Lennon Remembers: The Full Rolling Stone Interviews from 1970

John Lennon gave only two lengthy, in-depth interviews in his life. The first was in 1970 to Rolling Stone magazine and his final interview was given in 1980 to Playboy. Both are instructive to read, especially when you contrast their tone and content. The Lennon in this book had just left the Beatles and was trying desperately to convince the interviewer and the public that it just didn't bloody matter. Though history has shown Lennon emerged from the Beatles break-up much more undamaged emotionally than McCartney, the dissolution of his band was bound to leave some scars. John puts up a bit of a front here and I fear he doth protest too much, especially when he says he can't remember much about the Beatles and didn't think they were that great of a band to begin with.In 1970, John was in the midst of his Arthur Janov primal scream therapy and he talks about this at great length. If you're primarily interested in the Beatles, then you might wish to skip over this section. The most interesting chapters of the interview are undoubtedly his thoughts about the Beatles and his individual bandmates. Read this with caution, however. This was the same year Lennon penned the visceral anti-Paul ode, How Do You Sleep? His caustic comments about Paul would soften a trifle by 1980, as he himself admitted in the 1980 Playboy piece. There is also some intentional untruths here, such as when John says Lennon and McCartney rarely collaborated on a song post-1964. He corrects this in his '80 recollections. He tells some wonderful stories about Ringo and how he helped George with the lyrics to Taxman in 1966.I first read this book at the age of 8, when it was published. It's remained an integral part of my Lennon collection and still makes for some excellent reading. Whether you've grown up on Lennon or are new to him, this is an indispensable tool in trying to understand his mindset at the critical juncture of his life.

An in-depth interview with John Lennon, on the eve of the release of his Plastic Ono Band album. Much of the material covered is similar to that of the 1980 Playboy Interviews, but with ten years between them, these are certainly distinctly different interviews. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this book is that we get a knee-jerk reaction from Lennon to the dissolution of The Beatles, as well as his thoughts on each member and their work directly following. While some other topics (Lennon and Ono's events for peace, politics, etc.) are discussed, the majority of conversation here is centered around music, be it the Beatles, Lennon, the Stones, Dylan, or others. A great read, recommended for any Lennon fan.

A laser-sharp, fly-on-the-wall encounter with John Lennon at 30. He stops being The Beatle, The Genius, The Legend and becomes instead a guy who has seen and lived some very strange stuff. You feel for him and you see him finally as a kind of savant: He was an average guy with huge pockets of talent and pain who was body-surfing the tidal wave of his own life. BOTTOM LINE: The closest any of us will ever get to talking to the guy. You'll love it.

In the "Forward" by Yoko Ono, she says, "There was no one like him and there never will be. And I miss him." If you are like me, I'm sure you will agree that these are the truest words in the book for each of us. All profits from this book go to gun control projects. Let me describe what this book is. It contains a fully retranscribed and corrected complete text of the interview that Jann Wenner did with John Lennon and Yoko Ono in early December 1970, parts of which later appeared in Rolling Stone. Much of this material you have never read before. There are also reproductions of Lennon's handwritten notes of song lyrics from the album "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band" that are discussed in the interview. In the introduction to this new edition, Jann Wenner characterizes the material here as "a candid, often painful, running commentary on fresh and urgent matters . . . and a self-portrait . . . ." "[I]n 1970 the Beatles were the biggest phenomenon on earth . . . ." [This was] "the first time . . . any of the Beatles stepped outside of that protected beloved fairy tale and told the truth." John Lennon later said that he didn't really believe everything he divulged in this interview. But it sounds pretty real to me as I reread it now. This is a man in intense psychological pain, and who has been for some time. What, then, is revealed in the book? Aside from the usual stories about drugs and sex from touring, what struck me as most interesting was that Lennon considered what the Beatles had been a fraud artistically. "We were just a band who made it very, very big -- that's all." "But as soon as we made it, the edges were knocked off." "I'm not technically very good [on guitar]." ". . . I don't like many of the Beatles records either." "The only true songs I ever wrote were 'Help!' and 'Strawberry Fields.'" His other source of pain was the reaction that Paul McCartney and George Harrison had to Yoko Ono. "They despised her." "They insulted her and they still do." "Ringo was alright and so was Maureen [Ringo's wife then]."The commitment to peace is described often, and without the anger, pain, and regret that show up with all the other subjects. You feel like that was the only area where he could continually be himself. The interview is laced with constant references to his need "to be real." He expressed a lot of regrets about having been a Beatle. "If I could be a f . . . ing [offensive word shortened] fisherman, I would!" "One has to completely humiliate oneself to be what the Beatles were, and that's what I resent." The interview contains many stories about how the families of local politicians and police departments would invade their privacy in offensive ways to Lennon.The interview also goes into the details of the Beatles' breakup, contradicting the public story originally put out by Paul McCartney. Music fans will enjoy his candid comments about the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and other well-known recording artists

I guess I really shouldn't be amazed with all the current new releases about John's life. With the 20th anniversary of Lennon's untimely death, I just want some truth. I have read a couple of these books as told by others. I can't help taking them with a grain. Books written around "stolen journals" and hibernated diaries. How much is true, if any? Who really knows, but this book however does not need such assistance.This is John himself, in his own words. From page one I had the feeling of being right there, engrossed in the conversation, so interested in what one of the greatest icons of our era had to say at 30 years old. I write this review so soon because I have read this book in 3 hours straight. Lots of new info showing the humor and brillance, and sometimes ironic arrogance. I am not going to say or reference anything about the book other than I have spent over 100.00 in the past month reading each book as they came out. This was the best money spent. My most enjoyable and entralling of the bunch. Unsatisfying only because I wanted this book to keep going and going!