Reimagining the Man From Liverpool

Rex Fowler feels ambivalent.

He loves singing John Lennon's songs, even if the impetus for doing this publicly is a grisly one.

"The idea for our show really started after John was murdered in 1980," Fowler said recently. "John no longer had a voice. So, like a bunch of other people, I was providing one. First, I wrote a song called, 'Johnny's An Angel.' But as the year's went by, I wanted to do more to let the legacy of John's work really shine."

He has.

The show that Fowler and confederate Tom Dean have put together, "The John Lennon Song Project," will be at The Fairfield Theatre Company on Saturday night. If you love John's songs, but are a little tired of note-for-note, waxworks re-creations, this may be what you are looking for. Fowler, Dean and their band honor John by coming up with inventive arrangements of his songs, putting together strange-bedfellow medleys and generally upending all the preconceptions you have of the smart, sarcastic Beatle's songbook.

"We started doing these shows in September '09," said Fowler. "It's just been amazing how they've caught on and taken off. It seemed like a cool idea to pair songs that had some, oh, mystical, connections. So Tom and I tried singing 'I'll Get You' and that led to 'Imagine'  because they both start with the same word and have a similar melody. And it just went from there."

Not long after, Fowler and associates made the companion record, "Imagined: The John Lennon Song Project." Here, the Beatle fans reinterpret John's smartest and most melodic songs. "Come Together" morphs into "I Am The Walrus." "Hide Your Love Away" plays do si do with "Norwegian Wood" and "A Day In The Life" cuddles comfortably with "Across The Universe."

It's a novel approach. The reviews have been noteworthy. And the fans? Even Fowler, who, as a member of folk-rock duo, Aztec Two Step, has been in the biz for decades, can't believe the wonderfully-unholy to-do.

"I've been making records since 1972 and I've never seen a response like this," he said. "People order one 'Imagined' album and they love it so much, they write back a week later and want six more for their friends. We've had very little press on the thing and we've still sold about 2,500 copies. This means when the band and I go on the road, we're moving into the bigger room at the theater, the demand is so high."

Plus, there's been another, even more heartwarming, aspect.

"The coolest thing is the reaction from the fan base. You're always a little worried about what the Beatle freaks are going to say. It's such holy ground we're treading. But, mostly, they've been really into the record and the show. That's incredibly gratifying."

One wonders if Yoko Ono has heard the record and if she's a member of this fan club as well. Fowler says he's not sure. And he's not surprised about the silence from the Lennon camp.

"I know Yoko has a copy; I got it to the people who handle her affairs. Whether she's heard it? She may not have. I gather both she and Sean (Lennon) still get upset when they hear John's stuff, so they try and keep their distance. Which I totally understand."

In the meantime, Fowler's got work. Dates with the 'Lennon' ensemble, a new Aztec Two Step record this year ("probably a live album of our most socially-conscious songs") and he's working on his memoir. But clearly, he's not quite finished with the Man from Liverpool.

"We've done a whole bunch of John's songs, but I still think there are enough vital tunes that we're looking at a new Lennon covers record for 2012. There are some Beatle songs and some solo things of John's I'd still like to do. I've been toying with a title, too. What do you think about 'Re-Imagine' "?

INFO: The John Lennon Song Project will appear at The Fairfield Theatre Company, 70 Sanford St., at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Doors open at 7. Tickets are $27, members save $5 per ticket.  For information call 203-259-1036. For information about Rex Fowler (Aztec Two Step and The John Lennon Song Project) go to www.aztectwostep.com