Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #41880 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-04-17
• Rating: Exempt
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Full Screen, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
An instant classic when released in September 1971, John Lennon's Imagine was the ex-Beatle's solo masterpiece, and its musical legacy is matched here by priceless footage of Lennon's creative process, independently edited from original 16-millimeter footage by producer-director Andrew Solt with the hands-off approval of Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono. Incorporating footage from John and Yoko's original film Imagine (clips of which were previously included in the 1988 documentary Imagine: John Lennon), Gimme Some Truth presents Lennon, Ono, co-producer Phil Spector and a host of gifted musicians in a fluid context of conflict, community and craftsmanship. Bearing witness to every stage of the recording process, this 63-minute documentary succeeds as a visual diary, a study of familiar music in its infancy and a revealing portrait of the then-30-year-old Lennon--from witty clown to confrontational perfectionist--at the peak of his post-Fab Four inspiration.

The film's horizons expand with a casual montage of Lennon's celebrity lifestyle, including New York party footage (by film theorist Jonas Mekas) featuring such guests as Miles Davis, Andy Warhol and Jack Nicholson. Excerpts of a 1971 BBC interview reveal John and Yoko at their most thoughtful, discussing socio-sexual issues that remain compellingly relevant. But the true value of Gimme Some Truth remains in the creation of music at the Lennons' estate at Tittenhurst Park, Ascot, England. The ballad "Imagine" is followed from rawness to completion, and the track-by-track progress is highlighted by "Jealous Guy" (after which Lennon playfully compliments Spector's studio wizardry), and especially "Gimme Some Truth", which alternates between full mix and isolated vocal track. With George Harrison on guitar, Lennon freely admits that "How Do You Sleep?" is a deliberately "nasty" criticism of Paul McCartney, but this remarkable film never dwells on negatives. A precious record of John Lennon's time on earth, Gimme Some Truth is as honest as it is entertaining. And while purists may object to the DVD's remastered sound--which was carefully remixed for Dolby Digital 5.1-channel stereo at Abbey Road studios--few would deny that this film is an important and illuminating document that any John Lennon fan will cherish. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

Special Features
4:3 Full Frame
DVD 5
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround English\Dolby Digital Stereo English
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
Dolby Digital Stereo
Chapter Selection
John And Yoko Interview
English

Synopsis
Expanded from the 1971 film IMAGINE, GIMME SOME TRUTH provides a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the making of John Lennon's landmark IMAGINE record. Footage of John and Yoko Ono spending time at home blends with scenes of John as he is involved in the recording process. Songs featured: "Imagine", "Crippled Inside", "Oh Yoko!", "Jealous Guy", "It's So Hard", "I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier Mama", "Gimme Some Truth", "Oh My Love", "How Do You Sleep

Customer Reviews

fantastic artist, fantastic album and great unseen footage
any fan of john lennon will love this video! it focuses on the making of the classic 'imagine' album, and shows the superstar at home working in his studios, with amongst others george harrison. it offers a great insight on how lennon lived and worked in his fantastic tittenhurst mansion. some great versions of tracks from the album include, imagine, jealous guy and gimme some truth. what a fantastic opportunity to see one of the all time greats rehearse and preform the songs from his legendary 'imagine' album..

This is History
Now we are lucky that they once filmed the making of Imagine album by Lennon. You can almost touch the atmosphere here on this DVD. You see Lennon and his guests singing, recording, swearing, eating, smoking and joking. Now the album is a classic. But there is also a feeling here that they know what they are doing: they are making rock and roll history. I am only complaining about the length of the film: it is too short.

Gimme some truth
An excellent fly on the wall rockumentary on John's Imagine album.

Filmed in 1971 just a year after the Beatles breakup you can see there is still much hurt in the air from the split.

Along with George Harrison who sits in on the sessions also,
we see John and George working on the thinly veiled song about Paul in the song "How do you Sleep".
Yes, the wounds were still very much open during these recording sessions!

It is pretty obvious that the pressure is very much on John during this film as he blows up a few times, and on one occasion he gives an hapless recording engineer a load of stick for replaying the wrong section of a track that he is overdubbing with Phil Spector.

Despite the pressure in the studio at the time, there are some softer and truly beautiful moments in this film when we see John working on the tracks "How?" and "Oh my Love".

Of course the big climax of this film is the last track on the disc with John performing Imagine, it's almost worth buying the DVD for that one clip alone!

Yes, 10 out of 10 for this movie!