Between My Head & The Sky

I saw Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band perform music from this CD at the Fox Theater in Oakland, CA, February 2010. Yoko really rocked! The music on this CD represents many years of Yoko's development in her music and ideas. On it, she sings her styles of Proto-Punk, Rock, Jazz, Spoken Word, and Pop. At the concert, she included clips from her films and television appearances, as well as a contemporary animated piece. The songs cover topics from survival in our current world to the acceptance of mortality. Yoko also offers encouraging words to those who wish to deviate from the norm and make their own path towards the discovery of new universes. The CD starts out loud and fast and, after a number of slow and fast songs, relaxes into a mellow bit of sweetness and contemplation. It is great food for the mind and soul!The other musicians in the Plastic Ono Band are great too. It amazes me that when Yoko is involved, she can get many different bands to make a style that is hers consistently. But also, each band is unique and makes its own contribution to her sound. Sean, Yuka, and the rest are tight on the CD and were in concert too!The CD comes with a lovely booklet that has some of Yoko's drawings, as well as the lyrics to the songs, in it. The drawings are fun to meditate on, if you're into that kind of thing. There is a cute photo of the band inside the gatefold of the CD cover. Overall, an imaginative and stimulating experience! :-{D}

Electro-funk meets cool jazz meets new age meets melodious pop meets spoken word. East meets west, north and south-we are all water, perhaps someday we will evaporate together(ha). Just fun to listen to and of considerable substance to digest. Plastic Ono Band in near pefect form. Thoughtful intelligent lyrics...."When you say I love you..not only are you telling your lover,but you are telling yourself,the planet,and the Universe." Que the harp and the trombone.Oh Yes. the obligatory grunts and screams and noises are present but mixed appropriately into the songs. Very well done. Why this planet, why this special world. That's what we are here for, to hear the birds sing in the morning. also recommended:ONO:Yes I'm A Witch" 2007. This girls on a roll.

Yoko's band for this CD, the reinvented "Plastic Ono Band", is composed of musicians of obvious ability. One of them is her son, Sean Lennon. Sean must have inherited considerable talent from both his parents, because he is credited with playing a variety of instruments - guitars, piano and keyboards, bass and percussion.The tracks on this CD represent a rainbow of genres, most of them incorporating Yoko's trademark "vocalizations"; and many include lyrics which paint a relationship between philosophy and elemental things: sun, moon, stars, wind, ocean, sand, grass, rain, sky. The odd thing is that in this combination of philosophy and the elements, Yoko resembles another (very different) singer/songwriter, Laura Nyro, who wrote brilliant Top 40 hits recorded by pop/rock artists in the 60's and 70's."Waiting For The D Train", "Between My Head And The Sky" and "Hashire, Hashire" fall into the "rock" category. The first 2 are similar to music found on the Red Hot Chili Peppers' classic "Blood Sugar Sex Magik": funky, bass-heavy, guitars galore. The music of the 3rd one (sung in Japanese) reminds me of loud, sensational background music from a 50's crime/vice film. Then, what I call "sonic pop" is represented by "The Sun Is Down" and "Watching The Rain". These are milder but still beat-driven, spacey and generously sprinkled with electronica. In the "ballad" category are "Feel The Sand", which literally mentions the value of "smelling the roses"; "Unun.To", featuring classical piano, rippling strings and a muted horn, with lyrics about the effect that our actions and emotions have on our neighbors in the Universe, present and future; "I'm Going Away Smiling", with ascending and descending piano arpeggios, strings, and lyrics that I feel must be about John; and "Higa Noboru", with arpeggios vaguely like the music of "Moonlight Sonata".The remaining tracks stand alone as far as categorizing goes. "Ask The Elephant" is rather spare musically, leaning toward contemporary modern jazz (with a heavy beat). "Memory Of Footsteps" has a solo horn arrangement reminiscent of what you might hear in an old popular jazz standard. "Moving Mountains" has no lyrics, just Asian jungle beats and jungle noises (not only from Yoko!). "Calling" is a song of comfort and encouragement which begins quietly, backed by a droning like that from a bagpipe or organ, but soon changes to 60's acid-rock. "Healing" is folk-like.If you like music for its own sake (not just formulaic mainstream); alternative sounds, especially electronica; abstract lyrics as opposed to simple love songs; and if your mind is open to experimentation, then probably you will enjoy this creation.

This is one of my favorite cd's by Yoko. Look, you can't box her in as her musical styles vary so much from one style to another. She does art on cd's, dance music, emotional depth, raging feminism, whimsical, and so forth. This one is sublime. If your a hater, then you will just say your same old stuff--get over it. If you enjoy her, your going to love it. Let go of all your preconceived notions (as a Beatle fan, I once had them too) and give her a chance.

What a surprise! I really like this a lot! Yes, I'm A Witch brought Yoko Ono back into my vocabulary with curious enthusiasm, even the youngsters in earshot thought that was cool. Between My Head And The Sky continues in that vein with vigor and this time with just the one band. . . the new Plastic Ono Band! The musicians are great and I appreciate how the musical genre throughout the disk goes from one spectrum to the other, quite tastefully. The young Lennon is showing a bit of his father's influence in his guitar playing on Waiting For The D Train and I like that very much, too. The bass, the drums, wind instruments, keyboards, electronics, Yoko's poetic vocals all fit together beautifully. The band is a fantastic group of talented young people who've come together as the Plastic Ono Band . . . They're great! Ok . . . They're on my dinner guest list . . . seaweed salad? extra ginger? miso soup? Whatever you like, Yoko . . . The world may finally see what a lovely, talented and thoughtful woman you are. Thank you.

I must admit my first experience of Yoko Ono was Live in Toronto 1969 - Oh my god was that a car crash of vocals. Put me off for years.Move forward 40 years I can now see that she was far ahead of her time and this album is thoughtful (lyrically), rocky and also filled with tender melodies.Yes she still uses the Kabuki style of singing in some of the songs, that is a cultural thing and introducing this to a western audience has been one of her constants. I understand this style much better now and it has grown on me. All those who have criticised her in the past are as much commenting on this aspect of her vocal style.What makes Ms Ono so unique are the extraordinary strength of her melodies which remain in your subconscious and are instantly recalled. Her melodies are the chorus and largely make up the entire song.I love the simplicity of her lyrics which at the same time are really quite profound.The booklet accompanying the CD cover the lyrics in English and Japanese and has some beautiful artwork and graphics contained with.This has been on my player nearly constantly since purchase - it ranks in my mind as one of the best contemporary albums of this century.Buy and enjoy - I think this will have the same longevity as Seasons of Glass and Rising.

Before I tell you my thoughts about "Between My Head & The Sky", I ought to tell you where I'm coming from. Firstly, I don't own any of Yoko Ono's other solo albums. I come to this album via the critical acclaim that some magazines/online reviewers lavished upon this piece of work and the interest that comes knowing that Sean Lennon was heavily involved. Of course, being a Beatles fan and owning all of John Lennon's solo work, it could be said that I am already fairly familiar with Yoko's artistic style, but I am definitely not, traditionally, what you could call a fan of all of her work. Although I like a few of her tracks which appear on the joint Lennon/Ono releases, there was also much that I disliked, so this was a bit of a "risky" purchase for me.As far as I'm concerned, this is neither a bad album or a wholly brilliant one, but it's much closer to the top end of the spectrum than the bottom - there are a couple of tracks I really don't care for but more than a handful of tracks which are superb and it has to be said that I've enjoyed "Between My Head & The Sky" a whole lot more than I thought I would. Paradoxically, it is Yoko's individual style which both makes the excellent tracks great and the weaker tracks difficult to listen to, but that is something I have always admired about her, the ability to present her artistry without any compromise. If you really, truly dislike Yoko's style, then I doubt if there is anything on this album which will change your mind about her. If you love Yoko, then I'm quite sure that you'll love it. However, if you are the same as me and there are tracks of hers which you've enjoyed in the past, yet felt nonplussed about others, then perhaps you should give this a go as this is likely to give you a greater appreciation of and respect for Yoko's talent. Her vocal talents are truly remarkable for a lady of her age - she sounds no different on this recording than she did in 1980.My favourite tracks include the superb opener, "Waiting For The D-Train", quite a heavy rock/dance piece with typically other-worldly Ono vocals. "The Sun Is Down" is a chilled, classy electronic dance number and, quite simply, one of the best things I've ever heard Yoko produce. "Feel The Sand" is a beautiful song, very spacious, with a spoken vocal wisely imploring us to be more in tune with the planet and it's truly brilliant, as is the very emotional "I'm Going Away Smiling", a really remarkable and sadly poignant song. I especially love the ending - "no tears". My last pick of the album is the Japanese/English track "Higa Noboru", which features understated vocals over a beautifully rolling, wistful piano line. The only tracks I really don't care for are "Moving Mountains" which features the kind of free-form vocals which have turned me off Ms. Ono's work in the past and "Calling" which features a lot of moaning over a heavy rock background - simply not my cup of tea, I'm afraid. Everything else, however, is more than simply listenable, it's interesting, artistic and much, much better than most people, including myself, could have expected. This is the kind of record which has started me thinking that I may have under-appreciated Yoko's songwriting talent in the past and makes me want to explore her solo work a little more.Respect.

Not a bad effort from Yoko and her Plastic Ono Band. There is the hypnotic drone of "Waiting for the D Train", the electo-funk of "The Sun is Down!", Jazz inspired "Ask the elephant!" which is quite fun. Yoko is singing for World Peace as usual. I find the Japanese language ones a bit baffling, so can't be bothered with those. Recommended for anyone with even a casual interest in Yoko Ono and her post -Lennon career, this ain't half bad. Pity that Lennon got shot.

Hatte mir 1968 aus London die in Deutschland indizierte ( ? ) Unfinished Music No. 1 , Two Virgins besorgt und danach auch mal KRAFTWERK gehört . Wem das auch so geht ( das werden ungefähr so 17 Leute sein ), sollte sich das Album unbedingt anschaffen . Mehr kann ich dazu eigentlich nicht sagen . Mir gefällt es ( echt ehrlich mal ) sehr . Es zeigt , dass auch eine UrOma und die Oma aller Punks mit 76 noch frische Musik machen kann . Das eine oder andere Klang-Zitat stört mich nicht . Da gibts so manche jüngere Schlaftablette ( siehe meine letzte Kritik ) , der das nicht mehr gelingt . Großer Respekt und Alle Achtung !

Die chemie scheint gestimmt zu haben zwischen Yoko Ono und der reanimierten Plastic Ono Band in neuer besetzung denn die platte klingt durch und durch inspiriert und frisch.Schon der elektrorockige opener "Waiting for d train" schmeißt einen vom hocker, gefolgt von mehr elektro, weniger rock und sparsamem text mit "The sun is down".Bei "Calling" gibts Yoko in ihrem element, es steigert sich, wird lauter und lauter,worte sind nur selten auszumachen, sie rockt, ruft, stöhnt, schreit.Als fast eingängig dagegen könnte man "Watching the rain" bezeichnen, eine ausgewogene mischung aus lässigem rock, elektro und pop, sehr gelungen wie ich finde!Aber auch nachdenklich wirds, ruhig, elektro und rock ziehen sich zurück, klavier und ein streicher bleiben bei "I'm going away smiling". Auch die melancholie kann die gruppe herbeispielen, ohne kitsch, wunderschön.Hier also meine uneingeschränkte empfehlung für "Between My Head And The Sky":-UNEINGESCHRENKTE EMPFEHLUNG-:)Und wer noch etwas übers tierreich lernen möchte passe bei dem titel "Ask the elephant" gut auf.Ich musste erfahren, dass elefanten wie bisher von mir vermutet keineswegs sehr groß sind sondern ich nur sehr klein! Und tiger fahren rollerskates....immer.

Ich finde es eine sehr gelungene und abwechslungsreiche CD. Die einzelnen Titel wechseln zwischen rock, melancholie, stöhnen, schreien und pop Klängen ab. Fügen sich beim hören sehr gut an als komplettes Musikstück.

ｺｰﾈﾘｱｽ自体、基本ﾋﾞｰﾄﾙｽﾞｻｳﾝﾄﾞ後継者です。ｵﾉﾖｰｺがやっとクリエイターに感じました。年齢７０台半ば、まだまだミステイリアスに存在感だしています。数作後に前衛のレベルまで行くことを期待します。

YOKOの全てを超えたDeep Loveに乾杯！！！！！！