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Home > Austin Music Source > Archives > 2009 > June > 23 > Entry
DVD review: Plastic Ono Band in Toronto ‘69
John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band
‘Live In Toronto ’69’ DVD (Shout Factory)
B
This is a 50-minute film by D.A. Pennebaker about the night a sitting Beatle went to Toronto to play with his idols and unveil “Give Peace a Chance.” Wearing a white suit, the fully bearded John Lennon is in vibrant voice as he sings the likes of “Blue Suede Shoes” and “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” backed by an especially flashy Eric Clapton on guitar.
But Yoko Ono steals the show. (Words I never thought I’d type.) This DVD opens with “Bo Diddley” by its namesake, followed by “Hound Dog” by Jerry Lee Lewis and “Lucille” by Little Richard. But it ends with the primal screeching, gutteral moaning and staccato yelping of the music world’s most hated woman. Now, THAT’s rock ’n’ roll!
Ono’s otherworldly mashup of sounds on “Don’t Worry Kyoto” gave birth to experimental rock. But the true artist gets even bolder, braver on the mood piece “John, John (Let’s Hope For Peace),” instinctively intoning over guitar feedback, while the crowd no doubt thought they’d been dosed.
At times, Lennon looks a tad uncomfortable at the pop music deconstruction, and he clowns a little when “John, John” goes on too long. But Ono is so focused that she loses any self-consciousness. It’s a powerful performance.
“Live In Toronto” is a flimsy package, devoid of extra footage and the like. But it solves the mystery of what Lennon saw in the strange little Japanese artist. Ono spends most of the classic retreads sitting under a white sheet, but when she emerges, it’s with a revolutionary new way to rock.
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