Working Class Hero by John Lennon

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John Lennon Week comes to an end today at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll.The song of the day for October 12, 2012 is 'Working Class Hero' by John Lennon. This song was released in 1970 on the John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album.

'Working Class Hero' is one of those songs that fuels the fire for the John Lennon haters. They think he's some sort of Communist minstrel, but John's just telling the truth. I find it interesting that the truth tellers are viewed as problematic. John's not telling people to break the law or do something unethical. All he is saying is that you can become part of the machine or be your own person. You can be miserable in life doing some mindless task or you can find happiness. A working class hero is something to be. Thanks. John. You are missed.

Dear Prudence by The Beatles

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This is John Lennon Week at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll, and the song of the day for October 11, 2012 is 'Dear Prudence' by The Beatles. This song was released in 1968 on The Beatles album which is more commonly known as The White Album.

'Dear Prudence' is a song I would play for someone who never heard anything by The Beatles because it is in my opinion one of The Beatles' finest tunes. John's lyrics are great, Paul's bass playing is lovely, and the end product is fantastic. You really can't go wrong with The Beatles/The White Album, and picking the strongest track will lead to some very spirited discussions. What I find interesting is that while I view 'Dear Prudence' as a great song for a Beatles introduction, it is featured on an album where the band was in a state of discord. I'm a firm believer that the best rock albums are recorded at a time when a band is at a low point or in the middle of complete chaos.    

Instant Karma! (We All Shine On) by John Lennon

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This is John Lennon Week at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. John would have been 72 this week, and the song of the day for October 10, 2012 is 'Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)'. This song was released in 1970 and it peaked at #3 on the US Billboard charts.

John rounded up an all-star posse for 'Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)'. George Harrison played the guitar, Billy Preston played the organ, Alan White rocked the drums, and Phil Spector produced the song. I've always been a huge fan of this song, and I don't have much to say this evening because it has been a busy day. Just play the song and enjoy.

The Ballad of John and Yoko by The Beatles

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This is John Lennon Week at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. Today would have been Lennon's 72nd birthday, and the song of the day for October 9, 2012 is 'The Ballad of John and Yoko' by The Beatles. This song was released as a single in 1969 and the b-side of that single was George Harrison's 'Old Brown Shoe'. 'The Ballad of John and Yoko' was recorded by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. George Harrison and Ringo Starr were not available at the time, so John and Paul played all of the instruments.

What I like about 'The Ballad of John and Yoko' is that John addresses his haters, and there are plenty out there some thirty-two years following his death. Someone once forwarded me an email that was sent to them by a religious lunatic that claimed God killed John Lennon for his "more popular than Jesus" quote. If people did their research, they would realize that Lennon was talking about the decline of religious interest in the United Kingdom. You can watch this video where Lennon defends his statement. I need to step off the soap box. Enjoy the song below!

Nobody Told Me by John Lennon

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This is John Lennon Week at The Lost Soul of Rock and Roll. October 9th would have been John's 72nd birthday, so I thought it would be appropriate to celebrate John's work this Rocktober. The song of the day for October 8, 2012 is 'Nobody Told Me' by John Lennon. This song was posthumously released in 1984 on the Milk and Honey album.

I vaguely remember the morning of December 9, 1980, but I do recall my mom telling me that a Beatle had been shot while I was brushing my teeth. I was seven and thought someone killed a bug. I had no idea she was talking about John Lennon. At that point in my life, the only music I knew was Kiss, ELO, and The Village People. Like I said, I was seven.

My mom had some of the early albums by The Beatles and I started listening to them when I was fourteen or fifteen. I wasn't totally hooked on The Beatles until I was eighteen or nineteen. I made an effort to check out their solo material as well and recall viewing the video 'Nobody Told Me' on MTV or VH1 one day. It was one of those songs that I had forgotten about because I remembered when it was a 1984 hit. 'Nobody Told Me' is one of my favorite Lennon solo songs, and I believe we can all relate to the line, "Nobody told me there'd be days like these". Enjoy.

Rain by The Beatles

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Rain, I don't mind

It's about time I posted a song by The Beatles. Today, I've selected 'Rain' one of my favorite songs by The Beatles. 'Rain' is the B-side to the 1966 single release for 'Paperback Writer' and is a fine example of how the best songs by artists are not always on their albums. Sometimes you have to dig deep to find gems. Enjoy.