Recorded June 1969–July 1974 Shaved Fish
(1975) Double Fantasy
(1980) Release date 24 October 1975 Genre Rock music | Length 41:55 Artist John Lennon Label Apple Records | |
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Released 20 October 1975 (US)
24 October 1975 (UK) Producer John Lennon, Yoko Ono,
Phil Spector Similar John Lennon albums, Rock music albums | ||
Shaved Fish is a compilation album by John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band, released in October 1975 on Apple Records. It contains all of the singles that he had issued up to that point in the United States as a solo artist, with the exception of "Stand by Me", which had been released earlier that year. The only compilation of his non-Beatles recordings released during his lifetime, it peaked at number 8 in the UK and number 12 in the US. It was also Lennon's final release on Apple Records.
Contents
Content
The compilation includes many of Lennon's most popular solo recordings, five of which had not yet appeared on an album: "Cold Turkey", "Instant Karma!", "Power to the People", the holiday single "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" and "Give Peace a Chance". The latter appeared in truncated form, split to begin side one and end side two. Eight of these singles made the Top 40 on the Billboard chart, with "Whatever Gets You thru the Night" going to number 1; five made the top ten in the United Kingdom. "Imagine", never previously released as a single in the UK, was issued as such concurrent to the release of this album. Several of the master tapes were unavailable for the compilation, and dubs were used, some with shorter fadeouts. A later compact disc issue used the original masters, restoring the full fadeouts of these songs.
Its release came less than three weeks after the resolution of Lennon's long-running immigration dispute and the birth of Sean Lennon. The name of the album originates from the Japanese food katsuobushi, a kind of dried fish.
Release, reception, and aftermath
A Creem magazine reader's poll in 1975 included the album among the top five "Best Reissues" of 1975, placing fourth, behind two Rolling Stones compilations, Made in the Shade and Metamorphosis, and Bob Dylan's The Basement Tapes. Robert Christgau called the album "eleven shots in the dark from the weirdest major rock and roller of the early '70s" and said "not counting the two available one-must-own albums, the only great cuts are 'Instant Karma' (Lennon's best political song) and '#9 Dream.'"
The album was released in the UK on 24 October 1975, peaking at number 8. Released from the album on the same day in the UK was the single "Imagine", backed with "Working Class Hero", charting at number 6. The single was also Lennon's last single for Apple Records. The album later re-charted in the UK on 17 January 1981, at number 11. After the release of the album, Lennon's recording contract expired, in February 1976; Lennon was uninterested in re-signing with EMI/Capitol.
Track listing
All songs by John Lennon, except where noted.
Songs
1Give Peace a Chance0:58
2Cold Turkey5:03
3Instant Karma3:21