Home / Arts and Entertainment / Lennon and Ono's Radical Reinvention: A Vivid Look at Their 1972 Activism
Lennon and Ono's Radical Reinvention: A Vivid Look at Their 1972 Activism
11 Oct
Summary
- Lennon and Ono immersed in New York City's counterculture in 1971
- Their 1972 album "Some Time in New York City" tackled political issues
- Upcoming box set showcases their 1972 album and One to One benefit concerts
In 1971, shortly before the release of their album "Imagine," John Lennon and Yoko Ono moved to New York City, where they became deeply involved in the city's counterculture. Crammed into a small Greenwich Village apartment, the couple absorbed progressive politics and used their celebrity platform to advocate for various causes.
This activist sensibility permeated their 1972 album "Some Time in New York City," where Lennon and Ono sang about feminist solidarity, the Irish Troubles, marijuana, and other important concerns of the time. The album was designed as an underground press bulletin, a deliberate political provocation intended to stir listeners into action.
Now, a new nine-CD, three-BluRay set titled "Power to the People" showcases this pivotal period in Lennon and Ono's career. Produced by Sean Ono Lennon and Simon Hilton, the box set features the couple's 1972 album, as well as demos, home recordings, live appearances, and studio sessions from that time. It's a vivid document of when Lennon and Ono reinvented themselves as radicals, running around with the Black Panthers, Yippies, hippies, and other counterculture figures in the New York City underground.
