Monday 12 June 1972 | Album Release | John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band with Elephant's Memory
On Monday 12 June 1972, Some Time In New York City was released in the United States — the follow-up to John Lennon's critically acclaimed Imagine (1971). A collaboration with Yoko Ono and New York band Elephant's Memory, the album was a radical departure from the melodic accessibility of its predecessor: a double album of explicitly political songs, raw in production and uncompromising in content, accompanied by a live disc of performances with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention and a 1969 Plastic Ono Band concert.
The album was a critical and commercial failure. It peaked at number 48 in the United States — a dramatic fall from Imagine's number one — and its reception dealt a significant blow to Lennon's confidence as a songwriter. Three months later, following a copyright dispute over Yoko Ono's co-writing credits, it was released in the United Kingdom on 15 September 1972, reaching number 11 despite numerous imported copies having already been sold.
The Album
Some Time In New York City comprised two discs: the first containing 10 studio songs, the second containing six live performances — the so-called Live Jam disc, which had been intended as a free bonus album but was given a separate catalogue number, pushing up the price of the package and further dampening sales.
The studio disc addressed the political preoccupations of Lennon and Ono's New York life in 1971–72 with characteristic directness. Songs included 'Woman Is the Nigger of the World' (a feminist statement that was banned from US radio), 'Sunday Bloody Sunday' (a response to the Bloody Sunday massacre in Derry on 30 January 1972, in which British soldiers shot 26 unarmed civilians, killing 14), 'Attica State' (about the 1971 Attica Prison uprising), 'John Sinclair' (a protest song that contributed to the release of the imprisoned MC5 manager), and 'Angela' (in support of activist Angela Davis).
Critical Reception
Reviewers were disappointed by Lennon's abandonment of the melodic pop he had embraced on Imagine, and the mainstream press had little sympathy for what many saw as broad-brush sloganeering and a simplistic treatment of complex political issues. The reaction of Rolling Stone magazine was typical:
Throughout their artistic careers, separately and together, the Lennons have been committed avant-gardists. Such commitment takes guts. It takes even more guts when you've made it so big that you don't need to take chances to stay on top: the Lennons should be commended for their daring. What is deplorable, however, is the egotistical laziness (and the sycophantic milieu in which it thrives) that allows artists of such proven stature, who claim to identify with the 'working class hero', to think they can patronise all whom they would call sisters and brothers.
— Stephen Holden, Rolling Stone
Lennon's Response
Lennon was characteristically candid about his motivations in a 1972 interview with the New Musical Express:
Most other people express themselves by playing football at weekends or shouting. But here am I in New York and I hear about thirteen people shot dead in Ireland and I react immediately. And being what I am I react in four-to-the-bar with a guitar break in the middle. I don't say, 'My God, what's happening, we should do something.' I go: 'It was Sunday Bloody Sunday / And they shot the people down…' It's not like the Bible. It's all over now. It's gone. It's finished.
— John Lennon, New Musical Express, 1972
Three years later, Lennon reflected more soberly on the album's failure and its effect on his work:
It almost ruined it. It became journalism and not poetry. And I basically feel that I'm a poet. Then I began to take it seriously on another level, saying, 'Well, I am reflecting what is going on, right?'
— John Lennon, 1975
The reception was a blow from which Lennon's creative confidence took years to recover. None of his later works had the vitality of his first two solo albums, and he increasingly followed musical fashions rather than creating his own standards — a pattern that culminated in the so-called Lost Weekend period of 1973–75 and the uneven Walls and Bridges (1974) and Rock 'n' Roll (1975) albums.
The Political Context
The album was recorded and released at the height of Lennon's political activism in New York. He and Yoko Ono had arrived in the city in September 1971 and had quickly become embedded in the counterculture and anti-war movements, associating with figures including Jerry Rubin, Abbie Hoffman, and Bobby Seale. The Nixon administration, alarmed by Lennon's potential influence on the youth vote in the 1972 presidential election, had initiated deportation proceedings against him in March 1972 on the basis of a 1968 UK drug conviction.
The songs on Some Time In New York City were a direct product of this environment — written quickly, in response to specific events, and intended as political interventions rather than enduring artistic statements. Lennon's own later admission that the album had become "journalism and not poetry" is perhaps the most honest assessment of its limitations.
Elephant's Memory
Elephant's Memory were a New York rock band who had come to Lennon's attention through their work on the soundtrack to the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy. They served as the backing band for the studio sessions and accompanied Lennon and Ono on their 1972 promotional activities, including a celebrated appearance on The Mike Douglas Show. The band's raw, energetic style suited the album's political urgency, though critics felt it lacked the sophistication of the musicians Lennon had worked with on Imagine.
Track Listing
Disc One: Some Time In New York City
- 'Woman Is the Nigger of the World'
- 'Sisters, O Sisters'
- 'Attica State'
- 'Born in a Prison'
- 'New York City'
- 'Sunday Bloody Sunday'
- 'The Luck of the Irish'
- 'John Sinclair'
- 'Angela'
- 'We're All Water'
Disc Two: Live Jam
- 'Cold Turkey' (live, with Frank Zappa)
- 'Don't Worry Kyoko' (live, with Frank Zappa)
- 'Well (Baby Please Don't Go)' (live, with Frank Zappa)
- 'Jamrag' (live, with Frank Zappa)
- 'Scumbag' (live, with Frank Zappa)
- 'Au' (live, with Frank Zappa)
Key Facts: 12 June 1972
- Date: Monday 12 June 1972
- Release: US release of Some Time In New York City
- Artists: John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band with Elephant's Memory
- Label: Apple Records
- Format: Double album (10 studio tracks + 6 live tracks)
- US chart peak: Number 48
- UK release date: 15 September 1972
- UK chart peak: Number 11
- Producers: John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Phil Spector
- Previous album: Imagine (September 1971, US number one)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Some Time In New York City?
Some Time In New York City is a double album by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, released in the US on 12 June 1972. A collaboration with New York band Elephant's Memory, it contained ten explicitly political studio songs and six live performances. It was a critical and commercial failure, peaking at number 48 in the US.
Why did Some Time In New York City fail commercially?
Critics and audiences were disappointed by Lennon's abandonment of the melodic pop of Imagine in favour of what many saw as simplistic political sloganeering. Sales were also affected by the album's high price, caused by the Live Jam bonus disc being given a separate catalogue number. It peaked at number 48 in the US, compared to Imagine's number one.
What songs are on Some Time In New York City?
The studio disc includes 'Woman Is the Nigger of the World', 'Sunday Bloody Sunday', 'Attica State', 'John Sinclair', 'Angela', 'The Luck of the Irish', and 'New York City', among others. The live disc features performances with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention.
What did John Lennon say about Some Time In New York City?
Lennon later admitted the album's failure had damaged his creative confidence: "It almost ruined it. It became journalism and not poetry. And I basically feel that I'm a poet." In 1972 he had defended the album's directness, saying he reacted to events like Bloody Sunday immediately and instinctively through music.
When was Some Time In New York City released in the UK?
The UK release was delayed until 15 September 1972, three months after the US release, due to a copyright dispute over Yoko Ono's co-writing credits. Despite numerous imported copies having already been sold, it reached number 11 in the UK charts.
Who were Elephant's Memory?
Elephant's Memory were a New York rock band who backed John Lennon and Yoko Ono on Some Time In New York City and their 1972 promotional activities. They had previously contributed to the soundtrack of the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy.
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