Lennon Re-Releases Library Today

Unless you live in a cave, you should know that Oct. 9 is the day John Lennon would have turned 70. To celebrate, today, Oct. 5, EMI will release eight of his solo albums plus two compilations and an 11-CD box set. (all with remixed sound supervised by his widow, Yoko Ono — showcasing his solo work after the Beatles’ split up in 1970).

Based on Amazon's pre-sales, the "John Lennon Signature Box," which includes 11 CDs of all the albums, rarities and non-album singles, is #1 among all of the Lennon titles. "Double Fantasy Stripped Down," which includes the album as released in 1980 plus a new version produced by Yoko Ono and Alan Douglas, is the runner-up.

Ono says the new version of "Double Fantasy" places the focus on Lennon's vocals. Comparing the original vinyl with the new versions of "(Just Like) Starting over" and "Beautiful Boy," her assertion is correct. Based on the new versions provided by EMI on a sampler, the reverb on the tunes has been greatly reduced. The new "Starting Over" no longer has the choir backing Lennon, and the drums, which dominated the original, have been placed deep in the mix. There's less vocal layering on "Beautiful Boy," and the mix emphasizes the island lullaby feel generated by the steel drums; both recordings have gone from tightly packed to loose and airy.

“John was a Renaissance man,” says Ono, who met Lennon at a showing of her artwork in 1966 in London and married him on March 20, 1969. “He was an inspired artist. He could not control himself; he just dished out all the things he was inspired to dish out. But also, he was aware it was very, very dangerous.

“I knew that he knew he was playing a dangerous game. ‘Gimme Some Truth’ is what he was thinking, so he was pushing that to the point that it might have been dangerous, and he was probably too daring for his own good. He knew that. He always said, ‘It’s a little bit much, isn’t it?’ ”

Nevertheless, Ono says Lennon’s fearlessness and willingness to be controversial in support of women’s rights, protecting the environment, ending the Vietnam War and promoting peace and tolerance made a lasting impression that went well beyond pop music.

“He’s a brilliant man whose work actually changed the world — or it changed the map of your brain, let me put it that way,” she explains.

Read more of Ono's comments here

The John Lennon Signature Box: An 11-CD set featuring the eight solo albums he made while he was alive (including the newly created “Double Fantasy Stripped Down”), a disc of non-album singles and a CD of rare and previously unreleased material.

Buy Signature Box Here

Buy Double Fantasy Stripped Down [New Mix + Original Recording Remastered] Here

John Lennon Box of Vision: An adjunct box designed to house Lennon’s releases in style, along with a 166-page book documenting his LP artwork, a lavishly illustrated discography and a pair of special recordable DVDs and CDs for fans’ use.

Available via www.boxofvision/johnlennon