#john things

[eppysboys]

Most sessions ended in the middle of the night. I would walk a few blocks to the subway. John, who lived in Manhattan, generally walked home. Since his destination and mine were in the same direction, we would walk together. The conversations were light but interesting. I learned a lot about this man during those middle-of-the-night walks. He was nothing like the image I had in my mind. He was pretty shy, sensitive, and friendly to everyone. He would say hello to the truck drivers, pedestrians and homeless people. On many occasions he would stand there or kneel down and chat with total strangers in a most casual way. I couldn't help thinking how compassionate but reckless this was. He seemed oblivious to the dangers of this unprotected style. I remember thinking, is this the way Frank Sinatra or any of the other superstars do it? Actually, I already knew the answer to that question since friends of mine toured with Ol' Blue Eyes. Frank and most celebrities had bodyguards, and with good reason. Then again Frank grew up in Hoboken and was pretty 'street smart.' If only John Lennon had a little of that New York paranoia, things could have been so different. Maybe it was because I was born and raised in New York City, but I really knew something bad would happen to John Lennon if he didn't change his lifestyle. Apparently he didn't want to, or maybe couldn't. Anyway, I say with great sorrow that I was right. Damn it.

Ron Aprea on his time with John Lennon at Record Plant, NYC 1974

[unimportant-ramblings]

My brother tried out Contrapoints and he started with the Jordan Peterson video and I so wish I was in the room for that

[agirlneedsgoals]

She swears he doesn’t call her much, but I have personally witnessed him trying to call her 4 times this week alone. >_< I’m not liking this. GO AWAY. WHY ARE YOU STILL HERE?

[eppysboys]

Hi. Just curious what some examples of John thinking like a girl in his lyrics would be? I don't think I completely get what that means. Does it just mean being vulnerable? Or something more specific?

Hi anon!

This is a great starting point to understanding! Generally speaking, there’s a contrast between what girl groups and female artists (specifically what was topping the charts) and what the men and male groups were singing and how they presented themselves. Also worth noting how John explains songs that were more in line with what was typically a ‘macho masculine’ line of thinking - he attributes those qualities (possessiveness, overconfidence, jealousy, entitlement) to his insecurity. It’s interesting how during the era where he’s writing songs ‘about his own emotions’, they are not only vulnerable and open, but desiring commitment and acceptance from the other person. 

It’s fine if you don’t see it! It’s just interesting to think about!

Some great reading on the topic:

How Pop Music Broke The Gender Binary by Sasha Geffen (article)

The Beatles and Their Cultural Impact on Gender by Karen Hooper (article)

Men, Masculinity and The Beatles by Dr Martin King (book)

The Beatles, Help! and the Creation of the Modern British Man by Mesha Ketchell (article)

She Said, She Said - The influence of feminine 'voices' on John Lennon's music Ed. Kai Arne Hansen, Eirik Askerøi, Freya Jarman (article)

And, just for fun, a behind the scenes look at a play written in the nineties called ‘Why is John Lennon Wearing a Skirt?’ that caught the attention of LGBTQ folks!

[eppysboys]

In 1967, while doing the book, I met Pete [Shotton], got his memories, and was there when John arranged for him to have £20,000 for the purchase of a shop. Pete seemed an affable, amusing bloke, but I didn't see him making a success of a shop, or anything really. I said to John it was a waste of money, he'd never get it back. John said he didn't care, that Pete would have done the same for him if the roles had been reversed and Pete had turned out the wealthy one ... To my amazement, Pete had become a multi-millionaire. He'd made a success of that first shop, a little supermarket, and paid John back his money. Later he had gone on to open a chain of steak restaurants, Fatty Arbuckle, which he had recently sold for a large sum.

Hunter Davies, The Beatles: The Only Ever Authorised Biography (appendeix a memento mori: 2009)

[eppysboys]

Encouraged by Stuart Sutcliffe, who was taking the same course but one year ahead, John pursued his NDD in the Department of Painting ... and with Stuart's help - and freed from the intricate precision of Lettering - John suddenly threw himself into his work, using what Cyn would describe as 'an orgy of oil paint, sand, sawdust, in fact anything he could lay his hands on to create paintings that were truly individual'. If John belonged anywhere at art school, it was here in the Department of Painting, but this doesn't mean he agreed with his fellow students' thinking - quite the reverse; he rebelled against them all, and it brought him to a crucial junction. 'The thing to do then was to paint and destroy [the paintings] or just keep them in your own room. It's hypocrisy. So I made the decision that what I did I wanted everybody to see, that I wasn't going after the asceticism of the monastery or the lone artist who supposedly doesn't care what people think about his work. I care a lot whether people hate it or love it because it's a part of me.'

The Beatles: Tune In, Mark Lewisohn

[eppysboys]

Had a nice afternoon hacking into magazines with ancient scissors while watching quiz shows with my grandmother. Obviously I’m far from finished but it was nice to put these initial pieces together to get going. My monkey brain likes patterns and connections (and pictures of the beatles)