Bizarre and Eerie - This is like listening to John Lennon singing Genesis throwaways. A few quality songs (Too Late For Goodbyes and Valotte being the best) save this from one star in my book.Julian s game efforts give it another star. He had an impossibly high mark to hit because of his name, but there s a reason why Julian never achieved even close to the acclaim of his father. This collection is best for those who love John Lennon s voice and the vast, synthstrings-and-drums-drenched-in-reverb 80s sound.
Excellent CD - I highly recommend it! - I recently rediscovered Julian Lennon after watching Mr. Holland s Opus on TV one night and went out to purchase the soundtrack. It was then that I found the song Cole s Song on that album, which I absolutely love. Granted he only co-wrote the lyrics (the music is by Michael Kamen), but the way he sang the song was wonderful! I could listen to it over and over and never get bored of it.So then I went in search of his albums in stores and was starting to understand his frustration of constantly being in his dad s shadow...because I could find a million copies of John Lennon albums on the racks...but Julian Lennon? NO! NOT ONE! UGH! :/ So...still wanting to purchase his music, I was then on a mission, going online to do my purchasing instead, and came across this Greatest Hits album put together by VH1 and I absolutely LOVE IT!!!All you John Lennon and/or Beatles fans out there are probably going to hate me for saying this...But I actually prefer Julian s style and use of a wide vocal range to his dad s way of singing. OK. I have to admit that I do like many of The Beatles songs and I do like some of John Lennon songs...but I think that Julian is a very under-appreciated singer/song writer. He is a wonderful music artist in his own right, and my personal opinion is that if he hadn t had to live under the scrutiny of everyone s expectations for him to be a clone of his dad...which of course he IS NOT...He is his own person...I think he would have been much more highly respected in the music industry. And we would have seen a lot more of him over the years. Ok. Now that I ve said my peace, I will step down off of my soap box on that subject.I understand that he is currently working on releasing another album soon (straight from the horse s mouth on his official website) WOOHOO! I am now patiently awaiting its release. :) I am just so glad he is writing again. I read at one point, he became so frustrated with the whole music industry that he just decided to throw in the towel. How sad. But then he just couldn t get writing music out of his system and released Photograph Smile after 7 years. And WOW! I am listening to the song Photograph Smile right now on the album I purchased. What a beautiful song.Anyway...I suspect you all have now gotten the idea that this is an album I highly recommend. If you purchase it, I assure you that you will not be disappointed.
Wish he d Stick Around - Julian Lennon was such a promising talent in the 80 s. Even if he had not been John Lennon s son, he seemed to have the complete package -- looks, sensitivity, talent and a musician s ear. The song Valotte with its clever lyrics and haunting chord changes alone could have secured him a place. I am the same age as Julian and in the 80 s felt it efreshing to have someone of my generation speaking for us. The Beatles, after all, were in the past. Julian s Too Late for Goodbye, Jesse and Stick Around were headed in that direction. But unfortunately Julian was taken over by record company execs who wanted him to continue John s legacy which of course, he could not do. Julian lost his identity and his voice for awhile. It appeared that his talent had run out. His catchy I Don t Wanna Know is so obviously and deliberately Beatlesque that it s almost tongue in cheek. I Get Up is a rockabilly type rocker that would have made John proud. Some Klunkers: Saltwater is a boring, pedestrian plea to save the environment. Want Your Body is so devoid of desire and so dull it serves more as a lullabye than a sexual plea. Julian is still talented -- what he needs to do is play for the fun of it and be himself. In some ways, the eldest son of Beatle Number One is an interesting story.
Talent vs. Sales - In a day and age of the video star with little or no real musical talent who some how manages to still sell millions, this album is as refreshing as a cool breeze. I have not stopped listening to it since I got it. The best tracks are Julian s later stuff, after he developed his own sound and is not just an imitation of his famous DNA donor (I won t say Father, because Lennon certainly was no father to Julian) I highly recommend it for anyone over the age of 20, who likes serious music about serious topics like Saltwater (an awesome song about the earth) to dance able tunes like I Don t Wanna Know. One last thing-contrary to another reviewer Julian has lost NONE of his sex appeal- he is hotter now more than ever!
What will I think of me the day that I die? Saltwater wells in my eyes. - While I m writing this review, I m listening to my favorite Julian Lennon song Saltwater .I haven t yet really formed an opinion on the whole album, because this particular song is the only one that has really caught my attention, because of the powerful lyrics used in it!The title I ve used is one of the lines in this song, plus the one-lined chorus.I chose this title because I wanted to use a couple of sentences which means something positive and powerful!I bought this album for my dad this Christmas with the album Valotte .I was going to buy these albums from Amazon, but I needed them for Christmas so I had to buy from sellers instead, and I got both of these albums on Christmas Eve!JUST IN TIME!!!!!!!!I became obsessed with the song Saltwater today, and just felt that I really needed to write a review about this album.I know I m only concentrating on one particular song, but this is the album I ve been listening to this song on.The chorus: Saltwater wells in my eyes makes me think of my Nana who died nearly 11 years ago.This song made me cry today, because songs like this always make me think of her!She too was a Beatles fan, I wouldn t be surprised if she liked Julian Lennon, or Sean Lennon, or Yoko Ono!Just like John Lennon, Julian voice does the famous soft, high notes especially in Saltwater , like in my above title (the first part!)If you get the album, you ll know exactly what I mean!This song of Julian Lennon is extremely self-reflective.He also looks and sounds just like his dad, who I and my parents (and a lot of their friends) are also a great fan of!It s not just Julian and John Lennon who have done music, today I found out that Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon have also done some music! Haven t heard them singing yet, so when I have I can then form opinions on them.I didn t know until today, that Julian Lennon inspired some of The Beatles songs! Like Paul McCartney wrote the song Hey Jude for Julian when he parents were breaking up.Also, John Lennon wrote the song Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds for Julian inspired by one of his childhood drawings.It s a real shame that Julian never really had a chance to get to know his dad.When John Lennon died, my dad said to me this Christmas that he really wished that Julian had joined up with Paul McCartney and done some songs together! This would ve been great, especially since he sounds exactly like his dad!If I didn t know about Julian Lennon and I heard one of his songs, I would ve been convinced I was hearing John Lennon s voice!Also, Julian s full name is actually John Charles Julian Lennon, it s obvious he chose one of his middle names as to not have his name confused with his dad s!Well, I ve now said all I can for now.I really hope people will read my review and decide to buy this album. And also other music by Julian Lennon, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon and of course THE BEATLES!!!!!!!!I hope this review is helpful to you all.HAPPY READINGS AND HAPPY SPENDINGS!!!!!!!!And HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!