Hi just a note to let you guys know this is a new side blog of mine about The Beatles (and Beatles adjacent stuff). I may follow you from a blog called @amerkindream which isn't terribly active now, but I'd reblog here. Meandering overlong intro message under the cut if you are so inclined------>
TL;DR Version- This is a Beatles fan blog, but she's a little different from the other girls. I will be posting Beatles conspiracy/parapolitical material sometimes, but I'm not going to be distasteful about it, or throw around any wild baseless theories, or peddle misinformation like the stuff you might see on Beatlestok.
I've been on Tumblr since 2012ish (Geriatric Tumblrina) with long swathes of inactivity. I needed an outlet after recently getting real heavy into 60s psychedelic music and particularly The Beatles and The Beach Boys. Fascinated by the Music and the Lore. The Lore is deep and vast, and it has everything.
My parents grew up during the 70s and their parents were too square to like the Beatles, so I didn't get the generational Beatle fan thing most people get. Instead, I became a fan later in life, which I find a little embarrassing, and through an unusual route, too. Early this year I read a book called Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon by David McGowan. It's about the Laurel Canyon music scene in the 60s. For those that don't know, the Manson Family and Wonderland murders happened there, a lot of the famous musicians who lived there had ties to US military/intelligence, and that's just scratching the surface. Naturally I started listening to the music of that era, then The Beach Boys, then The Beatles. So I'm a noob but I got spunk. I had actually been avoiding The Beatles for most of my life, probably because on a subconscious level, I knew they would destroy me.
I've been looking into John's assassination and the attempted murder of George, too, as it overlaps with my interest in parapolitics (deep politics, hidden agendas, CIA activity at home and abroad, "conspiracy" if you must!). The book I mentioned falls under the parapolitical umbrella.
Some may call me a conspiracy theorist and that only hurts my feelings a little bit. Rest assured that these are subjects that I have dedicated a lot of time and research to, and I'm very skeptical by nature. If you're into anything conspiracy-related you have to be very discerning to separate the wheat from the chaff and there are certain things that will always be one big question mark. There is a lot of nonsense out there, and that is mostly by design in order to "muddy the waters". If there's no evidence and no clear patterns or links then I tend to disregard it. I don't take "Paul is Dead" seriously (I see how it's entertaining and kind of has ARG vibes), nor do I believe that The Beatles were fabricated by The Tavistock Institute. This goes for general Beatles lore too, as I think there have been several individuals who have written sensationalist stories about The Beatles for one reason or another. John in particular has had a lot of junky tabloid-esque crap written about him.
Anyway, I have some things I want to discuss here, but I'm easing into it slowly and starting with John and Yoko's peace activism and the government surveillance/harassment they experienced. The LSD coffee-spiking incident in 1965 involving George, Pattie, John, and Cynthia also raises a big red flag to me. As far as the attempted murder of George, I'm not sure how to approach that yet. There's a lot less information out there about it, though I have noticed some similarities with other cases especially John's murder, and I have my suspicions. George was outspokenly critical of the government, though he kept a lower profile than John, but I suspect this may have unfortunately led to some trouble for him all the same. His last posthumously-released album Brainwashed (and especially the song), is very telling. I will probably start by posting information regarding the stalking, threats, and harassment he received from so-called "fans" that seemed to amp up after John's murder.
These are disturbing, controversial subjects and I want to handle them in a sensitive way (I won't say "unalive", don't worry). Hopefully I will figure out how to tackle the heavier stuff eventually. Sometimes I'm not so sure if Tumblr is the right platform for the kind of stuff I want to post about, but I guess we'll see how it goes. The blog format is ideal, the lack of interest in the darker side of The Beatles story is not. Even with the little I have posted so far, it feels like I'm killing the vibe or something because those posts get barely any notes compared to my fluffier content. I'm not giving up just yet though. Fwiw I won't post John's morgue photo or anything like that, I find it disgusting that someone took a photo of him in that state.
I will tag with possible triggers where necessary ("tw violence" "tw death" etc). All of John's assassination-related posts will be tagged "John Lennon's assassination". Posts about the surveillance and harassment he endured in the years leading up to his murder will be tagged simply: "government surveillance". George's stalking and harassment incidents will be tagged: "George Harrison's stalkers". George's stabbing will be tagged: "attempted murder of George Harrison".
I'm also fascinated by more lighthearted (yet still deeply, deeply tragic) subject matter like McLennon. McLennon theorists also catch shit in the fandom for being conspiracy theorists of a sort, so I feel like it's not so terribly different from the parapolitical interest I have. Something was very obviously going on, but was covered up by the mainstream narrative, and it's a rabbit hole that never ends. McLennon truthers like to find the patterns, gather evidence and info in search of the truth... see what I mean? I figure if you're open to McLennon, you may also be open to other deep and intentionally obscured Beatles lore, would you not?
I like fan art. Wish I had more time, otherwise I would draw Beatles fan art too. I got ideas if anyone wants 'em! Beatles fashion is something I'm a little obsessed with too, I love the clothes that they wore. But anyway, what I'm trying to say is you can expect to see general Beatles fandom stuff here, of course. It's mostly that. This blog is primarily an outlet for my hyper-fixation and urge to infodump about the Beatles, their music, their whole story and general deal. So I don't drive my family members crazy with my nonsense.
John Lennon is obviously my favorite, if you haven't figured it out. We are both controversial nearsighted Libras with abandonment issues, so I feel like I "get" him. I kind of became a bit of a Paul Girl when I started listening to all the solo stuff, though. I love them all but in different ways. It's like how a mother feels about her beloved ragamuffin children, I'm sure a lot of you feel similarly and parasocially lol. I am generally pro-Yoko Ono. Some people may not agree, idc, I think she is a fascinating person and I enjoy her art and music. I grew up listening to "challenging" music, so I don't find her weird vocalizations to be so difficult to listen to.
Overall, I try to keep a fair view of all the players in the Beatles story. A perfectly objective view is not really possible because everyone has their favorite people and biases etc but I try to be aware of my own judgemental tendencies. Everyone in the Beatles story is a human being, not a static 2D character in a badly written story.
Oh and I just turned 40, she/her/they whatever is fine I'm not picky, I just work here. Sorry this is soooo effing long!! I tend to ramble, but I felt the need to explain where I was coming from with some of my posts. Feel free to send me asks about the subjects I've mentioned, or anything really. Thanks for reading! 💕👍
Recommended reading for those interested. I will probably be referencing these books frequently. (If you have any books to recommend, please let me know!)
Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon by David McGowan - (explained above, see fourth paragraph)
Programmed to Kill by David McGowan - This book is a particularly rough read, very dark subject matter, but important. Explores the possibility that serial killers and 'lone nut' assassins were intentionally groomed and mind-controlled to carry out their heinous crimes. One of the goals of this program was to social-engineer fear, panic, and mistrust within the population. See also: the prevalence of school shooters in recent years.
The Murder of John Lennon by Fenton Bresler - The best book I've read on the subject. Bresler did boots-on-the-ground investigating, interviewed people who were involved, and FOIA'd for John's FBI and CIA files within the decade following John's murder.
Mind Games by David Whelan - Currently reading. Written recently, expands on Bresler's findings, raises more questions and points, such as all the contradictions, conflicting reports, and nonsensical or suspicious bits of the actual shooting event, and looks deeper into Chapman's background.
Drugs As Weapons Against Us: The CIA's Murderous Targeting of SDS, Panthers, Hendrix, Lennon, Cobain, Tupac, and Other Activists by John L. Potash - This book covers the government surveillance and assassination of John Lennon as well as the LSD coffee-spiking dentist incident. John's story is not entirely uncommon. There are other people in the music industry who were also subjected to surveillance and were murdered, or died suspiciously, especially if they were involved in activism or subversion. Left-wing activists and groups like the Black Panthers and The Weathermen/The Weather Underground also suffered government surveillance, sabotage, and murder. There is a companion documentary of the same title for free on YouTube:
