2007 Magazine of the Week #10

This week's magazine ties in with yesterday's "John Lennon 1970" post. Its the August 1970 issue of HIT PARADER, featuring "The Last John and Yoko Interview" by RICHARD ROBINSON.

(And yes, I know this one should have been #9 instead of #10. Sorry - I just wasn't thinking!)

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Robinson's article starts off with this:

"If John Lennon talked about his music as much as he talked about his version of peace for all, he'd be much more interesting to talk to."

Here's an excerpt where John actually does discuss his music:

"I'm not forming a Plastic Ono Band, I mean the original idea was you are the Plastic Ono Band. I've used two people practically every session, that's Klaus and Alan, but there's a chance I won't you know, they're not permanent, and the audience is the band you know. Like in one film we made, "Smile", the instructions at the beginning of the film was to make your own music, the music was them you know, and they did it in Chicago or somewhere. And if Yoko and I went on with the so-called Plastic Band and instead of the audience just sitting there or waiting for us to perform like seals, cause everybody wants to be a star you know, so let them be a star. Let's all groove together, when we performed with George and Eric and Bonnie and Delaney and everybody at Lyceum, I don't care what the pop press said, it was a funky show. And if the audience had, some of them were, right in with us, we were sky high, it was an amazin' high. A seventeen piece band. It's great with four musicians groovin', but when you got seventeen its somethin' else. And when you got the audience as well."

"The day we go on the audience is the rhythm section then we're really groovin', that's what I want. So it wouldn't matter whether I was on the stage or if I got fed up and went down in the audience for a bit to, let's take it in turns to be super star, you know."

The "Words To Your Favorite Hits" section includes JOHN LENNON's "Instant Karma", THE BEATLES' "Let It Be", LED ZEPPELIN's "Living Loving Maid", and dozens of others, plus the words to all the songs from SIMON AND GARFUNKEL's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" LP.

There's all kinds of other good stuff in this issue, including articles on AL KOOPER, JACK BRUCE and GINGER BAKER, JOE COCKER, HARVEY MANDEL, and IAN ANDERSON. And a story on the break-up of the BONZO DOG DOO-DAH BAND. In "New Stars On The Horizon", we read that ROD STEWART has gone "From Lead Singer To Solo Artist". And there are "Readers' Reviews" of ELVIS PRESLEY's "From Memphis To Vegas", THE ROLLING STONES' "Let It Bleed", and "Led Zeppelin II".