Julian Lennon joins the latest episode of Elton John’s Rocket Hour on Apple Music 1. He tells Elton about his forthcoming album ‘Jude’, why he’s choosing to release it on his mother’s birthday, performing ‘Imagine publicly for the very first time, and more.
Julian Lennon Tells Apple Music About His Forthcoming Album ‘Jude’…
I literally didn't think I was doing another album. I really didn't. I thought that that was it. But I started digging into a box of old tapes of mine from 30 years ago, in fact, when I used to live in LA, and found all these old songs that I hadn't... That weren't right for previous albums or just…weren't quite finished. That got me on a roll in updating them, reproducing them. Some of the songs, I mean, still have the original vocals on from my back bedroom in my home studio 30 years ago in LA. So that got the ball rolling to get into doing this new album again.
Julian Lennon Tells Apple Music The Album Release Date Is A ‘Homage’ To His Mother…
The first song came out on my birthday, and I wanted to keep it in the family, so the albums coming out on my mum's birthday, just as a homage, in many respects, so September.
Julian Lennon Tells Apple Music Choosing To Perform ‘Imagine’ For The Very First Time For Ukraine…
Elton John: So talking of homages, I saw you do the most incredible version of ‘Imagine’ for the Ukrainian people. You'd never sung that song ever, and it's one of the most famous songs ever written, by your dad. And it was the most beautiful candle lit. It was just beautiful. And you sang it, you had just an acoustic guitarist and yourself. And I thought that was incredibly brave and incredibly beautiful moment to actually do that song. And you chose things exactly the right moment and you did a beautiful job of it. I can't think of anybody that I know who's seen it, who was just not blown away by it. And I think... I have to congratulate you because that's a hard, bloody thing to do.
Julian Lennon: Let me tell you know, since I've been in the business, I've kind of been dreading the day that I'm... Because I'd always said that I would only actually sing it if it felt like it was the end of the world, in many respects. And after watching what's been going on over the past couple of years, and especially recently with Russia and Ukraine, the people of Global Citizen said, "Got anything up your sleeve?" And I've been watching the horrors on TV, as we all have. I just felt, this is it. And once I'd said yes, if you I had anxiety before, once I'd said, yes, I went, "Oh my God, how am I going to do this, that honours it, and is different and is my own take, but still respects it in every way, shape or form."
For me, the only way I could do that was take it away from the piano, the plunky piano, and do it as raw, as unproduced as possible and as heartfelt as possible. For me, that was the way to do it. I have to tell you that we will be releasing that as a single in some way, shape or form very soon with all donations going to refugees in Ukraine and around the world. That's on the cards.
Julian Lennon Tells Apple Music About Titling His New Album ‘Jude’…
Julian Lennon: It felt very much a sort of coming of age, I guess. Especially as life moves on, you tend to look at your life and look at where you've come from. And especially after having seen the Get Back movie with Sean and Olivia Harrison, and then Stella being there. I mean, I'd had the idea of the name before that, but it was just made so that it felt even more right.
Elton John: Did someone in the Beatles call you Jude then?
Julian Lennon: Well, it was McCartney. ‘Hey Jude’ was in fact, ‘Hey, Jules’ in its initial stages. And it was very much written about him thinking about me and my circumstances and that I needed to be strong and at the end of the day, find my way through this mess that I was going to be in… I think I honoured the song and I think I honoured where I've come from, my legacy, so to speak, my heritage. I think, again, now just felt like the right time, because life is too short and this felt perfect for this moment, too.
