John Lennon’s classic second solo album, 1971’s Imagine, is to be reissued on a range of formats include a super deluxe box set, as part of an extensive reissue campaign which also includes a new book and restored films.
Imagine: The Ultimate Collection will be released on 5 October 2018. It will feature 135 tracks spread over four CDs and two Blu-ray discs, and a 120-page book.
The Imagine box set will contain 61 tracks in stereo, 17 in mono, 45 in 5.1 surround sound, ten in quadrasonic, and two as-yet-unrevealed “Easter eggs”.
The entire album has been remixed in stereo and surround sound by Paul Hicks at Abbey Road Studios, under the supervision of Yoko Ono Lennon, using 24-96 audio transfers of the original multi-track recordings.
There will be a range of other formats in addition to the box set. Imagine will be reissued as a single CD containing 16 tracks – the remixed original album, singles and extras, plus a 20-page book.
There will also be a double CD set which adds a second disc containing elements from the original multitracks, plus album and singles out-takes.
A double vinyl edition will contain 25 tracks, a poster, two postcards and printed inner sleeves. There will also be a limited edition clear double vinyl set also available from selected websites.
Audio from the box set will also be sold as a digital download – 61 tracks of 44.1kHz/16bit audio in stereo and mono.
Here’s the full breakdown of the box set (CDs 1 and 2 have the same tracklisting as the two-CD set).
CD 1
The album – remixed in stereo 16-44.1
- ‘Imagine’
- ‘Crippled Inside’
- ‘Jealous Guy’
- It’s So Hard
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die
- ‘Gimme Some Truth’
- ‘Oh My Love’
- ‘How Do You Sleep?’
- ‘How?’
- ‘Oh Yoko!’
Singles and extras
- ‘Power To The People’
- Well… (Baby Please Don’t Go)
- God Save Us
- ‘Do The Oz’
- ‘God Save Oz’
- ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’
CD 2 – new mixes in stereo 16-44.1
Elements mixes
- Imagine (strings only)
- Jealous Guy (piano, bass & drums)
- Oh My Love (vocals only)
- How? (strings only)
Album out-takes
- Imagine (demo)
- Imagine (take 1)
- Crippled Inside (take 3)
- Crippled Inside (take 6 alt guitar solo)
- Jealous Guy (take 9)
- It’s So Hard (take 6)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 11)
- Gimme Some Truth (take 4)
- Oh My Love (take 6)
- How Do You Sleep? (takes 1 & 2)
- How? (take 31)
- Oh Yoko! (Bahamas 1969)
Singles out-takes
- Power To The People (take 7)
- God Save Us (demo)
- Do The Oz (take 3)
- Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (alt mix)
CD 3 – Raw Studio Mixes (stereo 16-44.1)
Extended Album Versions – live
- Imagine (take 10)
- Crippled Inside (take 6)
- Jealous Guy (take 29)
- It’s So Hard (take 11)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 4 – extended)
- Gimme Some Truth (take 4 – extended)
- Oh My Love (take 20)
- How Do You Sleep? (take 11 – extended)
- How? (take 40)
- Oh Yoko! (take 1 – extended)
Out-takes – Live
- Imagine (take 1)
- Jealous Guy (take 11)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 21)
- How Do You Sleep? (take 1)
- How Do You Sleep? (takes 5 & 6)
CD 4
The Evolution Documentary – mono 16-44.1
The development of each song from demo to master, including instructions, rehearsals, recordings, and studio chat.
- Imagine
- Crippled Inside
- Jealous Guy
- It’s So Hard
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die
- Gimme Some Truth
- Oh My Love
- How Do You Sleep?
- How?
- Oh Yoko!
Blu-ray disc 1
- The album – remixed in 5.1 surround sound 24-96
- Singles and extras – remixed in 5.1 surround sound 24-96
- The album – remixed in stereo 24-96
- Singles and extras – remixed in stereo 24-96
- The album – remastered in quadrasonic 4.0 24-96
- Out-takes – new mixes in stereo 24-96:
- Imagine (demo)
- Imagine (take 1)
- Crippled Inside (take 3)
- Crippled Inside (take 6 alt guitar solo)
- Jealous Guy (take 9)
- It’s So Hard (take 6)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 11)
- Gimme Some Truth (take 4)
- Oh My Love (take 6)
- How Do You Sleep? (takes 1 & 2)
- How? (take 31)
- Oh Yoko! (Bahamas 1969)
- Power To The People (take 7)
- God Save Us (demo)
- Do The Oz (take 3)
- Happy Xmas (War Is Over) (alt mix)
Blu-ray disc 2
Extended album versions
New mixes in 5.1 surround sound 24-96
- Imagine (take 10)
- Crippled Inside (take 6)
- Jealous Guy (take 29)
- It’s So Hard (take 11)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 4 – extended)
- Gimme Some Truth (take 4 – extended)
- Oh My Love (take 20)
- How Do You Sleep? (take 11 – extended)
- How? (take 40)
- Oh Yoko! (take 1 – extended)
Out-takes
New mixes in 5.1 surround sound 24-96
- Imagine (take 1)
- Crippled Inside (take 2)
- Crippled Inside (take 6 alt guitar solo)
- Jealous Guy (take 11)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 21)
- How Do You Sleep? (take 1)
- How Do You Sleep? (takes 5 & 6)
- How? (takes 7-10)
- How? (take 40 alt vocal)
- Oh Yoko! (take 1 tracking vocal)
Extended album versions
New mixes in stereo 24-96
- Imagine (take 10)
- Crippled Inside (take 6)
- Jealous Guy (take 29)
- It’s So Hard (take 11)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 4 – extended)
- Gimme Some Truth (take 4 – extended)
- Oh My Love (take 20)
- How Do You Sleep? (take 11 – extended)
- How? (take 40)
- Oh Yoko! (take 1 – extended)
Raw Studio Mixes – out-takes
New mixes in stereo 24-96
- Imagine (take 1)
- Crippled Inside (take 2)
- Crippled Inside (take 6 alt guitar solo)
- Jealous Guy (take 11)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (take 21)
- How Do You Sleep? (take 1)
- How Do You Sleep? (takes 5 & 6)
- How? (takes 7-10)
- How? (take 40 alt vocal)
- Oh Yoko! (take 1 tracking vocal)
The Elements Mixes
New mix in 5.1 surround sound 24-96
- Imagine (strings)
- Crippled Inside (upright bass & drums)
- Jealous Guy (piano, bass & drums)
- It’s So Hard (strings)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (guitar, bass & drums)
- Gimme Some Truth (electric piano & guitar)
- Oh My Love (vocals)
- How Do You Sleep? (strings)
- How? (strings)
- Oh Yoko! (acoustic)
New mix in stereo 24-96
- Imagine (strings)
- Crippled Inside (upright bass & drums)
- Jealous Guy (piano, bass & drums)
- It’s So Hard (strings)
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die (guitar, bass & drums)
- Gimme Some Truth (electric piano & guitar)
- Oh My Love (vocals)
- How Do You Sleep? (strings)
- How? (strings)
- Oh Yoko! (acoustic)
The Evolution Documentary
New mix in mono 24-96
- Imagine
- Crippled Inside
- Jealous Guy
- It’s So Hard
- I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die
- Gimme Some Truth
- Oh My Love
- How Do You Sleep?
- How?
- Oh Yoko!
- Power To The People
- Well… (Baby Please Don’t Go)
- God Save Us/God Save Oz
- Do The Oz
- Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
- Tittenhurst Park
Imagine John & Yoko – The Elliot Mintz interviews
New mix in mono 24-96
Also on 5 October, the films Imagine and Gimme Some Truth will be reissued on DVD, Blu-ray and digital download services. Imagine, originally released in 1972, mostly consisted of promo films for the album’s songs, as well as Mrs Lennon and Don’t Count The Waves from Yoko Ono’s 1971 album Fly. It also contains guest appearances from Fred Astaire, Jack Palance, Dick Cavett, and George Harrison.
Gimme Some Truth was a documentary on the making of the Imagine album, produced and directed by Andrew Solt and centred on the Ascot Sound Studio sessions. Both films have been hand-restored with their soundtracks remixed in 5.1 surround sound by Paul Hicks, with extras including raw studio mixed of Jealous Guy, How? and Gimme Some Truth, and a David Bailey photoshoot.
Furthermore, the Imagine film be shown in selected cinemas and theatres with a soundtrack in 7.1 surround sound and Dolby Atmos. Screenings will have an additional 15 minutes of extras including studio footage of the recording of How Do You Sleep? and Oh My Love, as well as a version of Oh Yoko recorded in the Bahamas in 1969.
For more information, visit imaginejohnyoko.com.
Also on this day...
- 2019: Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band live: Stir Cove, Council Bluffs
- 2003: Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band live: NextStage Performance Theater, Grand Prairie
- 1995: Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band live: Pier 62/63, Seattle
- 1974: John Lennon: ‘On the 23rd Aug. 1974 at 9 o’clock I saw a UFO’
- 1968: Recording, mixing: Back In The USSR
- 1967: Recording: Your Mother Should Know
- 1966: The Beatles live: Shea Stadium, New York
- 1965: Day off in Los Angeles
- 1964: The Beatles live: Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles
- 1964: Interview: John Lennon and Ringo Starr in Los Angeles
- 1963: The Beatles live: Gaumont Cinema, Bournemouth
- 1963: UK single release: She Loves You
- 1962: The Beatles live: Riverpark Ballroom, Chester
- 1962: John Lennon marries Cynthia Powell
- 1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (evening)
- 1961: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (lunchtime)
- 1960: The Beatles live: Indra Club, Hamburg
Want more? Visit the Beatles history section.