1969 single by Yoko Ono and Plastic Ono Band
"
Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for A Hand in the Snow)
" is a song by
Yoko Ono
that was originally released by
Plastic Ono Band
in October 1969 as the B-side of the "
Cold Turkey
" single, and was later released on Ono's 1971 album
Fly
. Several live versions have been released, including on Plastic Ono Band's
Live Peace in Toronto 1969
and the John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band With Elephant's Memory album
Some Time in New York City
in 1972. An early version was titled "
Mum's Only Looking for Her Hand in the Snow
". It has been covered by several other artists.
Lyrics and music
[
edit
]
"Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" was inspired by Lennon and Ono's custody fight with Ono's ex-husband
Anthony Cox
over Cox and Ono's daughter Kyoko, representing Ono's attempt to communicate with her daughter.
[1]
[2]
[3]
Ono and Kyoko were finally reunited in the 1990s when Kyoko was in her thirties.
[2]
Though "Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" is credited as written solely by Ono, the music is derived from the unreleased
Lennon-McCartney
composition "
Watching Rainbows
".
[4]
The lyrics consist primarily of Ono wailing the phrase "Don't worry." On the live version included on
Live Peace in Toronto 1969
, the phrase "mummy's only looking for her hand in the snow" is also included.
[5]
The song is driven primarily by a
blues
-based guitar
riff
played by Lennon and
Eric Clapton
.
[5]
[6]
The riff is strikingly similar to the intro of the
Everly Brothers
' 1957 hit "
Wake Up Little Susie
". John Blaney describes the riff as "hypnotic."
[6]
Authors Ben Urish and Ken Belen write that Lennon and Clapton alternate between a "lilting semi-
slide
" groove and playing "sniping bites."
[7]
The other musicians on the studio version are
Klaus Voormann
on
bass guitar
and
Ringo Starr
on drums.
[6]
According to Urish and Belen, Starr's drumming variations ensure that the tension keeps mounting.
[7]
John Lennon claimed that the song was "one of the fuckin' best
rock 'n' roll
records ever made."
[8]
Allmusic
critic Ned Raggett describes Ono's vocal as a "screwy blues yowl," claiming that it suggests "something off
Led Zeppelin III
gone utterly berserk."
[9]
The New York Times
critic Allan Kozinn compares Ono's vocal to "a wailing, overdriven
electric guitar
," claiming its virtuosity compares with the actual electric guitar playing of Lennon and Clapton.
[10]
Rolling Stone Magazine
contributor John Lewis describes it as a "mournful caterwaul of despair."
[11]
The earliest recorded version of the song, titled "Mum's Only Looking for Her Hand in the Snow" was sung by Ono at
Queen Charlotte's Hospital
while she was being observed during her pregnancy with Lennon's child, a pregnancy that ended in a
miscarriage
.
[6]
Lennon provides the sole accompaniment on
acoustic guitar
.
[6]
This version was originally released by
Aspen
magazine and was later included as a bonus track on the
CD
reissue of the couple's
Wedding Album
.
[6]
[12]
The studio version released as a single and on
Fly
was recorded on October 3, 1969, at Lansdowne Studios in London.
[13]
The single has the words "PLAY LOUD" written on the label, as does "
Cold Turkey
" on the other side.
[13]
Live versions
[
edit
]
The version of "Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" included on
Live Peace in Toronto 1969
was recorded at
Varsity Stadium
in
Toronto
,
Canada
on September 13, 1969.
[12]
The
Plastic Ono Band
for that performance was assembled on short notice and included Ono, Lennon, Clapton, Voormann and
Alan White
on drums.
[12]
After Lennon played some of his recent songs and rock 'n' roll classics, Ono sang a two-song set consisting of "Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" followed by "John John (Let's Hope for Peace)."
[6]
[12]
Audience reaction to her set was muted, and some booing was reported, more directed at "John John" than "Don't Worry Kyoko."
[6]
[12]
John Blaney explains that the audience "had come to listen to good ol' rock 'n' roll, not a Japanese woman screaming at the top of her voice," but "one could at least get into the groove of 'Don't Worry Kyoko.'"
[6]
Chip Madinger and Mark Easter claim that despite the audience's cold reception, the band "did an admirable job" backing Ono on the song.
[12]
Ken Bielen and Ben Urish claim that the audience may have been startled by "Ono's full-throttle vocals and Lennon and Clapton's hard core guitar sounds.
[7]
The version on
Some Time in New York City
was recorded at the
Lyceum Ballroom
in London on December 15, 1969 at the "Peace for Christmas" Concert for UNICEF.
[12]
In addition to the musicians who performed in Toronto,
Billy Preston
played
keyboards
,
George Harrison
played guitar,
Keith Moon
joined in on drums towards the end, and members of
Delaney & Bonnie & Friends
also performed.
[12]
[14]
[15]
[16]
This version reportedly lasted 40 minutes, as the musicians became "locked in the hypnotic riff," and was edited down to 15 minutes for the album release.
[6]
[15]
[17]
Drummer Alan White recalls finally bringing the song to its conclusion by speeding up to the point where the other musicians couldn't keep up, and then slowing the tempo down, allowing the song to end.
[6]
Lennon claimed that the musicians on this version were "inspired out of their skulls" and that it was "the most fantastic music [he'd] ever heard."
[8]
Bielen and Urish describe this performance as "vibrant", enhanced by the
call and response
between Ono's vocal and the
horn
section, and claim that the finale was so "hyped-up" that even Ono had trouble keeping up.
[7]
Lennon biographer Geoffery Giuliano and Moon biographer Tony Fletcher claim that half the audience walked out during the performance.
[15]
[18]
The Lennons played the song, backed by
Jim Keltner
on drums and
Elephant's Memory
, at the matinee performance of the One to One benefit concerts at
Madison Square Garden
in
New York City
on August 30, 1972.
[12]
These concerts were released as the
Live in New York City
album and video, but "Don't Worry Kyoko" was not performed for the evening concert and was not included on either the album or video versions of
Live in New York City
.
[12]
In September 2005, Ono performed the song as an
encore
to her performance at
ArthurFest
.
[19]
Ono's and Lennon's son
Sean Lennon
led the band for that performance.
[19]
Reviewing that performance,
Los Angeles Times
critic Steve Hochman claimed that "the bleats and squalls for which Ono became famous/infamous were now expressions of a wide range of emotions as her band, led by her son Sean Lennon, pounded out primal art-blues."
[19]
Reception
[
edit
]
Music critic
Johnny Rogan
considers "Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" to be "arguably Yoko Ono's finest recorded moment."
[5]
Authors Ken Bielen and Ben Urish praise the studio version as "the standout inclusion on
Fly
," calling it "an amazing achievement," particularly the guitar work of Lennon and Clapton, Starr's "slowly varying drum work" and Ono's vocal, which they call "one of her most effective."
[7]
The New York Times
'
Kozinn calls the song a "searing rocker."
[10]
The
Los Angeles Times
'
Hochman describes the song as "a raw, anguished cry from the soul."
[19]
Author Bruce Pollock describes it as having "frenzied glory."
[20]
The live version included on
Some Time in New York City
, Bielen and Urish call "a stunning masterwork."
[7]
Lewis finds this version to be "astonishing," stating that Ono "sounds remarkable: screaming, yelping, howling and ululating over a blues-funk jam.
[11]
Personnel
[
edit
]
Cover versions
[
edit
]
"Don't Worry Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking for a Hand in the Snow)" has been recorded by other artists.
[21]
The B-52's
recorded it on their "Whammy!" LP, but it was removed and replaced with a new recording of "There's a Moon in the Sky" on the UK pressing. All CD reissues have used the UK version, without formal explanation.
Tater Totz
released a 17-minute live version, recorded in San Francisco in 1989, on their 1993 album,
Tater Comes Alive
.
[22]
A 27-minute version, recorded live in Los Angeles in 1988, was included as a bonus track on the CD version of the album.
[22]
They also released it on their 1988 album,
Alien Sleestacks from Brazil
.
[23]
Alan Decotes covered the song on his 2007 album
Don't Worry Rock N' Roll
.
[24]
Donny Who Loved Bowling covered it on the 2005 album
Tree Fort
.
[25]
Yo La Tengo
covered it live on the radio in New Jersey and released it in 2006 on their album,
Yo La Tengo Is Murdering the Classics
, a compilation of live impromptu cover-song performances on the New Jersey freeform radio station
WFMU
.
[
citation needed
]
A version of the song was recorded by
John Flansburgh
and
John Linnell
, two high school friends that would later form the alt rock duo
They Might Be Giants
in Flansburgh’s basement in around 1975. It has often been cited by the band as their first recording together.
[
citation needed
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Carr, R.; Tyler, T. (1978).
The Beatles: An illustrated record
. Harmony Books. p. 83.
ISBN
0-517-53367-7
.
- ^
a
b
Keil, B.L.; Mitchell, D. (April 7, 1997).
"Don't Worry Yoko, Kyoko's Back"
.
New York Magazine
. p. 11
. Retrieved
24 December
2012
.
- ^
Mann, M.
"Taken: Five Kidnapping Cases That Made History"
. Meredith Corporation. Archived from
the original
on 9 December 2012
. Retrieved
25 December
2012
.
- ^
Garcia, Gilbert (27 January 2003).
"The Ballad of Paul and Yoko"
.
Salon.com
. Retrieved
November 29,
2023
.
- ^
a
b
c
Rogan, J.
(1997).
The Complete Guide to the Music of John Lennon
. Omnius Press. pp. 30, 71, 151?152.
ISBN
0-7119-5599-9
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
Blaney, J. (2007).
Lennon and McCartney: together alone : a critical discography of their solo work
. Jawbone Press. pp. 13, 19, 21?25, 65, 70.
ISBN
978-1-906002-02-2
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Urish, B. & Bielen, K. (2007).
The Words and Music of John Lennon
. Praeger. pp. 13?15, 35, 42?43.
ISBN
978-0-275-99180-7
.
- ^
a
b
Wenner, J. (2001).
Lennon Remembers: The Full Rolling Stone Interviews from 1970
. Verso. pp. 14?15.
ISBN
978-1-85984-376-5
.
- ^
Raggett, N.
"Fly"
.
Allmusic
. Retrieved
24 December
2012
.
- ^
a
b
Kozinn, A. (March 15, 1992).
"RECORDINGS VIEW; Yoko Ono, Anew"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
25 December
2012
.
- ^
a
b
Lewis, John (2017). "Some Time in New York City".
The Ultimate Music Guide: Lennon
.
Uncut
. p. 49.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
Madinger, C.; Easter, M. (2000).
Eight Arms to Hold You
. 44.1 Productions. pp. 21, 30?32, 77?78, 81.
ISBN
0-615-11724-4
.
- ^
a
b
Blaney, J. (2005).
John Lennon: Listen to This Book
. Paper Jukebox. pp. 24?29.
ISBN
978-0-9544528-1-0
.
- ^
"FLASHBACK: JOHN & YOKO, GEORGE HARRISON, ERIC CLAPTON & KEITH MOON JAM FOR UNICEF"
. Greater Media - WMMR. December 15, 2011. Archived from
the original
on 9 February 2013
. Retrieved
25 December
2012
.
- ^
a
b
c
Fletcher, T. (2000).
Moon: The Life and Death of a Rock Legend
. HarperCollins. p. 264.
ISBN
978-0-380-78827-9
.
- ^
Gaar, G.G. (2002).
She's a Rebel: The History of Women in Rock & Roll
(2nd ed.). Seal Press. p. 194.
ISBN
978-1-58005-078-4
.
- ^
Winn, J.C. (2009).
That Magic Feeling: The Beatles' Recorded Legacy, Volume Two, 1966?1970
. Random House. p. 350.
ISBN
978-0-307-45239-9
.
- ^
Giuliano, G. (2001).
Lennon in America: 1971?1980, Based in Part on the Lost Lennon Diaries
. Cooper Square Press. p. 40.
ISBN
978-1-4616-3561-1
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Hochman, S. (September 7, 2005).
"POP MUSIC REVIEW; Underground, properly tilled; ArthurFest yields an eclectic and bountiful crop, with Yoko Ono particularly vibrant"
.
Los Angeles Times
. p. E6
. Retrieved
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.
- ^
Pollock, B. (2011).
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. Backbeat Books.
ISBN
978-1-61713-018-2
.
- ^
"Don't Worry Kyoko"
.
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2012
.
- ^
a
b
Miles, T.
"Tater Comes Alive"
.
Allmusic
. Retrieved
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.
- ^
"Alien Sleestacks from Brazil"
.
Allmusic
. Retrieved
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2012
.
- ^
"Don't Worry Rock N' Roll"
.
Allmusic
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.
- ^
"Tree Fort"
.
Allmusic
. Retrieved
25 December
2012
.
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