Latest Posts by propheticstar - Page 4

I've been wondering for quite a long time now, what even was John's sexuality? I do think he was straight but somewhere inside me thinks he may have had small same sex attractions but I haven't personally found much information/proof to support that. + It was never confirmed by John himself which makes it harder for more proof. (Paul does make it seem like he was gay on many occasions but I don't know how much I trust it.) What do you think? It just really interests me. :-)

Personally, I think that John was bisexual with a preference for men, as is Paul. There are so many reasons why I think this so I’ll just make a list:

*When John was a teen, he had dreams of becoming a sailor, and it’s well-known that the navy has a very strong gay subculture attached to it. Many men would choose to go to sea for unlimited sex with other men, and Philip Norman referred to the navy as “a homosexual mafia.” (x)

*As a teen, he would invent wanking games with other boys (x)

*As a teen, he admired the gay poet Oscar Wilde. “I was torn between being Marlon Brando and being the sensitive poet - the Oscar Wilde part of me with the velvet, feminine side. I was always torn between the two, mainly opting for the macho side, because if you showed the other side, you were dead.” (x)

*(This quote is referring to when the Beatles went to Hamburg) “Though raised amid the same homophobia as his companions, John seemed totally unshocked by St. Pauli’s abundant drag scene; indeed, he often seemed actively to seek it out. “There was one particular club he used to like,” Tony Sheridan remembers, “full of these big guys with hairy hands, deep voices- and breasts. But they used to make an effort to talk English. There was something about the place that seemed to make John feel at home.”” (x) And here’s another story about him going to a transvestite bar called Monica’s (x)

*He has admitted to having a threesome with a man and a woman (x)

*The source is questionable, but Pauline Sutcliffe claims that John used to go to gay parties with Brian Epstein and other men, and that there was a lot of gossip around Liverpool about John not being straight (x)

*Pete Townshend says that among mutual friends, John openly talked about experimenting with men (x)

*He went to at least one gay bar with Paul in 1968 (x)

*He contributed a poem to the Gay Liberation Book in the early 70s, saying “Why make it sad to be gay/ Doing your thing is O.K./ Our bodies our own/ So leave us alone/ Go play with yourself—today.” (x)

*“When they got onto the theme of love, Andrews suggested that Lennon was troubled by his homosexuality. “‘Why do you dress Yoko as a boy?’ he challenged. John was enraged at the suggestion, rejecting it violently” (x)

*He said he was attracted to Yoko because she “looks like a bloke in drag” (x)

*Once when he was drunk, he grabbed one of the studio musicians and kissed him, then pushed him off and called him a “faggot” (x)

*He went around to gay clubs during his separation from Yoko (x)

*Many of his writings from his book Skywriting by Word of Mouth are blatantly homoerotic (x) (x)

John + Paul in Adelaide, being possibly the most in sync I’ve ever seen them

This interview was to promote Paul’s book “Many Years From Now”. Just before this they were talking about The Beatles break up and the band’s money issues and Allan Klein. At this point in the interview Paul is asked if his relationship with John was always “spiky”. He says that it wasn’t that they loved each other and he still does. 

Parkinson: (..) Was it always a spiky relationship? I mean you say you loved him and that love comes through in the book, did he love you?

Paul: Yeah, I think he did actually. (Joking around) We’ll check, excuse me for a moment… John, come on baby, did ya… ? Yes!. No, I think he did, yeah. It wasn’t actually a spiky relationship at all. It was very warm, very close and very loving, I think, of all The Beatles. We used to say, I think we were amongst the first men to come out openly, ‘cause remember you know, it was quite strange in those days and it was a long time ago. Homosexuality was still sort of largely illegal. We used to say I love him on interviews and interviewers would get slightly taken aback you know, a man saying he loves him. But I think, quite generally, I think we really did and I still do.. Um.. but the business thing came right in the middle of it and the lawyers came along with the business thing. And I talked to John many years later because it’s great saving grace that we did put our relationship back together. Thank God for that because I don’t know what I’d do now with him gone if we hadn’t. I think I would be sort of wracked with all sorts of guilt. But, we did and chatting to him one of the first things he said to me when we met after the break up and things calmed down, he said ‘Do they try to put you against me like they put me against you? Do they do that?’ and I said my God if they do. And he said it’s good, good to know because they’re always trying to pin me against you..

Is it true that after recording "real love" Paul took jeff lynne in his arms and said "oh john, give us a kiss"?

It didn’t happen during “Real Love” recording, but during  ‘Free as a bird’ recording. Jeff Lynne said it in 2007, in an interview for Q Magazine.

At the end, after he heard ‘Free As A Bird’, Paul gave me this great big hug and said, ‘Oh, John, give me a kiss.“

“there’s a rabbit hanging over me HI BUNNY!”

August, 1980: John talks to Playboy writer David Sheff about ‘If I Fell’.

JOHN: That’s my first attempt at a – at a ballad. Proper. That was the precursor to ‘In My Life’. It’s the same chord sequence as ‘In My Life’, but – just about ‘round D, and B minor, and E minor, those kind of – things. And uh, it’s… semi-autobiographical, but not that conscious, you know. It’s really about – it’s not about Cyn, my first wife. If I fell in love with you, would you promise to be true… I used to like intros like they had on forties songs, you know, that have a long intro, and then the song would start. So that’s all mine. The harmony’s Paul’s. […] So that shows that I wrote sentimental love ballads – silly love songs, as you call them – way back when.

Hey can you tell me more about I Don't Know (Johnny, Johnny)? because there is very very little info about it online and the only source of the song i can listen to was a youtube video. Considering the excessive research of everything beatles by a fuckton of people, I'm surprised we don't know much about this. (because really, it it is what people say it is, it burned down all the mclennon doubts i had)

You’re right. This song was written around 1959/1960. The only audio we have, this one,  is the recording of a rehearsal made in 1960 at Paul’s house. 

Even if the recording is damaged and the sound is shitty the lyrics are quite easy to understand:

P- Well oh Johnny, oh Johnny, oh god Johnny boy

How are we gonna tell him

Why don’t we go somewhere where he don’t own me

Where can i go?

Oh Johnny boy you wore me out.

Oh Johnny, oh Johnny, oh Johnny boy

Oh Johnny, you got me, you be my boy

Well, a long time ago, I called you Johnny boy.

J- Hey little boy, I’m packing my shoes, and I’m leaving you.

I told my Mama I’m going to see my sister

She don’t see me, I don’t know what I’m going to do.

P- A long time ago I called you Johnny boy.

I don’t know what to tell the fellas.

Please, oh please, Johnny.

J- Well I’ll tell the fellas that I do love you.

P- I don’t know what I’m gonna do.

I don’t know what I’m gonna do when I tell my father

You love me Johnny, I love you Johnny

I’m not gonna let you go.

P- I don’t know what I’m gonna do when I tell my father

You wore me down, you wore me down.

You’re gonna leave, you’re gonna leave me

Please, oh, I’m not gonna let you go

J- Take the next bus out of town

Then you won’t let your father down.

I don’t know what good I am since I see life in front of us.

P- Well get out of town,

don’t hold me down.

I don’t care.

J- Get out of town,

I don’t know (3x)

I want to leave right now

To get out of town.

P- You know I want to do it all.

I want to go far away, far away,

I want to go far away.

J- No, no, no, no

P- Yeah, I’m going far away.

Yeah, we’re going far away.

We’re gonna leave.

J- We’re going away,

Yeah, we’re going away,

Gonna leave town right now.

This is one of the very first mclennon song, it’s very clear that they sing their desire to escape together: Paul is afraid of what his father might think of it cause he loves John:

 “ I don’t know what I’m gonna do when I tell my father” 

and at 2:39 John replies:

‘And i love you Paul’. 

Like, it’s so clear you don’t even need to investigate much about it, no metaphors, no double-meanings, it’s all SO SIMPLE AND EVIDENT, they’ re singing I LOVE YOU  to each other, that’s it! And the song ends with both John and Paul singing that the only solution is to leave and go away from the town.

This song was never put in any Anthology, even if there’s another song of the same year, You’ll be mine, that has the same shitty audio (the same recording)  but they decided to include it! “I don’t know (Johnny Johnny)” instead was never included, neither edited or cleaned, that’s why some people have doubted its veracity, because very few people have ever listened to it, and it’s considered rare. It’s such a pity they didn’t try to clean it a bit, but, i think WE ALL KNOW WHY. Can’t imagine this song listed in the Anthology, cleaned, a bit edited, and a random 40s old white man listening to it and exclaiming: “Wow! what a friendship!”

John and Paul during the recording of I’ll Follow The Sun in 1964.

J: I’m playing, baby! Don’t stop me now.

P: Oh, no…

J: I’m not looking at you, am I?

P: You WERE! I know!

J: Well… I can laugh.

P: I know I can’t stop laughing when you’ve got tears(?) in your eyes.

J: Well, I’m laughing over here.

P: I know, but I can see __(?) and everything.

Early Paul McCartney song lyric and a doodle.

Ok, we’re used to the eye f*cking on stage, but this is on a whole new level.

Wish they had kept this in the video.

“The really strange thing was that I went to work that morning somehow knowing Paul would ultimately show up — despite what had happened. Of course, from the point of view of his Liverpool upbringing, the best way to deal with something like that is to keep right on doing what you’d normally do. It helps to take your mind off it — being with friends, I suppose, even though it did occur to me that he might have just as easily rung up and cancelled the session. I remember the first thing he said to me was, “I just don’t know what to think.” He was obviously physically shaken, and even at the best of times wasn’t really too articulate when it came to expressing how he felt about things. After one of the takes Paul and I were just hanging out, leaning up against AIR [Studio]’s huge floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Oxford Circus, when I happened to notice this dark green truck going by that said LENNON FURNISHINGS or something like that. “Oh God, look at that,” I said, and he just sort of broke down, you know? “I’ll tell you one thing, man,” he said, “I’ll never fall out with anyone again in my life for that amount of time and face the possibility of them dying before I get a chance to square it with them.” After that I never consciously mentioned anything about it. If he wanted to talk about it he did, and if he didn’t, well, he didn’t. Everybody in the world was very hurt by John’s death, but especially Paul McCartney.”

— Denny Laine, interview w/ Geoffrey Giuliano, c/o Geoffrey Giuliano, Blackbird: The Life and Times of Paul McCartney. (1991)

This is a clip from the BBC interview Idris Elba did with Paul McCartney. It was produced by Mary McCartney. I just thought these were interesting visuals to put with this song.

“Originally, there was another verse where George says that John and Paul should have their heads banged together.”

— Chris Difford (Squeeze) on ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ for MOJO: The Beatles’ 101 greatest songs. (May 22nd, 2015)

The Beatles - “Day Tripper” (1965)

JOHN LENNON + PAUL MCCARTNEY 1964, Australia

Drew this from a scene in Writing Letters (On My Wall) by @glowing-gold if you want to know what happens next i guess you'll have to read it! (don't worry it's great)

“Alright, then. Your turn.” “Hmm?” “You owe me. Paint me a picture. Something to get me through the rest of my dreary day.” Paul felt his stomach swoop. “Well… I’m not cooking.” “I don’t want to hear about bloody food , Paul. What are you doing, right now? Where exactly are you sitting?” Paul felt his skin prickle with heat.  “Well...” Paul started, not sure how far to take this. “I’m sitting in the kitchen.”

ULM vol. 3 is back on YT - with some additions!

These are the additions I noticed:

John's statement about George (I think from Lennon Remembers) that he wouldn't buy his album, that ATMP means nothing to him, and that George should be grateful that he could learn from John and Paul.

The addiction of John and Linda's performance of "Love in strange" in the background when the song "Bless you" sounded with the line: "Love is strange".

Excerpt from a 1975 interview with John in which he says he wonders what Paul thought of his performance of "I Saw Her Standing There" at Madison Square Garden.

The questionnaire, in which John described Paul as extraordinary, Bowie as thin etc., was supplemented with pictures.

The ending (which kinda broke my heart).

Paul genuinely shocked after hearing George owns 12 guitars.

THE BEATLES being presented with an award from Radio Caroline Awards while on set filming for HELP!. Twickenham Film Studios, London, England. April 6th 1965.

What did Mimi think of Paul?

This is from an interview in 1970

How did you view the troubles the Beatles have been going through these last few years?

I don’t know all this business between John and Paul is about and I don’t dare ask John. I did ring Paul about it, and he told me things would straighten up. The boys have been friends so long. I remember them coming home from school together on their bikes, begging biscuits. I’m sure they’ll get back together soon. This is just a phase they’re passing through.

 What do you think changed John so much from his early days as a carefree kid?

She’s responsible for all this, Yoko. She changed him, and I’m sure she and Linda are behind the split between John and Paul.

—–

In the book “Paul McCartney: the biography” there’s a page in which Mimi talks about the first time she saw Paul:

“John was insecure, and when he saw Paul he wanted to look cool. He was suddenly hooked. He gave up all his friends for Paul. Aunt Mimi recalled that John jumped around the kitchen when he told her about his new friend. And when Paul arrived at John’s home for the first time, Mimi sarcastically said to John that they were like ‘chalk and cheese’ meaning how different they were. And John would start hurling himself around the room shouting ‘Chalk and Cheese! Chalk and cheese’ smiling and laughing. He was fucking in love with him, he adored him. She understood he found the partner of his life.“

I've been slowly reading Paul McCartney's Lyrics and came up short at the image he doodled in his notebook after the words for one of the last songs the Beatles recorded:

Four hearts linked by the same arrow.

George Harrison & John Lennon in Paris, France | 15 January 1964 © Terence Spencer

"I haven't been to a proper barber for years. George often cuts my hair when we're on the road and Cyn does it when I'm at home." ~ John Lennon

THE JAMES PAUL MCCARTNEY SHOW (1973)

Paul McCartney listening to his transistor radio in New York, 9th February 1964

June 11, 1964 || Paul at the group’s first Australian press conference in Sydney.

Dice & The Beatles in Central Park in New York City, NY | 8 February 1964 (I)