I think the decision to remove the song Woman Is The N was wrong. I think maybe they shouldn't make it public, posting the new versions on youtube and streams, but in the physical box for fans to enjoy they should make it available because it's a beautiful and important song.
Last night, I transcribed what Elephant's Memory bassist Gary Van Scyoc stated in the Aug. 15, 2025
Talk More Talk: A Solo Beatles Videocast:
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Kenneth Michaels: Well, you know, there's no way we can't talk about that song.
Gary Van Scyoc: I know.
Kenneth Michaels: Because everybody's talking about it.
Gary Van Scyoc: I know.
Kenneth Michaels: And I just want to say one thing before we do, which is it's very easy for someone like me to want to shoot my mouth off very quickly, but you never know. I think that John would never want any of his music to be deleted out of his catalog in any way. So, I'm kind of hoping that maybe with Sean at the helm there, it might be an Easter egg somewhere in the box set. Um, even still, it's not right for it to not be part of the album and the concert. So, that's just the way that I feel. But was this, as far as you know, was this the record company and their decision, or do you know if this was all the Lennon estate deciding this? Would you know anything about that? Anything you could share?
Gary Van Scyoc: I know everything about it. I got it straight from Sean. He took us aside and explained to us the whole thing. And I don't want to say that he was being apologetic, but he felt that though he had to tell Adam and I what the deal was, and it was the lawyers. Simple. They put the kabosh on it.
Kit O’Toole: Wow. Interesting. Yeah. Because yeah, I was wondering too is, you know, as Ken was getting at with the record company, was it that they felt it would, you know, the song would be too much of a distraction and that, you know, people would focus on that rather than the whole set and, you know, but uh but interesting, so it was…
Gary Van Scyoc: Well, I guess somebody had to take control. I mean, Sean wouldn't have been the one to make that decision. Yoko wouldn't have made that decision. I don't know about the record company. I mean it certainly wouldn't have been you know that the film company. I mean it's that was a like an after fact really the Magnolia involvement. It was Universal first I started getting all kinds of emails from Universal over a year ago you know to preface all this stuff coming up, and in so in the meantime time they let it go to Magnolia. So, it all it's always changing and morphing so fast I could hardly keep up with it. But I think there was a box set of the
Some Time in New York City thing in the works -- is the way I understand it from Sean -- that might be still included. But that was what they put the kabosh on, and that song was on that, and they just wouldn't have it. It was gonna create too many problems.
Kenneth Michaels: But why is this any different than the way it was before? I mean, when the when
John Lennon Live in New York City came out, the song was on there. It was on the video.
Gary Van Scyoc: It got banned in a matter of days too … very quickly. So they just didn't want to have to get into that. I think they didn't feel that they were pre -- the way I understand it, they weren't prepared to go there. I guess I mean if I could get my lawyer hat on, I'd try to figure it out. But uh I see it from a musical standpoint. And I totally agree that John would not have liked it. But then again, Adam's the one that tried to tell him he was crazy for doing the damn song in the first place. The very first night, we walk in, and John played us the song. And Adam took John aside and says, "You're really going to say that?" And if that didn't phase him, nothing would have. He was hell bent. He's an artist.
Kenneth Michaels: I know that. But, you know, I hear I hear songs in rap music where the F bomb is dropped constantly, and that's okay?
Gary Van Scyoc: It's just doesn't make any sense. Ken, I totally agree. Totally. I couldn't. You hit it right on the head. It's ridiculous in that sense. Uh, oh, boy. But I'm thankful for what we're going to get.
Kenneth Michaels: I know. I know.
Gary Van Scyoc: I am. And I have to be because I could get really hung up on that because that's that song is phenomenal.
Kenneth Michaels: Yes… my favorite solo Lennon songs.
Gary Van Scyoc: Yeah, I hear you. So, John, I tell you I go into a trance every time the end of that song comes up and we get into time signature thing. I probably told you in our earlier interviews, John and I just connected eyes when he got into that phrase. “They make her paint her face and dance,” and we just got into that 3/4 kind of jam at the end and we just got on, we got in the zone, man. One of my most unforgettable experiences of working with John. Yeah. Sometimes you just sync up with somebody mentally as one musician to another. And John and I had our moment at the end of that jam on that song. And so it sucks for me to not have that on there. But I'm so happy about “Come Together” and “Well, Well, Well,” “Cold Tur—" I mean, the stuff is just -- I love the way I ended up -- the mixes, the way it sounds, the way my bass sounds, John's performances. I don't think they had to use much, but if they use much on his voice, more power to him. Why not make the final product the best it can be by today's standards?
Kenneth Michaels: I agree. And how far are you going to take this though? I mean, let's let's omit “The Ballad of John and Yoko” out of the Beatles catalog because he says, "Christ, you know, it ain't easy." Let's just remove that completely like it didn't happen.
Gary Van Scyoc: Yeah. Of course.
getting expanded biographies is always one of my favorite part of the releases!
