Between My Head and the Sky

Time has been kind to Yoko Ono. What were once heard as unlistenable avant-garde experiments now can be heard in punk, new wave, hip-hop, dance music and even heavy metal. Rather than say “I told you so,” Ono, at the age of 76, regroups with her son, Sean, and a revolving cast of participants, including members of Cornelius, to revive the Plastic Ono Band and record in six days a musically diverse set that sounds practically normal by 2009 standards. Ono’s idiosyncratic vocals slink in and out, under and over the tracks, as the band pumps out rock n’ roll (“Waiting for the D Train”), funk (“Ask the Elephant!”), piano balladry (“Memory of Footsteps”), space-jams (“Moving Mountains,” “Calling”), funky reggae (“Hashire, Hashire”), space-rock / spoken word (“Between My Head and the Sky”), studio pop (“Watching the Rain”) and poetry (“Feel the Sand,” “Higa Noboru”). This may be Ono’s most eclectic and entertaining album ever. There are no endurance tests, no extended pieces, just concise tracks that explore whatever genre she desires. At 76, she shows no signs of slowing down.