The legendary John Lennon would have been 84 today, and his life and enduring legacy as one of the most influential and successful artists of all time is being celebrated in a variety of ways around the world, including mindfulness Meditation Mixes of his classic song, “Mind Games"; the relighting of Yoko Ono Lennon’s Imagine Peace Tower in Reykjavik, Iceland; several exciting collaborations, including with the Swedish-based audio technology company Teenage Engineering, the London-based mobile game company Beatstar, and American musical instrument accessory mainstay D'Addario; extensive special programming on SiriusXM’s The Beatles Channel, a Tim’s Twitter Listening Party of his revered 1973 album, Mind Games, and more.
John Lennon’s 1973 peace-and-love anthem, “Mind Games”, has been radically reimagined by Sean Ono Lennon (also celebrating his birthday today), for a series of nine Meditation Mixes designed to put the listener in a relaxed, meditative state, to help guide one’s mind into deeper states of consciousness.
Mind Games – The Meditation Mixes are available to download and stream today. They will be released on vinyl as a limited edition 3LP set this Friday, October 11 via Capitol/UMe. The LPs are pressed on 180-gram crystal clear vinyl and packaged in a triple gatefold mirror board sleeve. Side B on LP3 features nine unique 1.8 second mantras that play continually in the vinyl’s run out grooves to create infinite loops. Listen to Mind Games – The Meditation Mixes and purchase the vinyl here.
To create Mind Games – The Meditation Mixes various sound design techniques and processes have been applied to the original 1973 two-inch multitrack recordings, and in some cases have been enhanced with additional instrumentation from Sean Ono Lennon, son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono Lennon. They were mixed and engineered by Sam Gannon with additional recording engineered by Scott Holingsworth.
Mind Games – The Meditation Mixes forge their own space while maintaining firm, authentic roots in John Lennon's original recording of the original song.
Each of the nine mixes has been radically altered, slowed down and extended, ranging from 5 to 10 to upwards of 33 minutes, allowing for the musical soundtrack to wash over the listener and provide a relaxing, immersive, deep listening and meditative experience. Four of the tracks are presented as Binaural versions that each focus on different types of brain waves: Beta, Delta, Gamma, and Theta. Dubbed “Mind,” “Space,” “Spirit,” and “Love,” these tracks feature a Binaural Beat, an auditory illusion created within the brain when the left and right ears hear two slightly different frequencies whose difference is perceived as a new frequency which can activate different brain patterns for scientifically proven therapeutic effects.
Mind Games – The Meditation Mixes debuted exclusively on the Lumenate app in May in conjunction with Mental Health Awareness Month. Each of the nine Meditation Mixes has been paired with a unique, deeply immersive light sequence, using carefully selected flicker frequencies to accompany the mind-and-mood-altering sound. These singular, mind-altering sequences elevate the musical journey, deepen the sense of relaxation, and allow users to see, hear and feel the music like never before.
The Lumenate app uses the flashlight on the back of one's smartphone strobed at research-driven frequencies onto a person's closed eyes to neurologically guide them into a state of consciousness between that of deep meditation and psychedelics.
The Imagine Peace Tower by Yoko Ono Lennon on Viðey, in Reykjavik, Iceland, will be lit for the 18th time on Wednesday, October 9th at 8 pm GMT/4 pm EDT/1 pm PDT. A peaceful ceremony will be held on the island to celebrate the event. Valdimar Guðmundsson and Örn Eldjárn will perform music beside the Imagine Peace Tower, and the Mayor of Reykjavik, Einar Þorsteinsson, will give a speech. It is customary that as soon as the tower is lit, the song “Imagine” will be played, and people will have the opportunity to take photos. Fans around the world will be able to watch the lighting live at ImaginePeaceTower.com.
The Imagine Peace Tower is an outdoor artwork by Yoko Ono, built on Viðey in 2007 and dedicated to John Lennon. The tower is lit annually on Lennon’s birthday, October 9th, and shines until December 8th, the day of his passing. The artwork is a symbol of Ono and Lennon’s continuing work for world peace. The tower is in the form of a wishing well, with the words “Imagine Peace” inscribed on it in 24 languages. More information is available here.
Teenage Engineering are proud to announce the release of the John Lennon Mind Games Edition OB-4. This special edition of their high-fidelity Bluetooth loudspeaker and radio was developed in collaboration with Sean Ono Lennon. The OB-4 cumes with a custom design inspired by the artwork of John Lennon’s Mind Games album.
In this edition of the OB-4, the “disk mode” comes pre-loaded with extended and remixed mixes of the Mind Games album, along with exclusive new metronome and mantras. The unique integration of Lennon’s work and new sonic elements allows users to experience his music in an immersive and innovative way.
For more information or to pre-order, head here.
D’Addario has teamed up with the John Lennon Estate for a handful of new officially licensed guitar accessories including a collection of guitar straps and picks that pay homage to the iconic musician and his legacy.
The line includes various designs inspired by Lennon’s style, album art, lyrics, song titles, and quotes. The straps and picks are part of a licensing agreement with The John Lennon Estate and are developed by D’Addario. For more information or to purchase, head here.
Beatstar, the popular mobile music game, has entered into a collaboration with the John Lennon Estate, which will go live in Beatstar on November 15th. More info to come.
SiriusXM’s The Beatles Channel (Channel 18) is honoring John Lennon’s 84th birthday with exclusive programming this week, including a very special edition of “Fab Fourum” featuring Sean Ono Lennon, and new episodes of the regular shows all dedicated to John.
This week on “Across The Universe,” a weekly show dedicated to the life and music of John Lennon, host Dennis Elsas welcomes other hosts of The Beatles Channel for a Lennon birthday celebration, picking their favorite Beatles songs with John on lead vocals. Meg Griffin will host a special version of “8 Songs A Week,” in which listeners rank their 16 favorite Beatles songs sung by John. Peter Asher plays Beatles songs that John considered his favorites by The Fab Four on “From Me To You With Peter Asher,” and on this week’s on “Way Beyond Compare,” Tom Frangione will play rare songs by John.
Additionally, host David Fricke will welcome a panel of musicians and contributors who worked on John Lennon’s 1973 album Mind Games — Jim Keltner and Rick Marotta (drummers), David Spinozza (guitarist), Ken Ascher (keyboardist), and Bob Gruen (photographer) — for a special conversation.
More information available here.
The John Lennon Estate and Tim’s Twitter Listening Party will team up once again for a communal listening of John Lennon’s classic 1973 album, Mind Games. Fans are encouraged to tweet their tributes to John and Mind Games with their own memories and memorabilia on his birthday while listening to the album together. The event will begin at 9:15 pm BST/4:15 pm EDT/1:15 pm PDT and will be available to replay after at timstwitterlisteningparty.com.
To participate, follow @johnlennon, @yokoono, @LISTENING_PARTY and @Tim_Burgess on Twitter/X and use the hashtag #TimsTwitterListeningParty to join in.
The acclaimed Mind Games – The Ultimate Collection, the definitive, deep dive into John Lennon’s oft-overlooked and underappreciated 1973 album, Mind Games, was released in July digitally, on vinyl, CD, and in two lavish box sets – a Standard Deluxe Edition and Super Deluxe Edition – part art piece, part time capsule and part puzzle.
The collection has received rave reviews, especially for its sterling new remix of the original album, which has been produced by Sean Ono Lennon and mixed by triple Grammy Award-winning mixer/engineer Paul Hicks to sonically upgrade the sound and bring John’s vocals front and center.
(Top photo: John Lennon at Lou Adler's house, 1973; Credit Yoko Ono)
