Arts Orbit

Yoko Ono, Fly

Why critics thought it sucked: I shouldn’t even have to say, right? Because it’s Yoko Ono. Because she broke up the Beatles and because she’s a woman and because she’s Asian and because she had the audacity to marry John Saint Fucking Lennon. And because she screams. And that’s all she does. Screams. All the time. Right? I mean, we all know that, right?

Why it doesn’t suck: Because it’s a great fucking record, but I bet you haven’t heard it because of the above. You probably figured all her albums were just irritating caterwauling or whatever. But let me ask you this: do you like the B-52s or no-wave music at all? Do you like krautrock or PiL’s Metal Box? Do you need your music to always be easily-digested pop nuggets? If you answered no to any of the above, you could probably handle Fly. It’s filled with astonishing rock grooves, for one thing—“Midsummer New York” would slot in comfortably next to any mid-period Lennon song, “Mind Train” would sound great on Can’s Tago Mago, and “Hirake” comes preciously close to funk music. It’s a weird record, sure – the 22-minute “Fly” is basically a concept piece with Yoko making weird noises with her voice—but there’s plenty of great songs on here, especially the gorgeous “Mrs. Lennon.” Forget what you think you know, because most of the hatred towards her is based on pure bullshit. Spend some quality time with Fly.

Why critics thought these albums sucked, and why they were wrong