Ranking 10 Greatest Albums Made Out Of Contractual Obligation
7. John Lennon - Rock N’ Roll
Did you know "Come Together" was inspired by Chuck Berry's "You Can't Catch Me"? Music publisher Morris Levy sure did. In fact, he took John Lennon to court for infringing on Berry's song. The case was settled out of court with the agreement that Lennon would record three renditions of Levy-owned songs on his solo covers album, Rock N' Roll.
A lawsuit generally isn't the impetus for musical genius to grow, but considering the circumstances, Lennon produced a pretty lovely mess. Rock N' Roll is a righteous tribute to the golden era of rock music, and captured a little bit of that pre-Hard Day's Night spunk that Lennon and company brought to the dive bars of Liverpool back in the day.
Those expecting more raucous covers in the mold of The Beatles' "Twist and Shout" or "Boys" were probably put off by his faithful and somewhat restrained adaptations. But just listening to Lennon gleefully rip through Fats Domino's "Ain't That A Shame" and Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" will put a little swing in your hips.
Oh, and the highlight of the album? Lennon getting in a nice jab to Levy by outright covering "You Can't Catch Me", the same Chuck Berry song that put him in this situation.