Once I was inside [John and Yoko’s] Yamaha piano, what I found was annoyingly beyond my abilities to fix. So, I wrote down what had to be done and who to call. Okay. Back to the kitchen we went where Yoko was waiting. I said my goodbyes, which, of course, had to include the must-have autograph. John obliged, muttering, “I hope this is the last one of these things I have to do this year.” Me being the self-promoting fool that I was/am, I had to take the shot. I got out a business card, “John, I know you’ve been away from this for a while, but if you ever need the best bass player in New York, please give me a call!” While I was pitching him, I was writing down my new phone number on the back of the card, John and Yoko both start laughing! I said, “Jeez, I didn’t think it was that bad a pitch!” Yoko giggled, “That’s not why we’re laughing.” They’d watched me as I wrote down my number… John Lennon said, “That’s just what I need, another left-handed bass player!” I stammered, “Well, I’ll take that as a compliment,” and with that, made my way out of the Dakota and hailed the first cab back downtown.
C.P. Roth, Huffington Post: My visit with John Lennon at the Dakota, 1978. (December 12th, 2011)