Give Peace A Chance

 

Trust me #88
Give Peace A Chance by John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band

Released in July 1969, John Lennon's Give Peace A Chance created worldwide headlines as the Beatle wrote and recorded the song during a 'Bed-In' held with his wife Yoko for their honeymoon in Montreal.

Capturing the times, the song quickly became the anthem for the anti-Vietnam war movement and was sung by 500,000 demonstrators, led by Pete Seeger, at a protest in Washington that year.

Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Lennon leads his audience backed with acoustic guitars, handclaps and stomps through a string of verses beginning with everybody's talking about ... before going on to list a series of words that are equally relevant, nonsense, funny and cool. 

Each verse leads to the chorus (which becomes a mantra by the end);

all we are saying is give peace a chance

Isn't the footage extraordinary? 

Lennon's relationship with Ono led to bursts of spontaneous music and art with love and/or social/political commentary at the heart of them. The Unfinished Music albums (incredible that these were released when The Beatles were still going!) are absolutely crazy but document one of the most important nights of Lennon's life, when Ono came over and stayed the night while Cynthia was away. They made love and they made music. Well, the latter might be debatable. Good luck getting through the album!

I love that Lennon returned his MBE to Buckingham Palace with the note;

I am returning this MBE in protest against Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing, against our support of America in Vietnam and against Cold Turkey slipping down the charts. 

With love, John Lennon of Bag.

Instant Karma was recorded and released in days and Lennon would go on to write songs of peace and protest; Power To The People, Imagine and Happy Xmas (War Is Over). 

Yoko and I are quite willing to be the world's clowns if by doing so it will do some good. 

I know I'm one of these 'famous personalities'. 

For reasons only known to themselves, people do print what I say. 

And I'm saying peace. John Lennon

Give Peace A Chance simple, pure, soulful and a message that we all need to be singing in these troubled times. Where are the figureheads of Lennon's stature in these troubled times? 

Give Peace A Chance is added to my Trust Me playlist. Search for Everything Flows - Trust Me on Spotify or CLICK HERE. Check below for blogs on previous songs to feature in this series.

Previous Trust Me blogs

1. Something On Your Mind by Karen Dalton

1A. Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells

2. I Am, I Said  by Neil Diamond

3. Where's The Playground Susie?   by Glen Campbell

4. If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lighfoot

5. Gimme Some Truth by John Lennon

6. Gone With The Wind Is My Love by Rita and the Tiaras

7. In The Year 2525 by Zager and Evans

8. The Music Box by Ruth Copeland

9. The Ship Song by Nick Cave

10. Sometimes by James

11. I Walk The Earth by King Biscuit Time

12. Didn't Know What I Was In For by Better Oblivion Community Centre

13. When My Boy Walks Down The Street by The Magnetic Fields

14. The Man Don't Give A F**k by Super Furry Animals

15. All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun by Jeff Buckley and Liz Fraser

16. Are You Lookin' by The Tymes

17. A Real Hero by College & Electric Youth

18. Feelings Gone by Callum Easter

19. Sunday Morning by The Velvet Underground

20. Did I Say by Teenage Fanclub

21. Don't Look Back by Teenage Fanclub

22. Your Love Is The Place Where I Come From by Teenage Fanclub

23. Belfast by Orbital

24. Clouds by The Jayhawks

25. Dreaming Of You by The Coral

26. Everlasting Love by Love Affair

27. Walk Away Renee by The Left Banke

28. Teenage Kicks by The Undertones

29. Shaky Ground by Sneeze

29. Rill Rill by Sleigh Bells

30. I Can Feel Your Love by Felice Taylor

31. The State We're In by The Chemical Brothers w/ Beth Orton

32. Sunshine After The Rain by Ellie Greenwich

33. Losing My Edge by LCD Soundsystem

34. Mondo 77 by Looper

35. Les Fleurs by Minnie Riperton

36. Rat Trap by The Boomtown Rats

37. How High by The Charlatans

38. I Can't Let Go by Evie Sands

39. Pop Song 89 by R.E.M.

40. Summertime Clothes by Animal Collective

41. There She Goes by The Las

42. We're Going To Be Friends by White Stripes

43. Autumn Sweater by Yo La Tengo

44. Sister Rena by Lomond Campbell

45. Revolution by The Beatles

46. Lazarus by The Boo Radleys

47. Wrote For Luck by Happy Mondays

48. American Trilogy by The Delgados

49. Loser by Beck 

50. Silent Sigh by Badly Drawn Boy

51. Comedy by Shack

52. Take The Skinheads Bowling by Camper Van Beethoven

53. Freakscene by Dinosaur Jr

54. Thank You For Being You by The Pastels

55. I Think I'm In Love by Spiritualized

56. Chestnut Mare by The Byrds

57. Cannonball by The Breeders

58. Like A Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan

59. You Make Me Weak At The Knees by Electrelane

60. Lucky by Radiohead

61. Strange Currencies by R.E.M.

61. I Am The Cosmos by Chris Bell

62. Like A Ship (Without A Sail) by Pastor TL Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir

63. Nothing But A Heartache by The Flirtations

64. Made of Stone by The Stone Roses

65. Tonight In Belfast by Orbital, David Holmes, DJ Helen and Mike Garry

66. Anything by Adrianne Lenker

67. I Hold Something In My Hand by Bill Ryder-Jones

68. I Meant Every Word by Burnett Sisters

69. Dream Baby Dream by Suicide

70. Stove by The Lemonheads

71. Red Lady by Phil Cordell

72. Little Fluffy Clouds by The Orb

73. I Can Do It With A Broken Heart by Taylor Swift

74. Turnin' My Heartbeat Up by The M.V.P.'s

75. Razzle Dazzle Rose by Camera Obscura

76. Such Great Heights by The Postal Service

77. The Rat by The Walkmen

78. My God Has A Telephone by Aaron Frazer

79. Unfinished Sympathy by Massive Attack

80. Sweet and Tender Romance by The McKinleys

81. Hoppipolla by Sigur Ros

82. 69 Police by David Holmes

83. Hey Lisa by David Holmes

84. I Am A Rock by Simon & Garfunkel

85. Kung Fu by Ash

86. Kids by MGMT

87. Slight Return by The Bluetones

500,000 page views

Page views on the morning of 13th September 2019

Everything Flows Glasgow has reached 500,000 page views.

I have no idea if this is good or terrible, but it is a landmark for me!

It works out at an average of 680 per blog. I'll take that. Blog views these days tend to be from anything as low as 50 to 500. Occasionally they will go higher - see below for reasons why.

I began the blog simply because I enjoy writing about music. I wanted to be a journalist as a kid and loved the weekly buzz of walking the long way to school to buy the NME and Melody Maker on a Wednesday morning. I used to devour Uncut, Mojo, Select, Record Collector and many more. I must have spent a fortune on magazines in my teens and through to my mid-20's.

If just one person finds my blog and discovers something that they haven't heard before, or something that makes them go back to check an old song or album they haven't listened to in ages, then that is ultimately what makes me happy.

Feedback is always welcome. Someone once bought me a pint in Stereo because of my blog - thank you if that was you!

Everything Flows Glasgow - most viewed blogs

Higher page views tend to happen for the following reasons;

a) luck - it happens to get RT's or shared by the right person or the bands involved. Example - one of my highest viewed blogs is on Hot Chip, band members individually RT'd as did the bands account and their side projects.

b) timing - writing a live review immediately after a gig can really help with views (see The The in my highest viewed blogs), however I don't always do that and sometimes leave it far too late to even bother. I really should have blogged on Martha Reeves playing Glasgow in June!

c) the subject - One of my blogs that still gets regular views is on Nirvana covering The Vaselines, it is the kind of thing people google regularly. Likewise with the Stone Roses Amsterdam show I attended when Reni walked off the stage.

Meeting Mani in Amsterdam back in 2012

d) all of the above - the prime example being my blog on Gerry Cinnamon last summer. Gerry doesn't do media, so the mainstream media don't tend to write about him. As a result my blog is probably one of the few places his fans can read anything about him. On a daily and weekly basis this blog still generates page views.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read my blog. I intend to keep it going for a while yet and I'd love to try and get into the habit of doing a monthly podcast.

Current regular/semi- regular features include;

• Cover version of the month - approaching the 50th blog on cover versions
• Never Ending Mixtape - regular round up of songs added to my Never Ending Mixtape on Spotify, now at 1,142 songs
• Trust me - just a song and the lyrics (I might start to add in a little commentary)
• 10 from - newly introduced feature that started this month with The Vaselines

I'll write about anything I like - live show, old band, new band - whatever I enjoy and very largely depending on time. So please don't be offended if you send a press release through for an album review. You'll see from my blogs that I really don't do that many.

Please don't hesitate to get in touch with any feedback.

Many thanks
Murray

Stone Roses split?

Don't be sad it's over, be happy that it happened - Ian Brown, Hampden Park, 24th June 2017

With that statement and a snatch of Beautiful Thing - hear me it's a beautiful thing and I say bye bye fans of the Stone Rose have been left wondering if the bands celebrated reunion is over. Since the summer of 2012 the band have played around the world and made hundreds of thousands of people happy, people who never thought they would ever see the band live, never hear them play their joyous songs. In the process the band have made their deserved millions, they had been shafted first time round - caught in legal wrangling over record and management contracts.

Roll back to late 2011 and I was beside myself, Stone Roses were reforming. I tried desperately for tickets for the first two Heaton Park shows, my mate secured me one for the Sunday.

Later on they announced a string of shows across Europe to warm up and get arena ready and I went over to Amsterdam - they were magical, the Sunday at Heaton Park was my dreams come true.

Meeting Mani in Amsterdam

Glasgow Green the following year was a disappointment - at least for me. Fights, bottles flying and a dangerous vibe in the air was a far cry from the atmosphere at Heaton Park the previous summer, they then made up for that at T in the Park last year, playing a blinder. Made of Stone, the Shane Meadows documentary captured the magic, what they meant to the fans and the incredible shows they played - but the Roses kept schtum.

T in the Park 2016 for the Roses

But All For One was awful, I turned on the radio and thought it was Kasabian or someone like that. It was more like The Seahorses than the Roses. Beautiful Thing was much better.

Although I longed to see the Roses and for new material, I also longed to hear them speak, to read their interviews, to see what they made of the world, politics, the changing times....we've had nothing since the press conference in 2011.

When they announced their latest string of UK summer shows I barely batted an eyelid, I didn't try for tickets - the fact that Hampden is a terrible venue was only a small part of the reason.

Even when the rumours broke that Hampden was to be the last Roses show, I wasn't too bothered. It showed - this year there had been no secret shows, small European shows or rumours of new material or photos of their gear being loaded into studios.

The fact is; I had done it. I had seen the magical, mystical Roses; I've sang my heart out, I have cried, I have been hoisted up on friends shoulders, I've punched the air in delight and I've done my fair share of dad dancing.

Back in 1990 Ian Brown was asked about the Roses turning down a support slot with The Stones and he replied something like 'It's 1990, The Rolling Who? They should have friends who care about them enough to tell them to pack it in.'

If you've read previous Roses blogs I have written, if you know me, you'll know how much I love them. But I kind of feel like that about the Roses now. This year it felt like they were milking it and going through the motions. I didn't want to go and see that.

So how do I feel this morning..... mixed emotions....

Kind of gutted; the Stone Roses being together made the world a better place, it put smiles on faces, it allowed people to forget their worries, cares and the state of the world for a day. They allowed people to relive their youth, to celebrate it with their kids, to come together to celebrate a remarkable band.

I hope the kids that went to see the Roses pick up guitars and form bands - that is what the Roses always wanted.

4 people who will always be defined by their music and friendship got back together and made people happy. Whether the 4 are still friends or not is another matter - reports from Hampden say that there were 2 separate embraces on stage last night, with Ian and Reni notably not together. My friend was down the front and he said Mani was crying - there isn't a bigger fan of the Roses than Mani himself.

Going back to Ian's quote from last night - I am truly happy it happened.

And on the flip side it feels like it is the right time to call it quits if there is no new music. Rumours are also abound that Ian Brown will be releasing a solo album in 2018.

We'll find out soon.

Stone Roses, Amsterdam, 12th June 2012

What goes on in Amsterdam stays in Amsterdam. A phrase uttered by many over the years and seemingly one that the Stone Roses are sticking to as well. If there was a fall out between Ian and Reni at the end, causing them not to come back on to play traditional closer ‘I Am The Resurrection’, then it is staying in-house; good management!

Anyway, I had waited 21-years to see the Roses. I reckon it was 1991 when I first fell in love with them. When my friend Lynne who lives in Amsterdam called me 6-weeks ago to say she had two spare tickets for the show then it just felt like destiny. Flights were duly booked (as were babysitters) and my wife and I set out for 2-days/1-night in the ‘dam.

I have never been so excited about a concert. Our flight from Glasgow at 9am on the day of the concert contained a fair few fellow Roses fans. We checked into our hotel early, got a power nap and then heaed into town to meet Lynne and her friend Cooper, who had flown out the night before. Lynne told us of reports that Mani had been ‘in the area’ the night before drinking a Babysham mixed with Jaggermeister! We had a few beers and headed to Lynne’s flat which is pretty central, meeting he boyfriend Dave who has exceptional taste in music as we chilled out Amsterdam style. I was still hyper though!

We caught a tram and a train to the venue. Amazingly it wasn’t sold out and the touts were getting stung big style outside with the £60 tickets going for half that price. We got in and were greeted by the merch stall where I got a limited edition print of the concert poster and we stored that and our jackets in lockers – very modern/American High School.

With drinks bought (using a token system) we entered the venue and enjoyed some brilliant songs in the build up to the Roses entrance; Voodo Ray by A Guy Called Gerald, some classic soul and ska, Strings of Life and then Stoned Love by The Supremes (rather appropriate for Amsterdam)........enter the Stone Roses. We were down near the front stage right (Squire's side).

They bounded on to stage, full of energy and excitement, sharing feelings and emotions with the crowd. Adored kicked things off, the classic rumbling bass from Mani, some high-hat action from Reni who seemed to be sporting dreadlocks under his bandana, it all kicked off and any worries about Ian Brown’s voice were out to rest as he started;

‘I don’t have to sell my soul, he’s already in me.....I wanna be adored’.

The crowd sang along in lusty unison, smiles broke out on stage and off. The band looked great, Squire in a vintage blazer, Ian started with a hoody which he quickly lost, Mani was in a funky 60's style shirt and Reni in a Brazil 70 style Roses top with a lemon as the badge and Roses 12 on the back - potentially the most popular item at the merch stall.

Sally Cinnamon kicked in, the classic riff was sung along, Brown swaggered around the stage from left to right, Squire turned to face Reni, the band looked tight. The closing section 'then I put the letter back' flowed superbly.

'Sent to me from heaven, Sally Cinnamon, you are my world'.

There was more chiming guitar pop perfection to come in the shape of Mersey Paradise that caused a mass outbreak of dancing and pogo-ing, I could barely believe my eyes and had to stop myself singing at times so I could listen to everything. Squire was coaxing extra little riffs out of his guitar and was on fire throughout.

Ian asked who was from Amsterdam to a little cheer, then who is from anywhere else to a huge cheer. 

Sugar Spun Sister slowed things down just enough for us all to catch our breath before a gorgeous Where Angels Play before the most astonishing run of songs I have ever experienced in my 19-years of gig-going.

It started off with the cool shimmy of Shoot You Down, Brown's voice mixed with Reni on harmonies superbly, it was a joy to my ears, something I thought I would never hear or see live and certainly not 10 rows from the front (I'd get even closer near the end). The closing section just highlighted (for me anyway) the band at their best, flowing effortlessly, gelling together.

Now this time has come, it'll all work out

And when this thing is done, it'll leave no doubt

And when you've had your fun, will you all walk out?

I'd love to do it and you know you've always had it coming

It was sheer brilliance and it didn't stop as Mani and Reni started to jam, allowing Squire to change guitar and after a couple of minutes the jam went into Fools Gold, queue a load of Bez dancing all around me. It went on for ages, this was the 12-inch version x 2, or so it seemed, band and crowd lost in a moment of stone cold funk.

The funky jam continued as the band played a delicious full band version of Tightrope, a personal favourite of mine.

Are we etched in stone or just scratched in the sand, waiting for the waves to come and reclaim the land?

The band were showing off now as they kicked into Ten Storey Love Song, that glorious chiming intro soared towards the heavens and....well I cried, tears of sheer joy mixed with disbelief and smiles as Ian came in;

When your heart is black and broken and you need a helping hand

When you're so much in love you don't know just how much you can stand

The Roses are back, the best band in the world, my favourite band of all time and my heart was beating in time, full of love and happiness. This was a special moment for me.

They went straight into Waterfall and it sounded like it did in my dreams, Squire coaxing loads of riffs at the end and Mani and Reni locked in a groove, that brilliant little bass line, Reni all over his kit and even twirling his drum sticks at times, the groove went on and segued into Don't Stop, an unexpected bonus. This was a band full of confidence already, only their 4th show back and they were pulling off things like this with ease.

Then came my personal highlight from the night; This Is The One in all its technicolour glory, it truly sounded magnificent and lifted things even higher causing me to grab my wife by the hand and lead her into the centre, a mere 3 rows from the front. We were bouncing, pogo-ing, hugging stangers, this was real music to my ears, this was the one, the one that we had all been waiting for, some for years. Even now as I type I am getting tingles at the memory of how good this sounded and how lost in the moment we were.

Then it was the sheer pop rush of She Bangs The Drums, Mani firing the bass intro down our throats at top speed as Reni and Squire came crashing in to lead us on a glorious 3-minute pop trip.

.....there are no words, to describe the way I feel

The stunning run of songs continued with Made of Stone, Brown looking every inch the King Monkey, stolling around the stage, Squire the guitar god coaxing extra riffs and sounds out of his guitar, Mani grinning from ear to ear and Reni holding it all together. The place was bouncing for the chorus.

Sometimes I fantasise when the streets are cold and lonely...

Then it was into Love Spreads, a funkier work out with the mantra hammered home.

And then........well at the end Mani, Brown and Squire all hugged but Reni seemed to disappear. There were a few chants for an encore but most people just stood back in awe at what they had just seen and heard and expected the Roses to come straight back on, or they were too stoned to cheer.

Ian did come on and said 'the drummers gone home, I'm not kidding, the drummers gone home'. I thought this was an attempt to get the crowd to cheer more for an encore. I didn't hear it at the time as I was trying to get a chant going but he then steps back to the mic as the crowd are boo-ing and says 'get it all out, the drummers a c*nt'.

So there was no epic finale of 'I Am The Resurrection'. It would have been the cherry on the icing on the cake. I was disappointed for about 5-minutes and then we caught back up with Lynne, Dave and Cooper and just talked about how brilliant it had been and how happy we were.

The next day Lynne and I bumped into Mani and Ian in town. Ian asked me what I thought of the gig and I just said 'it was amazing, totally amazing' and he grinned. I had overheard a conversation with a guy Ian had been speaking to prior to me and Ian said (with a smile) 'Oh glad you enjoyed it, it might have been our last gig.' Mani looked like he had been enjoying the nightlife and after posing for pics the two went back off to their hotel.

Roll on Heaton Park but that gig takes a huge pressure off for me, I could be miles back at Heaton Park, at Amsterdam I lived out a dream and finally saw my favourite band and they were on fire.

Tulips from Amstedam? Not for me, I'll take the Roses any day of the week! ;-)

The day I bought Mani a pint at lunchtime

The reformed Roses 

OK, OK, excuse me for going into Stone Roses overdrive. I have somehow managed to persuade my wife to fly out to Amsterdam at the start of June to catch my favourite band...that I have never seen live.

Our friend Lynn lives out in Amsterdam and she messaged me earlier in the week to say she had two spare tickets. Now I am already travelling down to Manchester at the end of July to catch the Roses at one of their Heaton Park gigs, but the Amsterdam show is at the 5,500 capacity Heineken Music Hall. At Heaton Park I could be a mile from the stage.

The romantic notion of flying out to Amsterdam with my wife 10-years after our first (and last visit) to the beautiful city to catch the Roses on their third comeback gig got me excited. Easyjet flights were duly booked and I cannot wait.


The excitement caused me to indulge in the memory of meeting one of my favourite band's members back in March 1999. I remember it like it was yesterday.


Back then I had just turned 23. I was working for Abbey National's Customer Service Desk on St Vincent Street. It was a Friday, a dress down day, thankfully as I wouldn't have wanted to meet Mani in my square work gear. I still remember what I was wearing; Penfield anorak, baggy (if


I was walking up Pitt Street to go to Greggs or something. I was nearing Sauchiehall Street when walking across in front of me was Mani, or someone who looked like Mani, with a mate.


I turned on to Sauchiehall Street. It was Mani. Some kind of reaction (excitement) caused me to to just shout out, 'MANI'!


Mani stopped in his tracks and turned round. I caught up.


Mani - 'Alright?'


Me - 'F**king great to meet you, what you up to?' (I don't normally swear but I was young and excited)


Mani shook my hand, pumping it with a huge grin on his face, happy to be recognised - I think. Mani has always made time for fans.


Mani - 'Just mooching about the shops man.' (He said this in a particularly Mancunian accent)


Mani's mate Phil Smith (Oasis tour dj) - 'We're looking for a bar called Ocho.'


Me - 'I know where that is if you want me to show you?'


Mani - 'Sound as a pound.'


My passion for the Stone Roses was well known at work, so here I was walking down Sauchiehall Street with a legend. Over 2,000 people worked in that building at the time, a number of whom saw me, including fellow Roses fans. I felt 10 feet tall, especially when I saw a girl who I knew was a massive Roses fan. Her eyes were popping out of her head.

Mani at the Rooftops in Glasgow, their first Glasgow show

I chatted about the recent United v Inter Champions League Quarter Final and mentioned that a couple of my Mancunian mates had met Mani out in Milan.

Mani - 'Fucking top Euro away man, this is our year.'

We got to Ocho...


Me - 'This is us.'


Mani - 'Do you want to come in for a pint?'


Me - 'Yeah alright then.' (Inside I was screaming YEEEEAAAAHHHH)


We walked up the stairs and into the bar...


Mani - 'What you drinking?'


Me - 'No I'll get them, I'd really like to buy you a pint. The Roses were my favourite group and I love Primal Scream.'


Mani - 'Mine's a Kroneburg, Phil?'


Phil wanted one too, so it was 3 Kronenburg's all round. I still think of this day whenever I drink one!


We sat down, the only people in the pub. Now I don't normally get starstruck but I have to admit to being on cloud nine at this point.

Conversation flowed easily, as anyone with even the slightest knowledge about Mani's larger than life personality would expect. 

Mani in full flight - lost in music

Mani didn't disappoint, answering my questions about current Scream recordings (to be released the following year as XTRMNTR - with Mani bigging up how central his bass was to the sound), talking about United and the possible treble, his memories of the Roses.


I must have come across as 'alright' as they said they were going to Greenock that night and asked if I wanted to come. I declined as I had to go back to work! How very conscientious of me!


If I had the chance again I would have stayed out at least for another few pints. But an hour in Mani's company was enough, it left me buzzing.


I got back to work to loads of emails titled Mani and a girl in my team asking 'Who were you out to lunch with?'


Me - 'Mani!'


What a day. When a hero lives up to expectations (and more) it is a great feeling. Mani is just full of energy, enthusiasm and lust for life. It is infectious. He was a joy to have a beer with.


Mine's a pint Mani. ;-)