Check Out McImagine

No, it's not a John-Lennon-themed Happy Meal (Liverpool-style fish and chips with a slice of New York cheesecake?). It's Arthur Maisel's subtly rewritten version of "Imagine" as Paul McCartney might have composed it. Arthur created it to illustrate the stylistic differences between the two song writers (as discussed here), and it's a hoot. If you actually know something about music (unlike me), you'll truly appreciate it. Download the MP3 file here.

Back in my first childhood, I played drums in a band with Arthur. During Saturday rehearsal sessions when we didn't feel like working (which was most of the time), Arthur would entertain us with musical trivial, oddities, and novelties. We'd gather around him at the piano and toss out requests, the goofier the better: "Play something that sounds like hula music, only give it a bluesy feel!" "What would a Russian version of cowboy music sound like?" "Do a Looney Tunes sound track!" etc. etc. Arthur would comply, improvising and annotating as he played. It would have been a fine musical education (well, at least an unusual one) if I'd actually applied myself. Instead it's just one of my more cherished memories.

Tags: John Lennon, Paul McCartney