Plastic Ono Band - Original Versions

Original Versions

In 1968, John Lennon began his personal and artistic relationship with Yoko Ono by collaborating on the experimental album Two Virgins. After a second volume, Unfinished Music No.2: Life With The Lions appeared in the spring of 1969, Lennon and Ono decided that all of their future endeavors would be credited to the Plastic Ono Band. Its credo, "YOU are the Plastic Ono Band", implied that everyone was part of the group. In fact, the Plastic Ono Band was an identity to describe works by Lennon and Ono and whoever happened to be performing with them. Lennon and Ono would both use the name for years on their future solo albums. The single release of "Give Peace a Chance" in July 1969, recorded in a hotel room in Montreal, Quebec with many participants, was the first release to bear the credit of Plastic Ono Band.

The only album solely credited to the Plastic Ono Band, Live Peace in Toronto 1969, was recorded during the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival on September 13 that year and featured Eric Clapton on lead guitar, Klaus Voorman on bass (an old friend of Lennon's from Germany, who was famous for the cover art of the Beatles' Revolver album), and Alan White (later of Yes) on drums. Fronting the group, naturally, were Lennon and Ono. Lennon's performance has been cited as giving him the confidence to tell the other Beatles a few days later that he was leaving the band.

Just after its recording, "Cold Turkey", Lennon's tale of breaking his brief heroin addiction, was released as a single under the banner of the Plastic Ono Band, again featuring the Live Peace In Toronto 1969 line-up except Ringo Starr plays drums instead of White. By early 1970, Lennon and Ono had begun adding their names to their releases, "Instant Karma!" coming out as "John Lennon and Yoko Ono with the Plastic Ono Band", and their two proper solo debut albums as John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band. By 1971 the name was being used as a secondary credit, with Lennon's and Ono's names more prominent on their solo ventures, and with variations, e.g., "Plastic Ono Nuclear Band" and "Plastic U.F.Ono Band". They played with Elephant's Memory as the "Plastic Ono Elephant's Memory Band" and with Frank Zappa as the "Plastic Ono Mothers".