Sobre el álbum
"Some Time in New York City" es un álbum realizado a dúo entre John Lennon y Yoko Ono, contando con la colaboración por tercera ocasión del productor estadounidense Phil Spector. El álbum obtuvo peores críticas que los anteriores y sus ventas fueron también bastante más reducidas.El álbum, lanzado en Estados Unidos en junio de 1972, fue grabado en noviembre de 1971, tras haberse mudado Lennon y Yoko a vivir a la ciudad de Nueva York un par de meses antes. Muy pronto comenzaron a relacionarse con activistas y comenzaron a manifestar sus protestas por algunas de las políticas del gobierno estadounidense. Por dicho motivo fueron investigados por el FBI y amenazados con la deportación por el presidente Richard Nixon.
Con este panorama, contrataron a la banda Elephant's Memory para acompañarles en las nuevas grabaciones que tenían previstas. De esa manera, nacen canciones como "Woman is the Nigger of the World", una crítica de Yoko Ono hacia el machismo vigente en la sociedad, asemejándolo al racismo supremacista de los blancos contra los negros.
"New York City" es un tema rockero que explica los primeros meses de Lennon en Estados Unidos, mientras que "John Sinclair" es un tema en contra del encarcelamiento de John Sinclair, poeta, escritor y activista político estadounidense.
El disco, considerado como muy radical por su alto contenido político, tuvo una repercusión mucho menor que "Imagine". Fue censurado en algunas emisoras y fuertemente criticado por el sector más conservador que gobernaba en Estados Unidos. Desde el propio gobierno se lanzó una campaña de investigación e las actividades de la pareja Lennon-Ono.
Al álbum se le acompañaba en su edición original un segundo disco que incluía parte de un concierto ofrecido el 15 de diciembre de 1969 en el Lyceum Ballroom de Londres, con la participación de Eric Clapton, George Harrison y Keith Moon. Igualmente, se incluían varios temas de Frank Zappa y The Mothers of Invention interpretadas durante un concierto en junio de 1971.
Listado de Canciones
Disco 1
- Woman Is The Nigger Of The World
Letra
Woman is the nigger of the world Yes she is...think about it Woman is the nigger of the world Think about it...do something about it We make her paint her face and dance If she won't be slave, we say that she don't love us If she's real, we say she's trying to be a man While putting her down we pretend that she is above us Woman is the nigger of the world...yes she is If you don't belive me take a look to the one you're with Woman is the slaves of the slaves Ah yeah...better screem about it We make her bear and raise our children And then we leave her flat for being a fat old mother hen We tell her home is the only place she would be Then we complain that she's too unworldly to be our friend Woman is the nigger of the world...yes she is If you don't belive me take a look to the one you're with Woman is the slaves of the slaves Yeah (think about it) We insult her everyday on TV And wonder why she has no guts or confidence When she's young we kill her will to be free While telling her not to be so smart we put her down for being so dumb Woman is the nigger of the world...yes she is If you don't belive me take a look to the one you're with Woman is the slaves of the slaves Yes she is...if you belive me, you better screem about it. [Repeat:] We make her paint her face and dance We make her paint her face and dance We make her paint her face and dance - Sisters, O Sisters
Letra
We lost our green land We lost our clean air We lost our true wisdom And we live in despair Sisters, O sisters Lets stand up right now It's never too late To start from the start O wisdom, O wisdom That's what we ask for And yes, my dear sisters We must learn to ask Wisdom, O wisdom That's what we ask for That's what we live for now Wisdom, O wisdom That's what we ask for That's what we live for now Sisters, O sisters Let's wake up right on It's never too late To shout from our hearts O freedom, O freedom That's what we fight for And yes, my dear sisters We must learn to fight Freedom, O freedom That's what we ask for That's what we live for now Freedom, O freedom That's what we ask for That's what we live for now O sisters, O sisters Let's give up no more It's never too late To build a new world O new world, O new world That's what we live for And yes, my dear sisters We must learn to live New world, O new world That's what we live for That's what we must now learn to build O new world, O new world That's what we live for That's what we must now learn to build New world, O new world That's what we live for That's what we must now learn to build New world, O new world That's what we live for That's what we must learn to build - Attica State
Letra
What a waste of human power What a waste of human lives, shoot the prisioners in the towers Forthy-three poor widowed wives Media blames it on the prisioners, But the prisioners did not kill "Rockefeller pulled the trigger" That's what the people feel. Attica, Attica state, we're all mates with Attica state. Free the prisioners, free the judges Free all the prisioners everywhere, All they want is truth and justice All they need is love and care They all live in suffocation, Let's not wathc them die in sorrow, Now's the time for revolution, Give them all chance to grow. Attica state...... Come together join the movement, Take a stand for human rights, Fear and hatred clouds our judgement, Free us all from endless night, Attica state.... We are all mattes... We all live in...... Attica, Attica, Attica state. - Born In A Prison
Letra
We are born in a prision, raised in a prision Send to a prision called school, We cry in a prision, We love in a prision, We live in a prision, like fools. Wood becomes a flut when it's loved, reach for your self and your battered mates. Mirror becomes a razor when it's broken, Look in a mirror and see your shattered fate. We live with no reason, Kicked around for no reason, Thrown out without reason like tools. Work in a prision And hate in aprision And die in a prision as a rule. We live in a prision Among judges and wardnes And wait for no reason or use We laugh in a prision, Go through all four seasons And die with no vision or truth - New York City
Letra
Standing on the corner Just me and yoko ono We was waiting for jerry to land Up come a man with the guitar in his hand Singing "have a marijuana if you can" His name was Davis Peel And we found that he was real He sangs"The pope smokes dope everyday" Up come a police man shoved us up the street Singin, "power to the people today!" NYC...NYC...NYC Que pasa Ny?...Que pasa NY? Well we went to max's Kansas City Got down the nitty gritty With the Elephants Memory Band Laid something down As the news spread around About the Plastic Ono Elephants Memory Band! Well we played some funky boogie And laid some tutti frutti Singing "Long tall sally's a man" Up come a preachman trying to be a teacher Singing "God's a red herring in grag!" NYC...NYC...NYC Que pasa Ny?...Que pasa NY? Well we did the Staten Island Ferry Making movies for the telly Played the fillmore and Apollo for freedom, Tried to shake our image Just a cycling through the village But found that we had left it back in london. Well nobody came to bug us, hustle ud or shove us so we decided to make it our home If the man wants to shove us out We gonna jump and shout The Statue of Liberty said, "come!" NYC...NYC...NYC Que pasa Ny?...Que pasa NY? NYC down in the village What a bad-ass city! Que pasa Ny?...Que pasa NY? - Sunday Bloody Sunday
Letra
Well it was sunday bloody sunday When they shot the people there The crys of thirteen marty martyrs Filled the free derry air. Is there any one among you Dare to blame it on the kids? Not a soldier boy was bleeding When they nailed the coffin lidds! Sunday bloody sunday Bloody sunday's the day! You claim to be majority Well you know that it's a lie You're really a minority Oh this sweet emerald asle. When Stormont bans our marchers They've got a lot to learn Internment is no answer It's those mother's turn to burn! Sunday bloody sunday Bloody sunday's the day! You anglo pigs and scotties Sent to colonize the north You wave your bloody Union Jacks And you know what it's worth! How dare you hold on to ransom A people proud and free Keep ireland for the irish Put the english back to sea! Sunday bloody sunday Bloody sunday's the day! Yes it's always bloody sunday In the concentration camps Keep Falls and roads free forever From the bloody english hands Repatriate to britain All of you who call it home Leave ireland to the irish Not for London or for Rome! Sunday bloody sunday Bloody sunday's the day! - The Luck Of The Irish
Letra
If you had the luck of the Irish You'd be sorry and wish you were dead You should have the luck of the Irish And you'd wish you was English instead! A thousand years of torture and hunger Drove the people away from their land A land full of beauty and wonder Was raped by the British brigands! Goddamn! Goddamn! If you could keep voices like flowers There'd be shamrock all over the world If you could drink dreams like Irish streams Then the world would be high as the mountain of morn In the 'Pool they told us the story How the English divided the land Of the pain, the death and the glory And the poets of auld Eireland If we could make chains with the morning dew The world would be like Galway Bay Let's walk over rainbows like leprechauns The world would be one big Blarney stone Why the hell are the English there anyway? As they kill with God on their side Blame it all on the kids the IRA As the bastards commit genocide! Aye! Aye! Genocide! If you had the luck of the Irish You'd be sorry and wish you was dead You should have the luck of the Irish And you'd wish you was English instead! Yes you'd wish you was English instead! - John Sinclair
Letra
It ain't fair, John Sinclair In the stir of breathing air Won't you care for John Sinclair? In the stair of breathing air. Let him be, set him free Let him be like you and me. They give him ten for two What else can the judges do? Gotta, gotta.....gotta, set him free. If he had been a soldier man Shooting gooks in Vietnam If he was the CIA Selling dope and making hay He'd be free, they'd let him be Breatthing air, like you and me They gave me ten for two What more can the judges do? Gotta, gotta....gottta set him freee. Was he jailed for what he done? Representing everyone Free john now, if we can From the clutches oof the man Let him free, lift the lid Bring him to his wife and kids. They gave me ten for two What more can the bastards do? Gotta, gotta...gotta set him free... - Angela
Letra
Angela, they put you in prison Angela, they shot down your man Angela, you`re one of the millions of political prisioners in the world. Sister, there's wind that never dies Sister, we're breathing together Sister, our loves and hopes forever keep on moving oh so slowly in the world. Angela, can you hear the earth is turning? Angela, the world watches you. Angela, you soon will be returning to your sisters and brothers of the world. Sister, you're still a people teacher Sister, your word reaches far Sister, there's a million different races but we all share the same future in the world. They gave you sunshine They gave you sea They gave you everything but the jailhouse key. They gave you coffee They gave you tea They gave you everything but equality. - We're All Water
Letra
There may be not much difference Between Chairmon Mao and Richard Nixon If we strip them naked. There may be not much difference Between Marylin Monroe and Lenny Bruce If we check their coffins. There may be not much difference Between White House and and Hall of People If we count their windows. There may be not much difference Between Raquel Welch and Jerry Rubin If we hear their heartbeat. We are all water from different rivers That's why it's so easy to to meet We are all water in this vast, vast ocean Someday we'll evaporate together. There may be not much difference Between Eldridge Cleaver and Queen of England If we bottle their tears There may be not much difference Between Charles Manson and the Pope If we press their smile There may be not much difference Between Rockefeller and you If we hear you sing. There may be not much difference Between Rockefeller and you If we show our dreams