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Post by Panther on Jan 5, 2015 13:05:26 GMT -5
There is no getting around the fact that Elephant's Memory just sucked.
As if we needed further evidence, watch these two clips:
1) Chuck Berry on Soul Train '73, doing 'Johnny B. Goode':
2) Chuck Berry with John & Yoko and Elephant's Memory in '72, doing 'Johnny B. Goode":
Chuck's band is super-awesome, digging up a hot groove and powering the song along. Elephant's Memory is crap, dragging it down into the pits (John's limp-wristed solo doesn't help, nor Yoko's mercifully few shrieks).
I realize Berry's band probably played the song every night, but there's no way a Long Island bar band like Elephant's Memory weren't familiar with it.
Their backing at the One-to-One concerts is equally dreadful. John was so-so, but he could have been much better with a real hot band backing him up and giving him the confidence he needed to deliver live.
Why in the world did he hook up with these bozos in '71? At that moment, he could have had any musicians in the US to play with him, at the drop of a hat...
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Post by Joe Karlosi on Jan 5, 2015 14:49:18 GMT -5
There is no getting around the fact that Elephant's Memory just sucked. I don't think they were very good, but I did like the sound of a number of songs off the SOMETIME IN NYC album. Because that's what John and Yoko were into at the time, delving into the current 'NY scene', and hooking up with basic musicians such as Elephant's Memory.
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Post by Panther on Jan 5, 2015 23:39:15 GMT -5
Because that's what John and Yoko were into at the time, delving into the current 'NY scene', and hooking up with basic musicians such as Elephant's Memory. Yeah, but presumably there were some actual good bands in the New York scene?
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Post by John S. Damm on Jan 6, 2015 2:08:38 GMT -5
LOL, your description of EMB cracked me up, Panther! They werer pretty bad. Didn't we all read that in 1980 John bumped into one of them on the street in NYC and let it slip that he and Yoko were recording again and the EMB dude tried to get John to invite the band to the studio to back John and John had that same horrified look as Eric Clapton did when Paul was roping Slowhand into playing on "Freedom?" "Thank you but NO THANKS," was John's firm response! I have read that somewhere!
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Post by vectisfabber on Jan 6, 2015 4:32:11 GMT -5
The true measure of Elephant's Memory is that they were a band plucked from oblivion to back the legendary John Lennon, no less, on record and on stage, and from that fantastic launchpad, they headed straight for complete oblivion.
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markc
Very Clean
Posts: 447
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Post by markc on Jan 6, 2015 10:43:33 GMT -5
They may have been part of that Rubin/Hoffman political seen.
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Post by mikev on Jan 6, 2015 15:27:21 GMT -5
The true measure of Elephant's Memory is that they were a band plucked from oblivion to back the legendary John Lennon, no less, on record and on stage, and from that fantastic launchpad, they headed straight for complete oblivion. What John did then is what Paul is doing now... trying to be "street". The mainstream live stuff we see for One to One is the matinee rehearsal. They were tighter in the PM show. But I do think the "over" sax and Yoko's wailing will always keep the John Lennon live material down a notch or two. Obviously, they couldn't carry on successfully without John. I think the only backing bands in history that later got props were the Clique (Wrecking Crew), Booker T and the MGs (Stax Artists), The Band and the Funk Brothers (Motown). Members of the Eagles were the back-up band for Linda Rondstant.
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Post by urasam2 on Jan 6, 2015 15:32:09 GMT -5
Strangely enough, the One To One concert was on TV this afternoon. I couldn't bear to watch it- the playing was terrible. It wasn't helped by an absolutely dreadful sound mix, but even so.. John's singing was poor as well
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Post by debjorgo on Jan 6, 2015 18:54:07 GMT -5
The lighting was horrible too. The scenes with Lennon playing the piano looked like a low budget horror film.
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Post by Panther on Jan 6, 2015 20:59:44 GMT -5
In fairness to Elephant's Memory, they weren't completely obscure outside of John. They had two songs on the popular 'Midnight Cowboy Soundtrack' album, and had a minor hit with 'Mongoose' in 1970. (see:
According to Wiki, they backed Yoko on 'Approximately Infinite Universe' at the very end of 1972 (released early 1973), so they did survive 'Some Time in New York City' and the One-to-One shows to continue working with Yoko (if not John).
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Post by stavros on Jan 7, 2015 16:39:29 GMT -5
I remember the original of that song by Chuck's cousin Marvin Berry's band back in '55 at the Enchantment Under The Sea Dance. Seems like Chuck's version was terrible with John & Elephant's Memory (how could we forget?), not so bad in 1973, but I still prefer the original by McFly
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Post by joshferrell on Jan 7, 2015 22:54:43 GMT -5
I think their raw sound worked for the Plastic Ono Band album but that's about it..of course nothing could have saved "Sometime in new york" which sucked because of the lyrics and the production, I don't think it mattered who actually played on that one...
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Post by debjorgo on Jan 7, 2015 23:52:09 GMT -5
I think their raw sound worked for the Plastic Ono Band album but that's about it..of course nothing could have saved "Sometime in new york" which sucked because of the lyrics and the production, I don't think it mattered who actually played on that one... Just off the top of my head, New York City could had been a seriously bad-assed rocker with the Beatles playing on it. Instead of that chunk, chunk, chunk plodding along, we would have had Paul's bass line adding a throbbing melody, George playing a cool lead (I hear something along the lines of John's Get Back guitar work), and Ringo adding his double stops and fills (I'm bluffing on the drum speak here, I don't know drum lingo). This would have elevated John's playing and he would have really rocked this one out. I like the outtakes of recording sessions where John is frustrated with the different musicians he's playing with. "Don't play rock guitar, just play strum, strum. strum...". And that 's what we end up with. Move Over Mrs L is another one that would have been a legendary rocker had the Beatles recorded it. They spoke the same music language. Had the Beatles played on everything, I think Yoko's songs would have had to go, but there you are.
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Post by Joe Karlosi on Jan 8, 2015 6:39:18 GMT -5
Just off the top of my head, New York City could had been a seriously bad-assed rocker with the Beatles playing on it. Instead of that chunk, chunk, chunk plodding along, we would have had Paul's bass line adding a throbbing melody, George playing a cool lead (I hear something along the lines of John's Get Back guitar work), and Ringo adding his double stops and fills (I'm bluffing on the drum speak here, I don't know drum lingo). This would have elevated John's playing and he would have really rocked this one out. No Way. For me, the song "New York City" is a powerhouse, and it's perfect just as it is. The lead guitar solo is more biting than George Harrison could attempt, and it's followed by a nice keyboards solo later on. Besides, the song could not have been "New York City" with The Beatles, because the whole thing is about John's solo encounters, and he even mentions "The Plastic Ono Elephant's Memory Band"..!
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Post by mikev on Jan 8, 2015 9:00:35 GMT -5
I think their raw sound worked for the Plastic Ono Band album but that's about it..of course nothing could have saved "Sometime in new york" which sucked because of the lyrics and the production, I don't think it mattered who actually played on that one... They weren't on POB. That was Ringo, Klass and on a song or two Billy Preston.
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Post by joshferrell on Jan 8, 2015 12:41:34 GMT -5
oh okay.... sorry i thought that they may have been on it.
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Post by sayne on Jan 8, 2015 14:15:20 GMT -5
There is no getting around the fact that Elephant's Memory just sucked. As if we needed further evidence, watch these two clips: 1) Chuck Berry on Soul Train '73, doing 'Johnny B. Goode': That guitarist on the far left is from the future. Check out those Uggs.
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Post by Panther on Jan 8, 2015 18:37:29 GMT -5
I think their raw sound worked for the Plastic Ono Band album but that's about it As MikeV said, not them. Plastic Ono Band was recorded in London, at Abbey Road studios, just like the Beatles' albums. Unique among Lennon 'solo' albums, he seems to have taken his time with every track on it, working and re-working all the tracks/vocals until he got exactly what he wanted. By contrast, even on the next one ( Imagine, the last recorded in England) he seems to whip through the vocals as fast as possible, committing first and second-takes to tape. Anyone know how many sessions or how long it took to record Some Time in New York City?
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Post by sayne on Jan 8, 2015 20:08:39 GMT -5
In fairness to Elephant's Memory, they weren't completely obscure outside of John. They had two songs on the popular 'Midnight Cowboy Soundtrack' album, and had a minor hit with 'Mongoose' in 1970. (see: To my ears, sounds like Ian Drury was an Elephants Memory fan. The vocals of the verse sound very similar to me:
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Post by debjorgo on Jan 8, 2015 21:47:22 GMT -5
Your post of Ian Dury made me think of their Kampuchea show. By golly the whole thing's on youtube.
Rock For Kampuchea (Different Full Movie 1979) [cut and paste in youtube]
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Post by OldFred on Jan 10, 2015 0:05:39 GMT -5
There is no getting around the fact that Elephant's Memory just sucked. 2) Chuck Berry with John & Yoko and Elephant's Memory in '72, doing 'Johnny B. Goode": ... No getting around it, Chuck was smoking in that clip and John was only able to redeem himself when he sang along. Reminds me of the TAMI Concert when the Rolling Stones were scared to death when they had to follow James Brown and were just able to pull it off.
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Post by Panther on Jan 11, 2015 5:45:39 GMT -5
Ah, back in the days when stars were actually real musicians and performers and not just celebrity-trained poseurs with giant egos.
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