John Lennon Archives - Page 4 of 10 - Hey Dullblog, the Beatles fan blog

Phil Rickman’s “December”: Wrestling with Lennon’s ghost

By Nancy Carr|2013-12-07T07:50:41-08:00December 7, 2013|1980, Beatle-inspired, Beatles fiction, books, Double Fantasy, John Lennon, Reviews, Uncategorized|

It's hard to write Beatles-related fiction without backing yourself into a corner NANCY CARR * What Beatles fan who was alive in 1980 hasn't wished he or she could have done something to prevent Lennon's murder? And what thoughtful Lennon fan hasn't been troubled by the contradictions manifested in Lennon's personality and life? Those questions drive Phil Rickman's 1996 novel December, a worthy read for this time of year despite its flaws. The book's action starts on December 8, 1980, not at the Dakota in New York City, but at a decrepit abbey in the Welsh countryside where a band fraying [...]

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Cries and Whispers, Crashes and Flutters: 10 Favorite Beatles Musical Micro-Moments

By Devin McKinney|2016-12-03T07:44:13-08:00November 27, 2013|1963, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, John Lennon, Lennon, McCartney, Paul McCartney, Ringo, Ringo Starr|

Recording "Real Love," 1994:Gut genius at work. DEVIN McKINNEY • We all know you can take the Beatles to the outer limit and upper extremity of significance—Best thing in universal history—and then narrow that unit to its subordinate but still-impressive absolutes: Best miracle of the 20th century; best socio-cultural force of the 1960s; Best group of the “rock era.” Having accepted all of that, you can, and we all have, then go superlative in descending levels of specificity: Best album; best song; best vocal performance—John; best vocal performance—Paul; best bass playing; best guitar solo; best everything else. But have we [...]

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When I’m Seventy-Three: What John Lennon would look like today

By Devin McKinney|2013-11-20T07:52:42-08:00November 20, 2013|alternate history, Beatles on the Web, cartoon, Graphic Art, John Lennon|

DEVIN McKINNEY • Huffington Post today features John Lennon headlining a festival of dead pop stars as they might look today, in computer-aided speculations created by the Sachs Media Group in partnership with “photo restoration and manipulation company” Phoejoe. I study John’s digitally aged image, looking for the flaw in the algorithm, the misjudgment of hairline or jowel nomenclature, and can’t find it. The others are pretty interesting as well. And here’s the classic analog representation of all four Beatles “when I’m sixty-four,” commissioned for the multi-artist anthology The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics (1969), often used for [...]

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Three Ways: Beatles write about landscapes

By Nancy Carr|2013-09-09T08:15:53-07:00September 7, 2013|1967, George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Strawberry Fields|

NANCY CARR * In the late 60s the Beatles had three strong songwriters (and really, was that fair to other bands?), and thus three distinctive ways of treating the subjects they wrote about—landscapes, love, drugs, etc. (That's without getting into the significant variations within each songwriter's work). This time, I want to consider what Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison saw when they looked at landscapes. Lennon: "Strawberry Fields Forever" (released February 1967) The physical Strawberry Field, in Woolton Inspired by the grounds of the Strawberry Field children's home in Woolton, this song proved so powerful that Lennon's memorial in New York City's Central [...]

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John’s Vocals on Don’t Let Me Down

By Michael Gerber|2013-08-31T10:32:44-07:00August 30, 2013|1969, john and yoko, John Lennon, Yoko Ono|

Commenter Barb L. sent along this video of John's vocals on Don't Let Me Down, embedded below. (h/t openculture) http://youtu.be/X_1b0nZONes

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Lennon and Christianity

By Michael Gerber|2013-08-19T00:46:24-07:00August 18, 2013|1972, 1973, 1977, John Lennon|

Oral Roberts: John Lennon's secret penpal? MIKE GERBER • Commenter Karen brought something to my attention recently that I certainly had a strong reaction to, and thought Dullblog readers would, too. In January, 1973, American televangelist Oral Roberts claimed in a speech that he'd received a letter from "ex-Beatle John Lennon." The letter, which he said was handwritten, detailed John's misery at his life as a Beatle, and his desire to be saved by Jesus Christ. You can read about it all here. I've been wrong before, but I would be willing to wager $100 right now that this letter is [...]

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John Lennon on Allen Klein, 1973

By Michael Gerber|2013-08-08T04:00:23-07:00August 7, 2013|1973, Apple, john and yoko, John Lennon|

Courtesy of commenter @Karen (anybody know how I can link to her commenter profile?), here's a very interesting little snippet (possibly from LWT's "Weekend World," 06 April 1973), where John Lennon says a few words on Allen Klein, his soon-to-be ex-manager. As stated many times, John wasn't always so quick to admit when he'd made an error in judgment; he'd enter into relationships proclaiming their perfection—and, naturally, his brilliance for arranging them—and if they'd go south, he'd back out quietly. In other words, the guy was a human being. What's particularly interesting to me is how John seems to be very aware [...]

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Just how blind was John Lennon without his glasses?

By Michael Gerber|2019-05-22T23:48:25-07:00August 6, 2013|1963, John Lennon|

Lennon peers down uncertainly at a 45. So we've all heard how John Lennon without his glasses moved around in the land of Monet—how his famous tough-looking stage persona was actually him peering nearsightedly into the crowd, hoping he'd see the incoming bottle or fist just in time to avoid it—but this photograph made me smile. Beatle John blinks down at that thing like he's 85. "Is this bloody 'Watch Your Step'?" A slight disability like that (perhaps the disability is being too vain to wear your specs!) often pushes people into their imagination. From there, it's a short step [...]

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Plea to Paul: Let it be when it comes to claiming credit

By Nancy Carr|2013-08-03T03:02:15-07:00July 29, 2013|1967, John Lennon, Paul McCartney|

Last Thursday Rolling Stone online published an interview with Paul McCartney about his current tour. It sounds like a stellar show—I’m sorry I haven’t been able to see it this year—but I groaned when I got to the part of the interview in which McCartney says, of adding “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!” to the setlist, that he was “happy to kind of reclaim it as partially mine.” I just want to say to him: please don’t keep pouring kerosene on those embers. Please step back and let that frustration go, because you’re fueling the dynamic that seems to keep you feeling insecure. Here’s [...]

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Psychedelia in the UK: "A Technicolor Dream"

By Michael Gerber|2013-08-12T18:01:53-07:00July 23, 2013|1965, 1966, 1967, Documentaries, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Sgt. Pepper|

Inside the "Ally Pally," for The 14-Hour Technicolor Dream, 1967 Any of you that have been interested by my burblings on "psychedelia"—by which I mean the whole gestation, birth and decay of the flower-power movement—will be interested in a video I streamed from Netflix last night: "A Technicolor Dream." It documents the UK scene: the Albert Hall poetry reading in 1965; the Indica bookstore; IT; The London Free School; UFO; and finally the Fourteen Hour Technicolor Dream on April 30, 1967. Lots of Beatles-related stuff in here, from McCartney's right-hand Miles, to footage of a very stoned John Lennon. Here's [...]

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