Oh Yoko

I love surprise good times.

Last night, I had settled in to read a stack of New Yorkers when my phone rang. My friend B. had a spare ticket to see a Gene Ween, solo acoustic show asked if I wanted to go. I usually don't go too far out of my way to see or listen to Ween but I have seen them twice, have and like Chocolate and Cheese and occasionally listen to a bunch of other albums this same friend has burned for me. Rumor had it that Gene Ween had been opening this tour with Neil Young's I am A Child. B. knows me well: I do go out of my way for most things Neil Young. Not to mention, the show was at Lincoln Hall, a relatively new venue that I've been wanting to see. I decided to throw some jeans and a sweater on and jump in a taxi. Going to a show without weeks of anticipation and expectation is great.

The Lonesome Organist opened and he was great.


We didn't get to hear any Neil Young covers but I did get my favorite Ween, Baby Bitch. The crowd energy was a lot of fun ... like a big sing along of nerds, video gamers, aging jam band followers and kids tripping on mushrooms. I'm a sucker for sci-fi/alternate world type things, so I can appreciate the detailed and silly mythology that runs through Ween lyrics. I especially liked The Golden Eel. The highlight of the night though was the cover of Oh Yoko.

I love a lot of the John Lennon solo material, Working Class Hero is up there with all time favorite songs, but some of the really intimate and vulnerable love songs (and photographs) make me pause. It feels like listening in on a couple having sex or reading love letters that were not addressed to me. There is no attempt or desire to make the song more accessible or universal: it's about a specific, real relationship. A song like Something, on the other hand, is so easy for just about everyone to step inside and understand in the context of their own relationships.

None of that changed for me last night, I was still thinking very specifically about Yoko Ono and John Lennon when Gene Ween sang their song, but the weird context allowed me to hear it with totally new ears. It sounded really beautiful and charming instead of filled with embarrassing, over share. I don't love the goofy voices thing that Gene Ween does in some songs and was glad that this was just a straightforward cover-- no mocking, no irony, just a song he liked and wanted to do.