If you already own Imagine is it worth buying again? It depends on how much you like the album. The depth, clarity and overall sound quality has been greatly improved. You won't hear any striking differences in the mix as Yoko Ono and engineer Peter Cobbin have remained faithful to the original mix as much as possible. I've read several reviews here about how the sound doesn't "jump out" at you like the outtakes from the Anthology boxset. There's a simple reason for this; the outtakes were no frills takes without overdubbing. Additionally, those tracks were unfamiliar to most fans (except those who had the bootleg boxset)and that unfamiliarity (along with the minor differences between the different takes)allowed one to listen to them with a fresh set of ears. Imagine has become overfamiliar to most folks just from all the radio airplay most of the songs have received over the years.

The booklet isn't a huge improvement over the original CD booklet. It does have some rare and previously unpublished photos. The lyrics were printed on both the original album sleeve and the CD reissue and they are here as well. What this album lacks is a bit more information on the recording sessions themselves. It would have been interesting to see Imagine reissued in a simliar fashion to McCartney's Band On The Run reissue from last year. While the Band On The Run reissue wasn't perfect, McCartney at least attempted to provide added value with the interview portions and live takes on the second disc. Still, one can only imagine (pardon the pun) all the criticism Yoko would have received if she had attempted to "tamper" with this classic recording even more than she did.

Is Imagine worth purchasing again? If you love the album then the answer is yes. The sound on the original CD was pretty poor (partially due to the condition of the mastertapes). This remix brings new vitality to a handful of great (and a couple of not so great) songs. Imagine wasn't Lennon's definitive statement as an artist. However its boldest and best tracks rank up there with the best material Lennon wrote both with the Beatles and as a solo artist.

You should note that this CD was not only "remastered" but "remixed" under the direction of Yoko Ono, John's widow. This gave me some pause as I considered that the integrity of the original music might be compromised in an attempt to update or modernize the sound of this classic album. However, there is nothing to fear. The remastering and remixing is perfect-the music and vocals are given room to breath as each musical element can be clearly heard. This especially helps songs like "I Don't Wanna Be a Soldier" which previously sounded cramped and cluttered. The music, and especially John's voice, are remarkably clear. What this new version also shows is that while John may not have been the most technically polished singer he was certainly one of rock's more emotional vocalists-he sings each song with great feeling and care. The very timbre of his voice communicates deep seeded emotions. Moreover, the inclusion of "Jealous Guy," one of the best love songs Lennon ever wrote, is worth the price of this CD alone.

His first projects outside The Beatles were three LPs, released from 1968 to 1969, on which he collaborated with unconventional, Japanese "performance artist" and his soon-to-be wife, Yoko Ono on a series of experimental tracks, consisting of freeform instrumental noodling, sound effects and spoken or screamed voices (The first of which, the infamous Two Virgins, featured a nude photograph of the somewhat unkempt duo on its cover). Meanwhile a series of the couple's unusual, low-budget films, including a 40-minute video starring Mr. Lennon's penis, appeared at modish art exhibits and film festivals. As projects such as these surfaced and the two became inseparable, it appeared that Mr. Lennon's post-Beatles career would be incorporated into Ms. Ono's aura of avant-gardism and uncompromising weirdness. Then, in December of 1970, he released the album, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, which, despite its title, was his first non-Beatles project not to feature his spouse's equal creative footing. Although it was stunning display of lyrical sophistication and bare-boned emotional outpouring, the album would hardly be the typical John Lennon album, with its sheer bleakness and seething antipathy. Still, Mr. Lennon was writing structured songs and producing something cohesive, a sign that he would not forever be a rugged, tripped-out specter. His next release, Imagine, issued in September 1971, however, would forever define his solo career.

The fact that Mr. Lennon wrote the title track, an absolutely perfect mantra that summed-up his idealist values in a single morning and recorded it in only two takes demonstrated that, excluding "How Do You Sleep?," his absolutely scathing attack on Mr. McCartney, all the hostility and weirdness had been expunged from his system and his gift for beautiful, tuneful, poignant songs had resurfaced. The rest of Imagine is full of similar forthright and simply stated, yet utterly inspiring social and spiritual inquiries ("Crippled Inside," "Give Me Some Truth," "I Don't Wanna Be a Solider Mama, I Don't Wanna Die") and sweet, sensitive odes of love ("Jealous Guy," "Oh My Love"). Mr. Lennon's songwriting talent is astounding. His ability to place the most immense and poignant emotions and principles into the most enchanting and subtly beautiful songs is absolutely uncanny. Still, Imagine is not perfect. "Oh Yoko" is as annoying as being seated next to playful newlyweds on a subway and it was somewhat unnecessary that Mr. Lennon add every pun and insult he could think of to "How Do You Sleep?" for listeners to grasp his opinion of his former bandmate. The majority of Imagine's songs, however, are examples of the rarest type of pop music, the sort that effortlessly makes a listener think broadly and feel specially moved. This is what immediately comes to mind when the name "John Lennon" is spoken today, an intelligent and assertive icon of love, peace and the utopian dream.