Glass Onion: On John Lennon – Détails, épisodes et analyse

And so the next century of Glass Onion begins. We’ve got another fine 2-parter for you, with Antony joined by Dave Thurmaier, the co-host of the ‘I’ve Got A Beatles Podcast’ and former guest of the show way back in 2019 and 2020.

The Toronto Rock and Roll Revival concert of September 1969 yielded a live album for John & Yoko plus D.A. Pennebaker’s film ‘Sweet Toronto’ (which will be reviewed in the next episode) and most recently a fantastic 2022 documentary by Ron Chapman.

This latter doc is the focus of part 1 of our talk, and before that Antony and Dave discuss Beatle releases of the past year such as the ‘Now And Then’ song and video and the new Mind Games box set.

Enjoy!!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at

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OR

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Facebook page

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Twitter handle 

https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life

coaching) 

https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) 

https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com

Dave’s podcast

https://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-i5y5r-ef07d3

episode links

Revival ’69 trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twSK2dycpB0

The Plastic Ono Band set (to be fully reviewed in the next episode)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiSf0gY_X6k

The Doors play ‘The End’ in Toronto (video from Isle of Wight 1970)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0ewoypJQUI

Bo Diddley and his riff at Toronto

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X50nxR2Xz10

Alice Cooper and the feral chicken

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eq9bEzADxyk

John, Yoko & Zappa play ‘Baby Please Don’t Go’ (1971)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_sQLIUi0mQ

John Lennon 1976 interview (1980 schtick in place)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4tAmScwAQ4

Mike Tree on ‘Something About The Beatles’ podcast

https://somethingaboutthebeatles.com/2024/03/10/277-mike-tree-in-nutopia-with-michael-meideros/

Over 4 years on from our original episode about ‘Revolution 9’ (episode 25, in the show notes), we return to the topic with an audio version (including multiple sound clips) of a discussion that originally went out on video on Matt Williamson’s excellent you tube channel ‘Pop Goes The 60s’ back in March.

We discuss our origin stories with the track, it’s conception and recording, some of the ‘musique concrete’ works that influenced it, the other Beatles’ reaction to it and a few other things.

This is preceded by Antony’s thoughts on the new version of the ‘Let It Be’ film and some discussion/defence of Albert Goldman from a Mojo magazine special about John Lennon.

There are multiple links below to some interesting work, including quite a few avant-garde pieces that may not seem accessible but do have some rewards to be found if the mood is right, rather like ‘Revolution 9’ itself.

Enjoy!!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

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Twitter handle 

https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

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coaching) 

https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) 

https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com

The ‘Pop Goes The 60s’ you tube channel and the video version of this discussion

https://www.youtube.com/@popgoesthe60s52

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WIuYjjARrw&t=1s

episode links

The original Glass Onion episode on Revolution 9

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-25-revolution-9-john-lennon-drugs-vietnam-and-everyday-life

Revolution 9 songfacts

https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/revolution-9/

Revolution 9 isolated tracks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqQ6lStuJwA

Revolution1 take 18 (the origin of Rev 9)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3glcY2LQIk

‘Avant-Garde’ and ‘Musique Concrete’

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avant-garde

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musique_concr%C3%A8te

Giles Martin mixes critiqued

https://somethingaboutthebeatles.com/2024/06/05/283-giles-on-trial-the-reissues-critiqued-with-john-leckie-and-jerry-hammack/

Liverpool vs Albert Goldman (1988)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmQHhXRS7uU

One Hour with Albert Goldman

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dI8pFvAiak

John Cage’s Rozart Mix

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICxG_o50y2E

Gesang Der Junglinge

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpSO3UHKy_g

The Lovin’ Spoonful’s ‘War Games’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE86UINrJS4

Luis Bunuel’s ‘Un Chien Andalou’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbBfHy2qNeA

Dream Scene from the ‘Wonderwall’ film (1968)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=779ZlgO9low

2001: A Space Odyssey Stargate sequence

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou6JNQwPWE0&t=57s

Salvador Dali dream sequence from Hitchcock’s ‘Spellbound’ (1945)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKDmLbMrAjc

Ken McNab and I complete our discussion about his new book 'Shake It Up Baby!: The Rise of Beatlemania And The Mayhem of 1963' and the general atmosphere and events of that breathless year. This time round, we cover the second half of the year as our four intrepid musical explorers continue their furious work rate and have their first proper brushes with the British establishment.

They also record and release their second album and yet more seminal singles, and slowly set their sights on the ‘land of milk and honey’ across the Atlantic while conquering their homeland completely and finding time to record the first of their special Christmas messages for their growing number of fan club members…

Links to Ken’s work can be found below

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at

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OR

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Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life

coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) 

https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

links to Ken’s 1963 book and his other work

https://books.telegraph.co.uk/Product/Ken-McNab/Shake-It-Up-Baby--The-Rise-of-Beatlemania-and-the-Mayhem-of-1963/28593694

https://www.waterstones.com/author/ken-mcnab/1270697

Ken’s previous appearances on Glass Onion

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-17-and-in-the-end-with-ken-mcnab-part-1-of-2

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-18-and-in-the-end-with-ken-mcnab-part-2-of-2

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-54-john-lennon-albums-ranked-with-kit-otoole-ken-mcnab-part-1-of-2

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-55-john-lennon-albums-ranked-with-kit-otoole-ken-mcnab-part-2-of-2

episode links

Beatles 1963 timeline

https://dmbeatles.com/history.php?year=1963

The Beatles at the London Palladium (October 1963)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eBdUjrkCZ4

The Fabs rock out on Swedish TV!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYpVNpXCAls

The Beatles’ ‘rattle yer jewellery’ Royal Variety Show performance (colourised and sound-enhanced)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRr5uCSBvhw

The Beatles Come To Town (Manchester 1963)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-_hRHRtN8Q

The Beatles Xmas Record 1963

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzm8o3ytoRk

Beatles Studio Outtakes (funny!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZupFJVh2dS0

Following the shows on 1962, we seamlessly move to 1963 with the welcome return of Ken McNab to talk about his new book 'Shake It Up Baby!: The Rise of Beatlemania And The Mayhem of 1963'. After Ken gives some thoughts on Peter Jackson’s ‘Get Back’ (his previous appearances on Glass Onion were prior to its release), we cover the events of the first half of the year and the slow creep of Beatlemania.

The Beatles move from also-rans to bill-toppers while covering an incredible amount of ground criss-crossing the country on British tours. They also record and release their first album and a couple of seminal early singles, John Lennon becomes a father and John and Brian Epstein go on holiday…

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

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Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life

coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) 

https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

links to Ken’s 1963 book and his other work

https://books.telegraph.co.uk/Product/Ken-McNab/Shake-It-Up-Baby--The-Rise-of-Beatlemania-and-the-Mayhem-of-1963/28593694

https://www.waterstones.com/author/ken-mcnab/1270697

Ken’s previous appearances on Glass Onion

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-17-and-in-the-end-with-ken-mcnab-part-1-of-2

https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-18-and-in-the-end-with-ken-mcnab-part-2-of-2

episode links

Beatles 1963 timeline

https://dmbeatles.com/history.php?year=1963

The Beatles at Stowe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIrVGg68X2Y

Please Please Me album remastered

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF8degF-CITi6MhbrOOuk10yLb6JZLiSY

Helen Shapiro on a programme about child stars

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SObQe7eqN-U

We complete our deep dive into 1962 in the outer world and in the Beatles family psychodrama, picking up from late July with Beatles events including a historic change of drummer, John Lennon’s marriage, the group’s first radio interview, their more than troublesome experience recording the simplest song in the world (Love Me Do), gigs with one of their biggest musical heroes Little Richard, and their final rather obligatory two trips back to Hamburg, the second of which yielded the infamous Star Club tapes

Ghosty and I’s casual chemistry (see part 1) yields tangents in some of the right places, and there are the usual array of diverse audio clips, the vast majority of which are relevant to the conversation…

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at

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OR

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Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life

coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) 

https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

Ghosty's podcast and you tube channel

https://wesayyeah.podbean.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@GhostyTMRS/videos

episode links

The Beatles’ first radio interview (October 1962)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJeaoHe3Bus

The Beatles at the Star Club (fan clean-up in stereo)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6PdWt4I7Ok&t=30s

The story of the Hamburg tapes (BBC 1973)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_u1HvaJW2rk&t=368s

The Backbeat Band (Thurston Moore, Mike Mills, Dave Grohl)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4J6T3PFuRHk

Merseybeat Reunion in Liverpool (1971)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPzzi5ZQJMA

Rare interviews with Beatles associates

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bR3A9bjqiI&t=307s

‘Love And Let Die’ review (Beatles and Bond book)

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/sep/05/love-and-let-die-by-john-higgs-review-the-beatles-james-bond

In this episode, Antony and Ghosty start discussing the Beatles/Lennon events of 1962, covering January to June. Particular focus is put on the Pete Best issue and the death of Stuart Sutcliffe, not to mention John Lennon’s contentious and highly unique reaction to that death.

Every year in the Beatles story from around 1960 was packed with activity and full of psychodrama, and 1962 is no exception. As ever, there are interesting audio clips to complement the conversation, and our two intrepid Beatle commentators go on tangents in most of the right places…

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at

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Facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod

Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) 

https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

Ghosty's you tube channel

https://www.youtube.com/@GhostyTMRS/videos

episode links

Stuart Sutcliffe: The Lost Beatle (documentary)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1Yrwyfk2NQ

Eric Taros & Richard Buskin deep dive on Lennon’s first ‘Lost Weekend’ post-Stu Sutcliffe’s death

https://player.fm/series/the-beatles-naked/episode-19-hamburg-spring-62-lennons-original-lost-weekend

‘Guess the Beatles song’ challenges from the David Bennett Piano channel (search the channel for more)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJOzoPNkP_A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OJG-EVqs3k

Aunt Mimi interview from 1981

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRqU2teFtw8

Aunt Mimi vs George Harrison

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENf_GINUQq0

Our latest Lennon odyssey starts with a review of the events of 1962, a tangential conversation in which Antony and guest David ‘Ghosty’ Wills freewheel into all kinds of other territory before setting the listeners up with some pre-1962 context on the Beatles’ progress on their own journey to musical and cultural world domination.

1962 was marked by a massive historical event, the Cuban Missile Crisis, which happened in the same year as the first appearances in the world of the Beatles’ music and a certain famous undercover spy known to absolutely everyone he meets, and as we often do in this series, we talk about the relative importance of these events in the grand sweep of history

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno

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Facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod

Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

Ghosty's you tube channel

https://www.youtube.com/@GhostyTMRS/videos

episode links

Vasily saves the world!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJSrp_P6Bjo

Operation Northwoods (please read)

https://allthatsinteresting.com/operation-northwoods

1962 in all its glory

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1962

Fred Seaman vs Elliot Mintz (and Geraldo)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6vsM_s8T0U

Other interviews with Lennon insiders

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OZnsKtLKiQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwaQUwIsSeI

Lenny Bruce at Berkeley

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Klrml3tI29E

Teach Yourself Paul McCartney (Stevie Riks)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y5n1iuH2H4

We complete our latest Lennon journey with the conclusion of my analysis of some of the more telling quotes from the series of interviews conducted in September 1980 for Playboy magazine by John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

This episode contains a lot of clips from the original audio of the interviews and focuses mainly on John's comments about who wrote what in the Lennon-McCartney catalogue, including John#s analysis of the deeper meanings behind the song 'Strawberry Fields Forever'.

I have also included (by kind permission) an extended segment from the excellent 'Yesterday and Today' podcast that deals with a certain seafaring adventure that John undertook in June 1980 and which would have a profound effect on him.

Finally, there's a little bit of music from your humble host...

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno

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Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

episode links

The full available audio from the interviews

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRDfBGagFkU

Rubber Soul film (about the 1970 and 1980 John Lennon interviews)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB8Z1LRBmTA

The Hours and Times (recommended film)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104448/

The 'Yesterday and Today' podcast

https://yesterdayandtodaypodcast.wordpress.com/

'Between The Lines' (the John Lennon album that never was)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WChcRIP_qWw

David Whelan's interview with Howard Hughes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZKgtLQQD1g

'Jealous Guy' documentary (Lennon and Chapman)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akCP_PPSgQg

This episode starts with a ‘short intro’ of around 45 minutes, with yet more Coleman vs Goldman material, before continuing our in-depth look at John Lennon’s series of interviews for Playboy magazine in September 1980, which also included Yoko Ono.

The interviews offer a fascinating and multi-layered study of a highly eccentric artist and also form an integral part of the official narrative of John and Yoko’s relationship in 1980 before John’s sudden and brutal demise.

There are numerous audio clips to complement the conversation, including some of John from the interviews themselves. You will also hear from Arthur and Vivien Janov talking about Primal Therapy, and comedy genius Bill Hicks discussing drugs.

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno

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Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com 

episode links

The Playboy Interviews (more than 3 hours of audio clips)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRDfBGagFkU

trailer for May Pang’s new documentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6v07NzukoZU

Jon Stewart’s highly-recommended book ‘Dylan, Lennon, Marx & God’

https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/dylan-lennon-marx-and-god/F92AB6BF8A2314460A5FEDFA7B2F62EB

John and the Beatles rip through ‘Too Much Monkey Business’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9KNdAUhy_g

John Lennon at ‘The 14-Hour Technicolour Dream’ (1967)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Z0Ph7ldFYg

Bill Hicks at his brilliant best!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Emlq_4imaik

John Lennon’s series of interviews for Playboy magazine in September 1980, which also included Yoko Ono, are not only a fascinating and multi-layered study of a highly eccentric artist but also form an integral part of the official narrative of John and Yoko’s relationship in 1980 before his death and of the genesis of the songs for their joint album ‘Double Fantasy’.

This episode is the first of a 3-parter that picks out some interesting extracts from the book ‘All We Are Saying’, based on the transcripts of the interviews.

A lot of the narrative promoted by John & Yoko in these interviews has been reasonably debunked, including the obvious and provable point that John's songs for 'Double Fantasy' were worked on for years rather than being the product of pure inspiration. The overall contention over what the truth is has helped form the Coleman-Goldman continuum that has been a almost frequent topic of study on this podcast

Before the main topic, there is also a recommendation and critique of Madeline Bocaro’s epic new 500-page book on Yoko Ono, whose narrative fits neatly with the interviews being studied in this episode.

There are numerous audio clips to complement the conversation, including some of John from the interviews themselves.

Enjoy!

Feedback to glassonionpod@yahoo.com

Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno

OR

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Facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod

Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon

Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com

Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com

Antony on Luke’s English Podcast talking about meditation

https://teacherluke.co.uk/2022/03/16/

episode links

The Playboy Interviews (more than 3 hours of audio clips)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRDfBGagFkU

link to Madeline Bocaro’s new book on Yoko Ono

https://madelinex.com/2021/12/19/my-new-book/

Madeline and Dan Richter on the ‘Things We Said Today’ podcast

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=177VFkC1oC4

‘John Lennon’s Original Lost Weekend’ (episode of ‘The Beatles Naked’)

https://player.fm/series/the-beatles-naked/episode-19-hamburg-spring-62-lennons-original-lost-weekend

Double Fantasy Revisited (‘Something About The Beatles’ podcast)

https://somethingaboutthebeatles.com/243-double-fantasy-revisited-part-one/

https://somethingaboutthebeatles.com/244-double-fantasy-revisited-part-two/

Kirby Ferguson’s ‘Everything Is A Remix’ website, documentary and TED talk

https://www.everythingisaremix.info/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJPERZDfyWc

https://www.ted.com/talks/kirby_ferguson_embrace_the_remix

Huxley vs Orwell (dystopia and modern reality)

https://allthatsinteresting.com/amusing-ourselves-to-death-comic

‘Amusing Ourselves To Death’ audiobook

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pX2_8NteDrQ

‘Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah’ by Richard Bach audiobook

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI1yf916CJQ