Customer Reviews

Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

If there is a "must have" album out for the summer of 2007, this is it. What could be better then getting some great tunes and serving a worthy cause at the same time. Yoko Ono donated the rights to John Lennon's entire catalog for this release, and I think it's something he would have been proud of.

John spoke in a interview once about going back are re-recording much of his material, because he was never quite happy with the productions. The recent remastering of his catalog gave us a taste of what that might have been like. Instant Karma takes it to another level.

These are some of the most beautiful songs ever written, and if there was ever a questions on whether John Lennon's solo work equaled or surpassed what he did with the Beatles, this album answers it with a resounding YES.

There are a few disappointment and a few pleasant surprises. U2's "Instant Karma" strays too far from the original by trying to replace the "wall of sound" piano with droning guitar. The Black Eyed Peas do a good enough version of "Power to the People", but I kept waiting for them to bust out with some of their brilliant ad-lib rap, but that never happens. Maybe they were just trying to respect the original song, but it left me wanting more.

Jacob Dylan and Dhani Harrison compliment each other as well as their fathers did on "Gimme Some Truth". Christina Aguilera captures the angst of "Mother" with haunting precision, and Los Lonely Boys provide some of the best guitar work on the album's version of "Whatever gets You Through the Night". Corinne Bailey Rae provides a beautiful minimalist version of "I'm Losing You", and Green Day hit a home run with their almost too perfect cover of "Working Class Hero".

One further point of contention: given the strength of Lennon's work, and the size of this two disk set. There was no reason to repeat any songs, yet we are given two versions of "Imagine" and two versions of "Gimme Some Truth". Yes, they are both great songs, but I would have preferred it if each artist did a different song. Someone out there should have come out with a post-metal, post-grunge version of John Lennon's "Meat City" which is one of the most powerful rockers of the 70's, bar-none. In fact nothing from the Mind Games album is represented here, leaving out some great songs.

That all said, it is great to see these songs alive and well in the 21st century, where their message of hope and love have never been needed more.

With 22 songs on the disc, you can't expect a home run every time. But there are some excellent covers on this album. U2's Instant Karma is this first song on the disc for a reason. Easily the best track. R.E.M. makes Dream #9 sound like an R.E.M. song. Green Day, Jack Johnson also rock solid. Aerosmith's "Give Peace a Chance" is a disaster.
Overall, very worth the price, and its for a good cause.

I haven't heard a better CD in a long time. I was a bit dubious, wondering how the various artists would cover these songs. But they all held true to the spirit, intensity and timeless messages of these songs. Listen to the samples here on Amazon. These are the types of songs we need now, the kind that urge people to act, to stop being indifferent, to IMAGINE (one of the songs) a world where things can be better. Plus, its for a good cause. Buy this one. It is that rare combination of good music created with purpose.

"Instant Karma, the Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur" is a good set of John Lennon covers. I believe John would have been proud of this effort to use his music to draw attention & bring relief to the people of this area. In musical terms, it's more successful than the "Working Class Hero" covers compilation that came out some years ago. Of the tracks, I have two favorites from each of the discs. Corinne Bailey Rae brings a new feel to "I'm Losing You" with a more piano-based arrangement in a live recording. Her powerhouse vocals are distinctive, "Here in the valley of indecision; I don't know what to do; I feel you slipping away." Jakob Dylan featuring Dhani Harrison do a great job on "Gimme Some Truth" with Harrison's guitar bleeding during the instrumental break & Jakob's voice sounding world weary, "No short haired yellow bellied son of Tricky Dicky is going to Mother Hubbard soft soap me with just a pocket full of hope." On the second disc my favorites include the whimsical Postal Service's version of "Grow Old with Me," "Face the setting sun when the day is done, God bless our love." Jack's Mannequin featuring Mick Fleetwood does a great job on Lennon's "God," not the easiest track to cover with its complex lyric, "God is a concept by which we measure our pain." Other tracks on the disc are also excellent. I like R.E.M.'s "#9 Dream," Jackson Brown's take on "Oh, My Love," Green Day's "Working Class Hero" & Jack Johnson's simplified "Imagine." Only two tracks have me want to move along on the disc: Lenny Kravitz's take on "Cold Turkey" & the Flaming Lips' "(Just Like) Starting Over." This is a strong set with some excellent standouts. It's nice to hear John's music echoing forward on behalf of an important cause. Enjoy!

First of all...great project for Darfur.

Now, the music. I was (and probably still am) an obsessed Lennon fanatic, and I am VERY picky about covers. So when I first listened to this, I thought, okay, not too bad, but probably won't listen to this much....

It's absolutely true that many of these artists can't, and probably never could, get close to the quality of Lennon's originals. This is especaily evident when you hear the tiny snippets of orginals that have been included...at the end of Working Class Hero, for instance, the end of John's version comes on, and, as good as Green Day's cover is (in fact, it's a GREAT cover), the haunting intensity of those few seconds of the orginal takes away some of my enthusiasm for this new version. Probably would have been better to leave that off.

Bottom line, this is a benefit album. One can only speculate why certain artists were included...why some donated their time and talents and why others didn't. But the music is very good. And now that I've lived with it a couple of days, I think there are moments that are not just good, but great.

I absolutely love Aerosmith's Give Peace a Chance. It's full of energy and passion and LOVE the reggae take on it. Corinne Bailey Rae's I'm Losing You is exquisite (as anything she sings is). Jakob Dylan singing Gimme Some Truth, although solid, lacks a lot of the passion of the orginal (but then, who could be as angry as John Lennon was in the early 70s?). But OH MY GOD totally worth a few listens for Dhani Harrison's guitar playing; he's definitely channeling his father, while still making it all his own. Big and Rich's take on Nobody Told Me adds some finishing touches on a song John never really got to fully polish. And you gotta love Youssou N'Dour's Jealous Guy, which he sings partly in what I'm guessing is a West African language.
On disk 2, stand outs include Green Day's Working Class Hero, Black Eyed Peas' Power to the People and Regina Spektor's Real Love, another unfinished Lennon song that warrants some revisiting.

(PS One of the other customer reviews mentioned Ozzie covering How?, which I do not seem to have on my copy of this album, but I would love to hear it! It doesn't seem to be included on the list of itunes extra tracks, either... Was it a stand-alone single? Here I am, flaunting my ignorance in public...).

To start off with, I really didn't know who a number of the artists on this album were when I first heard of this campaign. I really only listen to music that is roughly 30+ years old. That being the case, I had already decided that I would hate an album covering Lennon's masterpiece works.

THEN...

I heard Green Day's version of "Working Class Hero" and loved it.

Well, I visited the Amnesty International site to learn more about the Instant Karma album, and I consented to buying the CD with what more I heard there. For the most part, though, my purchase was due to the cause.

Everyone has their favorites on this album; I am not going to shove my opinions on each track down your throat. But I believe that this album has at least one track that will give each person something to smile at. What the album is aiming to do is:

1.) collect profits for the benefit of Amnesty International projects worldwide, especially in Darfur;

2.) give us Lennon fans a different perspective on classic gems--some of which are highly beautiful, only a few of which are...not;

3.) bring back really awesome music from a songwriter who made "World Peace" more than just an illusion--he made it an attainable goal. This music is now more acceptable for modern day music-people like my little sister, who will not touch an album without Avril Lavigne's name on it.

In my opinion, this benefit compilation is accomplishing all of the above and more.

"Only people know just how to change the world."

Do your part. Buy this album!

What we have here is a 2-CD collection of songs written by my all-time idol, John Winston Ono-Lennon, ex-MBE, being put to use for a very worthy cause. What's happening in Darfur is shameful, and those who are causing it are, as usual...well, no editorials, let's stick to the music.

Most of the artists chose their selections wisely and perform them well. I'll single out the ones which, to me, seem particularly inspired:
U2's "Instant Karma" is not really remarkable except that it rocks as you would expect a U2 cover to rock.
Christina Aguilera's voice is well suited to "Mother", and she remains faithful to the original melody.
"Cold Turkey" in the hands of Lenny Kravitz sounds appropriately dark and menacing, with some extra late-60's psychedelic guitar sounds thrown in for good measure.
Corinne Bailey Rae sings a very sultry and soulful "I'm Losing You".
"Gimme Some Truth" echoes the sound of George Harrison, not surprising since his son Dhani is performing it, with Jakob Dylan. (On Disc 2, another version by Jaguares is actually closer to Lennon's original.)
Green Day retains the folk-like sound for the first 2 verses of "Working Class Hero", then launches into all-out hard rock. It is very effective, and Billy Joe does a great job with the vocal. Conversely, "Starting Over" by The Flaming Lips is like a New Age hymn - softer than John's version, no drums.
Black Eyed Peas does a pounding, rousing "Power To The People".
Snow Patrol's "Isolation" may seem overproduced at first, but the finished track turns out to be quite haunting.
Matisyahu's bright, upbeat version of "Watching The Wheels" just proves how Lennon's very basic music is easy to morph into something different.
And finally, Regina Spektor's rather fragile "Real Love" says what needs to be said, backed by some very interesting piano.

I don't know if we can measure what contribution this album will make towards ending the strife in Darfur. But if anyone's music CAN help, surely it is that which contains the positive cosmic force we always associate with John Lennon. And a gracious tip of the hat to Yoko for allowing this force to be unleashed. John loved Yoko, and he would be as proud of her today as she is of him.

I've listed to this CD straight through three times. The first time, I listened to it hoping to hear Lennon's attitude and message come through the tracks. I was disappointed; few of the tracks carry Lennon's original musicality--his angst and his presence. The second time, I listed to see how the individual artists took Lennon's songs and adapted them to their own styles. I was moderately pleased; the musicians obviously appreciate Lennon as an influence, but several fell short of true "adaptation"; many tracks were simply "covers" (and several were mediocre ones at that). The third time through, I listened for the lyrics and variety musical genres. This time I was actually quite satisfied. Each track on the two discs stands as an homage to Lennon's work and influence. The variety of genres is sure to satisfy listeners, and the strength of the songwriting is definitely present. Again, this is not a collection for Lennon purists; each artist tries to do his or her own thing with his or her own track; many succeed, but several fall short. If you are going to buy the album, buy it for its variety of genres and for the cause. If you're buying it to hear John Lennon music, you may be disappointed.

Anything that helps the people of Darfur in any way at all is worth supporting, but so is anything that reminds us of (or introduces new generations to) Lennon's incredible solo work - which is not to discount Yoko's always powerful influence and contributions. Lennon's music with The Beatles was fantastic, but I think his work afterward was actually more memorable and important.

There are tracks here that I absolutely love - Christina Aguilera's Mother is a total revelation, Green Day's Working Class Hero is very nearly as stirring and provocative as the original, U2's Instant Karma is beautiful (how can you not love the lines, "We all shine on, like the Moon and the stars and the sun"?), as are Jackson Browne's Oh, My Love and Youssou N'Dour's Jealous Guy (kind of like hearing Seu Jorge's fragile and unique versions of Bowie in The Life Aquatic), plus Jakob Dylan and Dhani Harrison's kickass Gimme Some Truth and Corinne Bailey Rae's haunting I'm Losing You. The only track I can't listen to is Big & Rich's Nobody Told Me, but maybe it will grow on me.

And although I like Ben Harper's Beautiful Boy greatly, nothing can touch the tenderness, magic and profound sadness (given what followed) of Lennon's original (I say this especially as a father now, and as a father who lost a child - who can only imagine how Sean must have felt at his father's tragic death)...and I really miss the personalizing of the song with Sean's name.

Listen to this, then watch Yoko's stunningly beautiful DVD tribute to John, Lennon Legend, for the full force of the originals.

Later comment: having listened to this repeatedly, I can now enjoy the Big & Rich track, prefer Jack Johnson's Imagine to Avril Lavigne's version, love Ben Harper's Beautiful Boy still more (even though the original is unapproachable), really like Jack's Mannequin/Mick Fleetwood's take on God, find Youssou N'Dour's Jealous Guy a totally moving, very fragile and human, standout song, and generally just enjoy hearing fresh versions of Lennon.

I have just ordered the UK edition, to get the additional tracks (including The Cure's version of Love) on that.

I generally avoid tribute or cover albums; they seem pointless unless the arrangements are substantially altered from those for the original recordings. However, I purchased this CD because I heard and loved Regina Spektor's version of "Real Love." It is better than the overdubbed version created for the Beatles Anthology, and more akin to the demo recorded by John Lennon's as heard on the Imagine film soundtrack. The rest the album, as others have said, is hit and miss. Nothing surpasses the original versions, but the material they are working with is so good, it is hard to do too much harm. The one exception is "God," covered here Jack's Mannequin and Mick Fleetwood. The original is a centerpiece of one of the greatest albums of all time. Yet, if ever there was a song inappropriate for a cover version, this one has got to be it. The lyrics and point of the song simply do not lend themselves to being sung by anyone but John Lennon himself.