John Lennon blind audition spoof for 'The Voice'

By Randy Lewis

June 25, 2013 4:38 PM PT

It’s the kind of thing a lot of music lovers have been saying since “American Idol” turned singing into a nationally televised competitive sport a dozen years ago: “[Insert legendary pop singer’s name here] would never get past the auditions.”

Now a couple of clever fellows have put it up on YouTube for the world to see.

It’s a humorously edited video of John Lennon singing “Imagine” as if it were part of the blind audition segment of NBC’s reality show “The Voice.”

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As the scene cuts from Lennon singing to judges Blake Shelton, Shakira, Usher and Adam Levine, their quizzical looks are funny enough. The we get to hear their assessments of his performance.

“What’s your name, bro?” Shelton asks supportively. “There’s a verse that seemed a little bit too dramatic for me.”

Levine adds, “It’s almost like there’s this entire story you have to tell in a very short amount of time, and it was a little bit subdued — a little bit! You really are a talented dude.”

Shakira suggests Lennon change the key to better suit his voice, and Usher offers some generic comment of comfort to someone he clearly thinks is a loser.

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The masterstroke of this 2-minute, 6-second video is at the end, with highlights of an upcoming performance by a young Bob Dylan. Talk about everybody must get stoned.

Here’s the video, which has logged more than a quarter of a million views: