"(Just Like) Starting Over" is a song written and performed
by John Lennon for his
Double Fantasyalbum. The B-side was Yoko Ono's "Kiss
Kiss Kiss". It was released as a single on 24 October 1980 and
reached number one in both the USA and UK two weeks after he
was murdered. It is his biggest solo American hit, staying at
#1 for five weeks. (When Lennon was shot in New York City on 8
December 1980 the single was at #3 in the US and the following
week reached the summit.) In the UK it had peaked at #8 in the
charts and had fallen out of the Top 20 before Lennon's death
propelled it to #1, making an unprecedented #21 to #1 move. By
6 January 1981 there were 3 Lennon songs in the UK top 5, a
feat never achieved before or since.
This was the first single released from
Double Fantasy, and the first new recording Lennon had
released since 1975. It was chosen by Lennon not because it was
the best track on the album, but because it was the most
appropriate following his five year absence from the recording
industry. He referred to it during production as the "Elvis /
Orbison" track, as he "tongue in cheek" impersonated their
vocal styles. The uplifting bell at the intro of the song
serves as the antidote to the morose bell sound which opens
Lennon's first solo album, Lennon seeing it as him having come
full circle.
Although its origins were in unfinished older compositions
like "Don’t Be Crazy" and "My Life", it was one of the last
songs to be completed in time for the
Double Fantasysessions. “We didn’t hear it until the
last day of rehearsal,” producer Jack Douglas said in 2005.
Lennon finished the song while on holiday in Bermuda, and
recorded it at The Hit Factory in New York City just weeks
later. The original title was to be "Starting Over". "(Just
Like)" was added at the last minute because a country song of
the same title was recently released by Tammy Wynette.
While commercial releases of the song (original 45rpm
singles, LP's and Compact Discs) run a length of 3 minutes and
54 seconds, promotional 12" vinyl singles originally issued to
radio stations feature a longer version, officially running at
4 minutes and 17 seconds. This version extends the coda
fadeout, and is highly desired by collectors, as it has not
appeared on any CD reissue or compilation.
It is listed at #53 on
Billboard's All Time Top Songs.The Flaming Lips recorded
a version for the benefit album
Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save
Darfur.