If you ever doubt John’s genius as a singer, hear the way he stretches the word ‘mind’ out to ten syllables without letting it slip. He pushes it all way too far on ‘Mind Games.’ But that’s what makes him John Lennon.” |
MIND GAMES MEDITATION MIXES ON LUMENATE Mind Games is also being celebrated this year in several innovative ways. Sean Ono Lennon and The John Lennon Estate have partnered with the consciousness-expanding psychedelic meditation phone app, Lumenate, to exclusively release nine reimagined Meditation Mixes of “Mind Games.” The newly transformed mixes have been designed (in combination with the frequencies of light from the Lumenate app) to put the listener in a relaxed, meditative state, to help guide your mind into deeper states of consciousness. Various sound design techniques and processes have been applied to the original 1973 two-inch multitrack recordings, and in some cases have been enhanced with additional instrumentation from producer Sean Ono Lennon. The Lumenate app uses the flashlight on the back of one's smartphone strobed at research-driven frequencies onto a person's closed eyes to neurologically guide them into a state of consciousness between that of deep meditation and psychedelics. Each of the nine Meditation Mixes has been paired with a unique, deeply immersive light sequence, using carefully selected flicker frequencies to accompany the mind-and-mood-altering sound. These singular, mind-altering sequences elevate the musical journey, deepen the sense of relaxation, and allow users to see, hear and feel the music like never before. The “Mind Games” Meditation Mixes launched May 1st, as part of Mental Health Awareness Month. The experience is available for free, exclusively via the Lumenate app. CITIZEN OF NUTOPIA WEBSITE Also recently launched is the Citizen of Nutopia website (citizenofnutopia.com), designed by the award-winning team of Sean Ono Lennon and Loud Beings (James Swindells and Dan London) who just won the Technical Achievement Webby Award for their Wish Tree For Yoko Ono website (wishtreeforyoko.com). Citizen of Nutopia is a landing page for a conceptual game for John & Yoko fans, based on NUTOPIA - an imaginary borderless pan-global country created by John and Yoko in 1973, open to everyone, based on promoting the ideas of peace and love made famous in the songs “Mind Games” and “Imagine.” Recent updates to the site introduced hourly global group Meditation Affirmations with quotes by John & Yoko and links to meditate with Lumenate and to donate to the UK Mental Health Charity, MIND. Citizens can leave messages and send love to one another and explore messages left by other Citizens all over the world. As the site grows, it is continually being updated with new content, so Citizens are advised to keep checking back for updates as we approach the launch of the Mind Games album remixes and re-releases on July 12. ABOUT JOHN LENNON John Lennon is arguably the greatest songwriter of his generation. As founder and leader of The Beatles and also as a solo artist, Lennon has won seven GRAMMY® Awards, including two Lifetime Achievement Awards, five BRIT Awards including two Special Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Music, 21 NME Awards, 15 Ivor Novellos and an Academy Award. He has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2008, Rolling Stone ranked Lennon in the Top 5 of the magazine's “100 Greatest Singers Of All Time” list. johnlennon.com facebook.com/johnlennon twitter.com/johnlennon instagram.com/johnlennon youtube.com/johnlennon |
MIND GAMES – THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION SUPER DELUXE EDITION + 6 CDs containing more than 5 hours and 23 mins of music: 72 tracks in 44.1kHZ/16bit stereo. + 2 Blu-Ray Audio Discs containing over 16 hours of music: 231 tracks of High-Definition, Studio Quality 192kHz/24bit audio, including mixes in Stereo, 5.1 Surround and Dolby Atmos. + 128-Page Book + Poster: Reproduction of 1973 triptych marketing poster + 2 Postcards: postcard sized reproductions of 1973 advert artworks and individually numbered Citizen of Nutopia ID card |
DELUXE 2 BLU-RAY TRACK LISTING THE ULTIMATE MIXES (45 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City THE ELEMENTAL MIXES (52 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People (Elemental Mix) 10. I Know (I Know) (Elemental Mix) 11. You Are Here (Elemental Mix) 12. Meat City (Elemental Mix) THE ELEMENTS MIXES (51 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City THE EVOLUTION DOCUMENTARY (74 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City THE RAW STUDIO MIXES (49 mins) 1. Mind Games (Raw Studio Mix) 2. Tight A$ (Raw Studio Mix) 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) (Raw Studio Mix) 4. One Day (At A Time) (Raw Studio Mix) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) (Raw Studio Mix) 6. Nutopian International Anthem (Raw Studio Mix) Intuition (Raw Studio Mix) 8. Out The Blue (Raw Studio Mix) 9. Only People (Raw Studio Mix) 10. I Know (I Know) (Raw Studio Mix) 11. You Are Here (Raw Studio Mix) 12. Meat City (Raw Studio Mix) THE OUT-TAKES (55 mins) 1. Mind Games (Out-take, Take 7) 2. Tight A$ (Out-take, Take 6) 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) (Out-take, Take 2) 4. One Day (At A Time) (Out-take, Take 18) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) (Out-take, Take 15) 6. Declaration Of Nutopia (Out-take, Take 9) 7. Intuition (Out-take, Take 12) 8. Out The Blue (Out-take, Take 15) 9. Only People (Out-take, Take 12) 10. I Know (I Know) (Out-take, Take 22) 11. You Are Here (Out-take, Take 5) 12. Meat City (Out-take, Take 16) DELUXE 6CD TRACK LISTING CD1: THE ULTIMATE MIXES (45 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City CD2: THE ELEMENTAL MIXES (52 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem (Elemental Mix) 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City CD3: THE ELEMENTS MIXES (51 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City CD: THE EVOLUTION DOCUMENTARY (74 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City CD5: THE RAW STUDIO MIXES (49 mins) 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) (Raw Studio Mix) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City CD6: THE OUT-TAKES (55 mins) 1. Mind Games (Out-take, Take 7) 2. Tight A$ (Out-take, Take 6) 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) (Out-take, Take 2) 4. One Day (At A Time) (Out-take, Take 18) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) (Out-take, Take 15) 6. Declaration Of Nutopia (Out-take, Take 1 7. Intuition (Out-take, Take 12) 8. Out The Blue (Out-take, Take 15) 9. Only People (Out-take, Take 12) 10. I Know (I Know) (Out-take, Take 22) 11. You Are Here (Out-take, Take 5) 12. Meat City (Out-take, Take 16) |
2LP Side A: THE ULTIMATE MIXES 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem SIDE B: THE ULTIMATE MIXES 1. Intuition 2. Out The Blue 3. Only People 4. I Know (I Know) 5. You Are Here 6. Meat City SIDE C: THE OUT-TAKES 1. Mind Games (Out-take, Take 7) 2. Tight A$ (Out-take, Take 6) 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) (Out-take, Take 2) 4. One Day (At A Time) (Out-take, Take 18) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Feeda Peeple) (Out-take, Take 15) 6. Declaration Of Nutopia (Out-take, Take 1) SIDE D: THE OUT-TAKES 1. Intuition (Out-take, Take 12) 2. Out The Blue (Out-take, Take 15) 3. Only People (Out-take, Take 12) 4. I Know (I Know) (Out-take, Take 22) 5. You Are Here (Out-take, Take 5) 6. Meat City (Out-take, Take 16) |
2CD CD1: THE ULTIMATE MIXES 1. Mind Games 2. Tight A$ 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) 4. One Day (At A Time) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) 6. Nutopian International Anthem 7. Intuition 8. Out The Blue 9. Only People 10. I Know (I Know) 11. You Are Here 12. Meat City CD2: THE OUT-TAKES 1. Mind Games (Out-take, Take 7) 2. Tight A$ (Out-take, Take 6) 3. Aisumasen (I’m Sorry) (Out-take, Take 2) 4. One Day (At A Time) (Out-take, Take 18) 5. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda Peeple) (Out-take, Take 15) 6. Declaration Of Nutopia (Out-take, Take 1) 7. Intuition (Out-take, Take 12) 8. Out The Blue (Out-take, Take 15) 9. Only People (Out-take, Take 12) 10. I Know (I Know) (Out-take, Take 22) 11. You Are Here (Out-take, Take 5) 12. Meat City (Out-take, Take 16) |
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