Set for release on for Record Store Day on April 13th is the new John Lennon album, Imagine – Raw Studio Mixes. The tracks were first released last year as part of the sprawling Imagine – The Ultimate Collection box set, and will now be issued on audiophile grade, 180-gram black vinyl to “reveal whole new levels of sonic depth, definition and clarity to these timeless songs.”
Engineer Rob Stevens helmed the “Raw Studio Mixes” and these tracks capture the exact moment Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band recorded each song raw and live on the soundstage located at the center of Ascot Sound Studios at his home in Tittenhurst. The mixes are devoid of effects — reverb, tape delays, etc. — and a far cry from the finished product.
Highlights include the extended renditions of such iconic Imagine tracks like “I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama,” “How Do You Sleep?” and “Oh Yoko!”
The tracklisting to Imagine – Raw Studio Mixes is:
Side A
“Imagine” – Take 10 / Raw Studio Mix (3:12)
“Crippled Inside” – Take 6 / Raw Studio Mix (3:50)
“Jealous Guy” – Take 29 / Raw Studio Mix (4:22)
“It’s So Hard” – Take 11 / Raw Studio Mix (2:42)
“I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier, Mama” – Take 4, Extended / Raw Studio Mix (7:56)
Side B
“Gimme Some Truth” – Take 4, Extended / Raw Studio Mix (3:40)
“Oh My Love” – Take 20 / Raw Studio Mix (2:48)
“How Do You Sleep?” – Take 11, Extended / Raw Studio Mix (6:00)
“How?” – Take 40 / Raw Studio Mix (3:55)
“Oh Yoko!” – Take 1, Extended / Raw Studio Mix (6:16)
