Shortly after Sean Lennon performed with his psychedelic soulmate Les Claypool at The Peach Music Festival, My Morning Jacket tipped its cap to Sean’s Beatles lineage with a cover of “The Ballad of John and Yoko”.
MMJ headlined day three of The Peach in Scranton, PA on Saturday, and though the psychpop band took top billing, it still made sure to nod to supporting act Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade who performed immediately prior. Jim James grabbed his acoustic guitar for the band’s first-ever take on the Fab Four’s standalone single. The 1969 track (which is a Beatles single in name only as it doesn’t feature Ringo Starr and George Harrison on the recording) recounts the marriage of Sean’s parents, John Lennon and Yoko Ono.
This is far from My Morning Jacket and Jim James’ first homage to The Beatles and its members. Back in 2009, James released an all-George Harrison covers EP, Tribute To, under his nom de plume Yim Yames. During COVID quarantines in 2020, James honored Harrison once again with a cover of “Inner Light” for a fundraiser, and last summer at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, MMJ snuck “Here Comes The Sun” lyrics into “Dondante“.
Check out My Morning Jacket’s cover of “The Ballad of John and Yoko” at The Peach from last night. The Peach Music Festival wraps today with sets by Lettuce, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, Ziggy Marley, Tedeschi Trucks Band, and more. Find out how to livestream select sets here.
My Morning Jacket – “The Ballad Of John And Yoko” (The Beatles) – 7/1/23
[Video: themeboudin]
Setlist: My Morning Jacket | The Peach Music Festival | Scranton, PA | 7/1/23
Set: Phone Went West [1], Circuital, Love Love Love, The Ballad of John and Yoko (The Beatles) [2], Evil Urges, Run It, Lay Low, Least Expected > Wasted, Steam Engine, I’m Amazed > Dancefloors > Happy (The Rolling Stones) >Dancefloors, Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 1 > Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2 [3], Wordless Chorus
[1] w/ Bill Withers “Ain’t No Sunshine” interpolation
[2] FTP
[3] w/ Stevie Nicks “Edge of Seventeen” lyrics during coda