Shaved Fish

Shaved Fish
Compilation album by John Lennon
Released	24 October 1975
Recorded	June 1969 – July 1974
Genre	Rock
Length	41:55
Label	Apple/EMI
Producer	John Lennon, Yoko Ono & Phil Spector
John Lennon chronology
Rock 'n' Roll (1975) Shaved Fish (1975) Double Fantasy (1980)

Shaved Fish is the seventh album by John Lennon, released in October 1975 on Apple Records, catalogue SW 3421. It is a compilation of singles, comprising every one that he had issued in the United States as a solo artist with the exception of "Stand By Me," released earlier in the year. The only compilation of his non-Beatles recordings released during his lifetime, it was a commercial success, reaching #5 in the UK and #12 in the U.S., ultimately going platinum. It was Lennon's last original release on Apple Records.

Content

The compilation includes many of Lennon's most popular solo recordings, five of which had not yet appeared on an album: "Cold Turkey," "Instant Karma!," "Power to the People," the holiday single "Happy Xmas (War is Over)," and "Give Peace A Chance." The latter appeared in truncated form, split to begin side one and end side two. Eight of these singles made the Top 40 on the Billboard chart, with "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" going to #1; five made the Top Ten in the United Kingdom. "Imagine," never a single in the UK, was issued as such concurrent to the release of this album, going to #5 in the UK chart. Several of the master tapes were unavailable for the compilation, and dubs were used, some with shorter fadeouts.^{[citation needed]} A later compact disc issue used the original masters, restoring the full fadeouts of these songs.

Its release came less than three weeks after the resolution of Lennon's long-running immigration dispute and the birth of Sean Lennon. The name of the album originates from the Japanese food katsuobushi, a kind of dried fish.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Robert Christgau	(B+)

The year the album was released, a Creem magazine reader's poll included it among the top five "Best Reissues" of 1975, placing fourth, behind two Rolling Stones compilations, Made in the Shade and Metamorphosis, and The Basement Tapes.

Robert Christgau called the album "eleven shots in the dark from the weirdest major rock and roller of the early '70s" and said "not counting the two available on must-own albums, the only great cuts are "Instant Karma" (Lennon's best political song) and "#9 Dream."

Track listing

All songs by John Lennon, except where noted.

Side one

No.	Song	Length	Notes
1	"Give Peace a Chance"	0:57	Only the first minute of "Give Peace A Chance" is excerpted here Issued as a single July 7, 1969 (US) and July 4, 1969 (UK). Credited to Lennon–McCartney on the original single issue and vinyl edition of Shaved Fish, the song now appears as credited to Lennon alone.
2	"Cold Turkey"	5:01	Issued as a single October 20, 1969 (US) and October 24, 1969 (UK).
3	"Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)"	3:21	Issued as a single February 20, 1970 (US) and February 6, 1970 (UK).
4	"Power to the People"	3:21	Issued as a single March 22, 1971 (US) and March 12, 1971 (UK).
5	"Mother"	5:03	Exclusive edit, different from the single edit issued on December 28, 1970 (US) of track from Plastic Ono Band. This edit includes the bells at the intro not present on the single edit, and fades-out later than the single but earlier than the LP version.
6	"Woman is the Nigger of the World" (John Lennon, Yoko Ono)	4:37	Single edit issued on April 24, 1972 (US); a longer version was later released on Some Time in New York City.

Side two

No.	Song	Length	Notes
1	"Imagine"	3:02	Issued as a single October 11, 1971 (US) and October 24, 1975 (UK).
2	"Whatever Gets You Thru the Night"	3:03	With Elton John on piano and backing vocals. Single edit issued September 23, 1974 (US) and October 4, 1974 (UK); a longer version was later released on Walls and Bridges.
3	"Mind Games"	4:12	Issued as a single October 29, 1973 (US) and November 16, 1973 (UK).
4	"#9 Dream"	4:47	Issued as a single December 16, 1974 (US) and January 31, 1975 (UK).
5	"Happy Xmas (War is Over)" / "Give Peace A Chance (Reprise)" (Lennon, Ono)	4:15	"Happy Xmas" issued as a single on December 1, 1971 (US) and November 24, 1972 (UK). An excerpt from a live performance of "Give Peace A Chance" recorded at the 1972 "One to One" concerts is crossfaded into the song's ending.[citation needed]