Sunday February, 17
One of the most daring and influential artists of our time, Yoko Ono, celebrated her eightieth birthday with a sold-out performance to an energetic and hugely responsive crowd at the legendary Volksbühne in Berlin. YOKO ONO PLASTIC ONO BAND was led by her son, Sean Ono Lennon, who collaborated with Yoko on her critically-acclaimed 2009 record, Between My Head And The Sky.
Guests joining Yoko on stage included Peaches, Michael Stipe, Robyn Hitchcock and Rufus Wainwright & Martha Wainwright, who sang “Happy Birthday” in English and German.
photo credit: Roland Owsnitzki, (c) Yoko Ono, 2013
Jiga, Eva and Masumi, a local Berlin synth-pop trio, opened the show with their song “Hey, Yoko Ono.”
Musicians
Sean Lennon – guitar, piano, bass
Yuka C. Honda- keyboard / laptop (Cibo Matto)
Yuko Araki – drums (Cornelius)
Nels Cline – guitar (Wilco)
Michael Leonhart – trumpet (Steely Dan / Donald Fagen)
Charlotte Kemp Muhl – bass, guitar (Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger)
Jared Samuel -keyboard (Invisible Familiars)
Set List
It Happened
Waiting For The D Train
BETWEEN MY HEAD AND THE SKY
Moving Mountains
CALLING
There’s No Goodbye
Walking On Thin Ice
Rising
Yes, I’m A Witch
Cheshire Cat
Mind Train
Higa Noboru
Give Peace A Chance
Earlier in the week, on February 15, Yoko Ono’s retrospective, HALF-A-WIND SHOW opened at the Schirn Kuntshalle in Frankfurt and will tour to major museums across Denmark, Austria and Spain in 2013 and 2014.
Numerous projects are slated for 2013 including the reissue of Ono’s albums from 1968-1985, a career-spanning art book, Infinite Universe At Dawn highlighting six decades of her work, and the curation of the 2013 Meltdown Festival at Southbank Centre in London in June.
Over the past few years, Ono has achieved a record string of nine consecutive #1 hits on the Billboard dance charts. Her latest dance single, “Hold Me” was released last week.
In September, Ono released the improvisational YOKOKIMTHURSTON album with Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth.
Other recent collaborations have included recordings and performances with Eric Clapton, Lady Gaga, RZA, Antony, Ornette Coleman, the Flaming Lips, the Pet Shop Boys, Mark Ronson and tUnE-yArDs.
Between My Head And The Sky received 4 & 5-star rave reviews from Rolling Stone, Mojo, Q, Uncut, NME, Spin & many more, and was picked among Mojo Magazine’s top albums of the year.
Additionally, Mojo honored Yoko with a Lifetime Achievement Award and she received the Golden Lion Lifetime Achievement Award at The Venice Biennale.
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![Hold Me (Remixes Part 1) [feat. Yoko Ono] - Ono](http://r.mzstatic.com/images/web/linkmaker/badge_itunes-lrg.gif){kind=icon}
Happy Birthday Yoko! You’re beautiful, strong, amazing and inspiring, keep on rockin’!
✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊
HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOKO!!!
Best wishes, health, happiness, achievements, peace, love and all the good things you deserve!!! 
✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊ ✿❊ ✿❊✿ ❊ ✿ ❊
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BIA – BRASIL
[...] by Yoko Ono’s management to film the exclusive show by the Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band for Yoko Ono‘s 80th birthday at the ‘Berliner [...]
Dear Yoko! Happy Birthday! Thank you for your life, for John, for Sean, for “Imagine “. Great doings in future! Regards from Russia
All my love from Stockholm on your day. ♥♥♥
Congratulations… and happy happy birthday!!!! Are you very special… very very very special. I too love John… kisses…peace
Happy Birthday Yoko! You’re amazing! Keep up the good work:)!
Dear Yoko Ono, Seeing the photo of your installation with the ladder brought tears to my eyes. It was/is such a beautiful story. Applauding who you are; who you have always been (loudly). Best Wishes to you from Vancouver, BC, Canada.
A very happy birthday to you, Yoko! Sending you much love and best wishes xoxoxo
[...] to a sold out audience in Berlin Germany last night to commemorate this milestone. It was billed as Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band and Sean joined his mother in the band as its leader. She continues to crusade for important [...]
Happy birthday Yoko! You are an amazing artist humanitarian and very strong woman
YOU look Totally Radiant!!
Enjoy a fabulous birthday weekend, dear Sister!
Thinking of you now and always …
[...] g. Nach der Ermordung von John Lennon im Dezember 1980 zog sich Yoko Ono für eine längere Phase zurück. Als sie langsam wieder an die Öffentlichkeit trat, wurde sie nicht nur dessen Nachlassverwalterin, sondern widmete sich auch ihrer eigenen künstlerischen Arbeit, musikalisch und anderweitig. Sie hatte sich schon seit den 60ern unter den berühmtesten in New York weilenden Künstlern bewegt, aber nun entwickelte sie sich auch in der öffentlichen Wahrnehmung zur Grande Dame, und die Feindseligkeiten, die sie aufgrund ihres Einflusses auf Lennon erfahren hatte, verschwanden immer mehr. Sie erfuhr immer mehr Anerkennung für ihre eigene Arbeit und auch ihren Anteil an der gemeinsamen mit Lennon. Zum 40jährigen Jubiläum reanimierte sie die Plastic Ono Band, mit der sie überall in der westlichen Welt und Japan unterwegs war – ebenso wie mit ihrer Kunst oder zu Ehrungen von John Lennon. In den letzten Jahren erscheint sie fast noch aktiver denn je – zur Feier ihres 80. eröffnete sie nicht nur eine große Retrospektive in der Kunsthalle Schirn in Frankfurt am Main, die ihre künstlerische Pionierarbeit und ihre Vorbildrolle würdigt – sie gab auch noch ein Konzert in Berlin. [...]