John Lennon – The Lost Home Tapes 1965 – 1969 (Misterclaudel MCCD-123/124)

The Lost Home Tapes 1965 – 1969 (Misterclaudel MCCD-123/124)

Disc 1 (68:49)  01. He Said, He Said 02. She Said, She Said 03. Hold On, I’m Coming * 04. Mr. Moonlight * 05. Mellotron Music No. 1 06. Mellotron Music No. 2 07. Mellotron Music No. 3 08. Mellotron Music No. 4 09. Mellotron Music No. 5 10. We Can Work It Out – Lucy From Littletown 11. Down In Cuba 12. Pedro The Fisherman 13. Chi-Chi’s 14. Daddy’s Little Sunshine Boy 15. Stranger In My Arms The “Good Morning, Good Morning” Tape (January – February, 1967) 16. Piano Songs 1 and 2 * 17. Testing The Equipment No. 1 * 18. Good Morning, Good Morning * Testing the Equipment No. 2 * There’s a Blue Ridge ‘Round My Heart’ * Mellotron Rhythms * Mellotron Drones and Cacophony * The “Cry Baby Cry” Tapes 19. Guitar Jam * 20. Mellotron Noise and Babbling * Noise Redux * 21. Cry Baby Cry, Piano Instrumental * 22. Piano Instrumental, Laughing Eyes * 23. Piano Waltz, Listening To Records * 24. Cry Baby Cry, Across The Universe * 25. Drone and Cueing Tapes *

Disc 2 (55:16) 01. Nothing But Hold Tight * Hey Bulldog * Hey Bulldog * Hey Bulldog * Set Me Free * Across The Universe * Piano Instrumental * 02. She’s Walking Past My Door You Know My Name (Look up The Number) The “Julia” Rehearsal Tapes 03. Julia (false start) Julia (guitar track – complete) 04. Julia (false start) Julia (vocal overdub – complete) 05. Julia (vocal and guitar overdub – complete) Julia (playbacks) 06. The Maharishi Songb The “Oh My Love” Rehearsal Tape 07. Oh My Love (acoustic guitar demo) * Oh My Love (acoustic guitar demo w/false start)* Oh My Love (a cappella demo – Yoko)* Oh My Love (a cappella demo – Yoko)* Oh My Love (acoustic guitar demo) * 08. A Case Of The Blues 09. I’ve Got A Feeling 10. Don’t Let Me Down 11. Don’t Let Me Down 12. I’ve Got A feeling 13. I Want You * = Previously Unreleased, or longer than previous sources.

14 out of these collective 38 tracks are previously unreleased or longer than previous sources. The sound quality is excellent and the material is both entertaining and compelling.  There are a myriad of choices of exhaustive Lennon sessions out there for the taking including: ‘Archives’ Volumes 1-8 on AZIA Records [JLBUT 0301 – 0308], ‘Lost Lennon Tapes’ Westwood One Broadcasts [wo 001 – 218], ‘The Complete Lost Lennon Tapes’ Vol. 1 – 22 on Walrus Records [Walrus 001 – 36], ‘The Lost Lennon Tapes’ Vol. 01 – 11 on Living Legend [LLRDC 045 – 143], ‘Journals (Part 1) 1968 – 1974’ + ‘Journals (Part 2) 1972 – 1980’ on Cedrem Sound Lab [CD 121-130] just for starters.

MCCD-123 starts off with the [Private Home Tape] segment featuring short takes of “She Said She Said”. The real pleaser is the extended softer sounding and more romantic “Mr. Moonlight” featuring more of a guitar instrumental. “Mellotrone Music No. 4” + “Mellotron Music No. 5” are the most enjoyable of those sessions that fade gently and lend to an assortment of moods. The smooth vocals for “We Can Work It Out” sound like signature McCartney, surprisingly. The 2:07 minute “Down In Cuba” is simply a scream. Lennon’s satiric sense of humor shines in the 1:06 minute “Pedro The Fisherman”. The 3:28 minute “Chi-Chi’s” offers more Lennon stand-up comedy where he has absolutely gone mad but it is hysterical and totally entertaining. “Stranger In My Arms” sounds like an Elvis parody that shockingly works with Lennon milking it all the way.

[The “Good Morning, Good Morning” Tape (January – February, 1967)] includes an interesting take of “Good Morning, Good Morning” (track #18). The “Mellotrone Rhythms” + “Mellotrone Drones and Cacophony” pieces sound very similar to “Revolution 9” on the ‘White Album’.

[The “Cry Baby Cry” Tapes] kicks off with a very interesting 3:00 minute rhythm guitar jam, “Guitar Jam”, mimics portions of Zeppelin’s “White Summer”. The middle to latter part of “Mellotrone Noise and Babbling” + “Noise Redux” are fascinating as Lennon is working through the evolution of “Cry Baby Cry”. It’s raw but powerful and this 6:17 minute track certainly has its moments. “Cry Baby Cry” – “Across The Universe” (track #24) is the most recognizable with Lennon’s lyrical accompaniment and a gem to have due to this extended source.

MCCD-124 [Private Home Tape] includes a 2:04 minute “You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)”. [The “Julia” Rehearsal Tapes] begin with a precious guitar instrumental of “Julia” that is classic. I don’t believe Lennon was ever able to “match” the effectiveness of his guitar playing when mixing it vocally. On [The “Oh My Love” Rehearsal Tape], “A Case Of the Blues” sounds like “Glass Onion” from the ‘White Album’. The guitar accompaniment for “I’ve Got A Feeling” (track #9) parallels that from “Julia’. You can have the lyrics on “I Want You”. The guitar, however, sounds a bit haunting. The impromptu back + forth lyrical exchanges/banter between John + Yoko reveal Lennon’s more natural gift as a lyricist. Yoko just can’t keep up.

MCCD-123/124 includes attractive glossy inserts and is housed in a slip case with itemized track listings on the back but no liner notes. The fidelity, once again, is excellent overall and the gain is exceptional.