"Got to Get You Into My Life" Lyrics

by John Lennon and Paul McCartney

As Recorded by the Beatles - Take 5 (1966)

I was alone, I took a ride
I didn't know what I would find there
Another road where maybe I
Could see another kind of mind there.

Ooo then I suddenly see you
Ooo did I tell you I need you
Every single day of my life?

You didn't run, you didn't lie
You knew I wanted just to hold you
And had you gone, you knew in time
We'd meet again for I had told you.

Ooo you were meant to be near me
Ooo and I want you to hear me
Say we'll be together every day.

Got to get you into my life
Somehow some way.

What can I do, what can I be?
When I'm with you I want to stay there
If I'm true I'll never leave
And if I do I know the way there.

Ooo then I suddenly see you
Ooo did I tell you I need you
Every single day of my life?

Got to get you into my life
Somehow some way.

I need your love, I need your love, I need your love, I need your love into my life
Somehow some way.

Got to get you into my life
Oh oh ho, hear me ooo-ooo
Dee dee dee
Do do dee dee dee dee dee dee dee dee-dee da



As Released by the Beatles (1966)

I was alone, I took a ride
I didn't know what I would find there
Another road where maybe I
Could see another kind of mind there.

Ooo then I suddenly see you
Ooo did I tell you I need you
Every single day of my life?

You didn't run, you didn't lie
You knew I wanted just to hold you
And had you gone, you knew in time
We'd meet again for I had told you.

Ooo you were meant to be near me
Ooo and I want you to hear me
Say we'll be together every day.

Got to get you into my life.

What can I do, what can I be?
When I'm with you I want to stay there
If I'm true I'll never leave
And if I do I know the way there.

Ooo then I suddenly see you
Ooo did I tell you I need you
Every single day of my life?

Got to get you into my life.

I got to get you into my life.

I was alone, I took a ride
I didn't know what I would find there
Another road where maybe I
Could see another kind of mind there.

Then suddenly I see you
Did I tell you I need you
Every single day...

Through the Lives

I recently took a look at a copy of Albert Goldman's The Lives of John Lennon for a few reasons. For over twenty years, it has stood as both a much maligned biography of a musical hero and a well-researched resource for other books that followed. Other Beatle books caveat that while the tone may be negative and the focus on salacious materials, there is still valuable information to be found here.

Though I picked up a library copy, it contains a written dedication inside indicating that at one point it had been a gift. "Dear Rob," it says, "I shopped around for a good non-fiction book for you. As you may have guessed, I couldn't find one.... this is a textbook. Learn what it teaches you, the subtleties, the tools, the method. And if I catch you using any of them, you're a dead man." If The Lives of John Lennon is indeed a textbook, surely none has been so thoroughly obsessed with sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll (in that order).

The book begins in typical biographical fashion with a section concerning a later portion of John's life (1979), as opposed to starting at the beginning. This is a device meant to draw the reader in, and Goldman begins firing on all cylinders, telling a story related to him by Kit Carter of Yoko buying heroin, Lennon's fraudulent househusband days (from Fred Seaman), and Lennon as the conpiracy-obsessed Naked Professor (as told my Marlene Hair). The latter two sources get brief and positive bios to boost their credibility, while their former friends (John and Yoko) get lambasted. It's hard to see the relevance of Yoko allegedly (and secretly) purchasing drugs to John's life -- it's even more difficult to see why this story should be placed front-and-center before all others. The answer is that sallaciousness sells copy, or so the theory goes. From reading the first 25 pages, it becomes clear that John and Yoko are both the protagonists and villains of the book -- miserable beings whose happiness was so fleeting it scarcely deserves a mention. Accuracy of the scandalous details aside, the focus offers up an unbalanced portrait. The premise that misery, drug addiction, and violence sells is ever-present, especially in the early pages. John's baking bread story gets a sentence, while pages are devoted to him walking around naked or screaming at children or barking out orders or... you get the idea. There are some insights in this prologue, such as how Lennon's views had progressed (or not) since Janov, but they are lost in a sea of National Enquirer gossip.

There are elements here that have a ring of truth and fit somewhat with other accounts. For other stories (namely, the more negative aspects), they have the problem of being verifiable by only one or two living when the book was published in 1988. On one side, the former employees, some with financial motives, and the other side, Yoko, who refused comment. Goldman defiantly said that Yoko could have sued if his account was inaccurate. She declined as she was advised it would only bring the book more attention. It would have been interesting to see how a battle like this of he said/she said would have turned out. When two people meet in a room and relay an account of what happened to someone years later -- who has the ownership of truth and how can the truth of such events be remotely established? This matters more, of course, when the tone is as negative as it is in the The Lives of John Lennon, and one form of "truth" is presented for mass consumption.

I think it was the tone and focus that led to such a violent reaction from Lennon fans at the time, some of which is viewable from a television appearance of Goldman with a live TV audience, posted here. Some of the criticism kept to things that were easily verifiable, such as facts that Goldman plainly got wrong: Philip Norman in the clip cites Goldman getting the record format of "Love Me Do" wrong -- others I quickly spotted in the early chapters included the backwards tape in "Rain" leading to the "Paul is Dead" rumors (it didn't) and attributing the "mockers" comment in A Hard Day's Night to John (instead of Ringo). But these are small points that any "Beatle expert" could have fixed in a matter of days, had the editors cared.

After first reading the book years ago, I remember flipping through The Complete Beatles Chronicle and seeing a photo of John with a wide grin after a concert in 1963 and thinking that this did not fit at all with Goldman's account of Lennon's life. In Lives all I found was depression, disappointment, and of course, sex. To get an idea of Goldman's focus, I'll leave you with a great quotation from Ray Manzarek, keyboardist of the Doors: "Albert had his own obsession. I talked with Albert Goldman about Morrison, the beginning in golden sands, meditation, and all Albert wanted to know about was if Jim had had sex with Jimi Hendrix."

Beatle People: Murray the K

Murray Kaufman (February 14, 1922 – February 21, 1982) professionally known as Murray the K, was a famous and influential rock and roll impresario and disc jockey of the 1950s, '60s and '70s. During the early days of Beatlemania, he frequently referred to himself as "the Fifth Beatle."

Early life

Murray Kaufman came from a show business family: his mother, Jean, played piano in vaudeville and wrote music and his aunt was a character actress on the stage and in film. He was a child actor - an extra - in several Hollywood 1930s films. He attended a military boarding school, and later was inducted into the Army where he arranged entertainment for the troops. Following the war, he put together shows in the Catskills' "Borscht Belt," also doing warm-ups for the headline performers.

Post-war

In the late '40s and early '50s, he worked in public relations and as a song plugger, helping to promote tunes like Bob Merrill's "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window." From there, he worked as a radio producer and co-host at WMCA (and briefly thereafter at WMGM), working with personalities such as Laraine Day on the late night interview program "Day At Night" and with Eva Gabor. At the same time, he was doing promotion for several baseball players, including Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, and his radio beginnings may be attributable to his connection with the New York Giants whose manager, Leo Durocher, was the husband of Laraine Day. His work on those shows earned him his own late-night show that often featured his wife as co-host, as was popular at the time. For a while in the 1950s he was president of the National Conference of Disk Jockeys.

Deejay: from AM to FM

Kaufman's big break came in 1958 after he moved to WINS-AM to do the all-night show, which he titled "The Swingin' Soiree." Shortly after his arrival, WINS's high energy star disk jockey, Alan Freed, was indicted for tax evasion and forced off the air. Though Freed's spot was briefly occupied by Bruce Morrow, who later became known as Cousin Brucie, Murray soon was moved into the 7-11PM time period and remained there for the next seven years, always opening his show with Sinatra and making radio history with his innovative segues, jingles, sound effects, antics, and frenetic, creative programming. Jeff Rice, writing in M/C Journal, says that Tom Wolfe calls Murray "the original hysterical disk jockey."

"The Fifth Beatle"

Murray the K reached his peak of popularity in the mid-1960s when, as the top-rated radio host in New York City, he became an early and ardent supporter and friend of The Beatles. When the Beatles came to New York in February, 1964, Murray was the first DJ they welcomed into their circle, having heard about him and his Brooklyn Fox shows from American acts who visited England. Murray did his radio show from their Plaza Hotel room their first night in New York and accompanied them to Washington, D.C. for their first U.S. concert, was backstage at their Ed Sullivan Show premiere, and roomed with Beatles guitarist George Harrison in Miami, broadcasting his shows from there. He came to be referred to as the "Fifth Beatle," a moniker he says he was given either by Harrison during the train ride to the Beatles' first concert in Washington D.C. or by Ringo Starr at a press conference before that concert. WINS (his radio station) picked up on the name and popularized it, billing him as the Fifth Beatle, a moniker he came to regret. He was invited to the set of A Hard Day's Night in England and made several treks to England during 1964, giving WINS listeners more Beatle exclusives.

The move to FM

By the end of 1964, Murray found out that WINS was going to change to an all news format the following year. He resigned on the air in December '64 (breaking news about the sale of the station and the change in format before the station and Group W released it) and did his last show on February 27 prior to the format change that occurred in April 1965. A year later, in 1966, the FCC ruled that AM and FM radio stations could no longer simply simultaneously broadcast the same content, opening the door for Murray to become program director and prime-time DJ on WOR-FM — one of the first FM rock stations, soon airing such DJs as Rosko and Scott Muni in the new FM format. Murray played long album cuts rather than singles, often playing groups of songs by one artist, or thematically linked songs, uninterrupted by commercials. He combined live in-studio interviews with folk-rock — he called it "attitude music" — and all forms of popular music in a free-form format. He played artists like Bob Dylan and Janis Ian, the long album versions of their songs that came to be known as the "FM cuts." Al Aronowitz quotes Murray as saying, about his this formula, "You didn't have to hype the record any more. The music was speaking for itself."

Dylan

During that time Murray was often a champion of the much-maligned electric Bob Dylan. He introduced him to boos at a huge Forest Hills Tennis Stadium concert in August 1965, saying "It's not rock, it's not folk, it's a new thing called Dylan."

He defended Dylan on a WABC-TV panel:

"Even in his months of seclusion after the motorcycle accident, WABC-TV dedicated a television show to a discussion of what Bob Dylan was really like. When one member of the panel accused Dylan of all but inventing juvenile delinquency, there was only Murray the K to defend him. 'Is Bob Dylan every kid's father?' Murray asked."

Last years in radio

Murray's WOR-FM radio was a cultural phenomenon and commercially successful, but after a year management wanted more commercial appeal and tried to force Murray to use a set playlist; he refused, then had a heart attack. WOR switched to an oldies format and Murray the K left New York radio to host programs in Toronto - on CHUM -and on WHFS in the Washington D.C. area. He returned to New York in 1970 on the weekend show NBC Monitor and as a fill-in morning dj, and then in 1972 moved to a regular evening weekend program on WNBC radio where Don Imus was broadcasting; he was joined there by the legendary Wolfman Jack, a year later. Although it was low-key, Murray's WNBC show featured his own innovative trademark programming style, including telling stories that were illustrated by selected songs, his unique segues, and his pairing cuts by theme or idiosyncratic associations. In early 1975, he was brought on for a brief stint at legendary Long Island alternative rock station WLIR, and his final New York radio show ran later that year on WKTU-FM after which - already in ill health - he moved to Los Angeles.

Brooklyn Fox shows

Throughout his New York radio career, Kaufman was renowned for the multi-racial rock 'n' roll shows he produced three or four times a year, usually during the Easter school recess, the week before Labor Day, and between Christmas and New Year at the Brooklyn Fox Theater. Those shows featured the top performers of the era and introduced new acts, such as Dionne Warwick,Chuck Jackson, The Zombies,Little Anthony & The Imperials, the Ronettes, the Shangri-Las, Gene Pitney, Ben E. King, the Four Tops, Wayne Newton, Bobby Vinton (who was the leader of the house band when he asked for a chance to perform as a singer), The Lovin' Spoonful, Cream, and The Who, among many others. He was known for promoting original black and Latino artists rather than white covers of their songs, at a time when that was not popular.

Records, television, stage, and syndication

Throughout his radio career, from the 50s through the 70s, Murray also released numerous LP record albums, often compilations of hits by the acts that appeared in his famous Brooklyn Fox shows. These albums frequently had names such as "Murray the K's Blasts from the Past" or "Murray the K's Sing Along with the Original Golden Gassers".

"Me-a-surray" (named after a language Murray invented and used quite often on his 1010 WINS radio show) was a "single" by a girl group called The Delicates, released on the United Artists label. The Delicates were Denise Ferri, Arleen Lanzotti and Peggy Santiglia, known as Murray's "dancing girls". They wrote the song which was arranged by Don Costa. The Delicates also wrote and recorded his "Submarine Race Watcher" theme, used to open and close his radio show. It was during the "twist craze" that Kaufman introduced a song sung by an unidentified artist named, "The Lone Twister". Of course, the artist was Murray.

In the mid-60s, Kaufman also produced and hosted television variety shows featuring rock performers. The best known was a national broadcast entitled It's What's Happening, Baby which was made under the auspices of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The show aired on June 28, 1965 and featured performances by many of the popular artists of the day like Jan & Dean, Mary Wells, the Dave Clark Five, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles, The Drifters, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, The Ronettes, The Righteous Brothers and Little Anthony & the Imperials That show also introduced the first music video-style programming, pre-dating MTV by 15 years.

Another late 1960s television show that Murray the K hosted was called "The Sound is Now"; it included appearances by Phil Ochs and Sonny and Cher, among others.

In the 1960s he created Murray the K's World, a multimedia discotheque at an abandoned airplane hangar in Roosevelt Field, Long Island, where live and recorded music played while slides and film were projected.

During the early 1970s, Murray acted as a special consultant to the stage show Beatlemania, and he toured the country giving interviews on behalf of the show.

In Los Angeles in the late 70s he hosted the syndicated "Soundtrack of the '60s" until ill health forced him to resign and forced the cancellation of "A Salute to Murray the K," a tribute concert slated for Madison Square Garden.

Film

Kaufman was parodied in the film The Rutles - All You Need Is Cash as a radio host named Bill Murray the K, played by actor Bill Murray. Kaufman appeared as a guest star on a 1960s series entitled "Coronet Blue," receiving very good reviews, and also appeared as himself, to not-so-good reviews in I Wanna Hold Your Hand, a film by Academy Award winner Robert Zemeckis.

Family and death

He was married six times and had three sons, Peter (Altschuler), Jeff and Keith. His first wife, Anna May, died in childbirth; second, Toni, married for three years; third, Beverly, three months; Claire, for about nine years in the 1950s. After that he was married to Jackie Hayes - called "Jackie the K" - until about 1973; and finally to actress Jackie Zeman - together for seven years before marrying, the marriage lasted one year.

Kaufman died of cancer a week after his 60th birthday on February 21, 1982.

Legacy

He shares writing credit with his mother and Bobby Darin for Darin's breakout song, "Splish Splash."

Murray was the author of a 1966 book, Murray the K Tells It Like It Is, Baby.

He is mentioned in the 1980 Ramones song "Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio?" as well as "Who Will Save Rock 'n' Roll" by the Dictators.

He was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1997.

Recordings made by Murray Kaufman

* 1955 Fraternity F-714 "The Crazy Otto Rag" as by Ludwig Von Kaufman/"Out Of The Bushes" as by Murray Kaufman (made before becoming a DJ at WMCA)
* 1958 Murray Kaufman Part 1/Part 2 (Part 1 is a 1010WINS radio jingle item featuring Murray and the Delicates and his themes; Part 2 is his "Ah, Bey, ah bey, koowi zowa zowa" chant, along with an explanation of its meaning.) The chant was lifted intact from the 1953 film Mogambo
* 1961 Atlantic 2130 "The Lone Twister"/"Twistin' Up A Storm" as by The Lone Twister
* Murray the K's Sing Along with the Original Golden Gassers, 1961

Catchphrases

* "Ah Bey!"
* "kooma zowa zowa"
* "It's what's happening, baby!"
* "submarine race watching"
* "blast from the past"
* "Me-a-surray" language, his own version of pig Latin
* the "Swingin' Soiree"
* "golden gassers"
* the Record Review Board
* his hats
* "grand kook"
* "ain't that a kick in the head"
* "dancing girls"
* "play 'em red hot and blue"
* "the grand commodore"

Wikipedia

John Lennon: 1968

By Jonathan Cott/November 23, 1968

Wasn't it about the time of Rubber Soul that you moved away from the old records to something quite different?

Yes, yes, we got involved completely in ourselves then. I think it was Rubber Soul when we did all our own numbers. Something just happened. We controlled it a bit. Whatever it was we were putting over, we just tried to control it a bit.

Are there any other versions of your songs you like?

Well, Ray Charles' version of "Yesterday" - that's beautiful. And "Eleanor Rigby" is a groove. I just dig the strings on that. Like Thirties strings. Jose Feliciano does great things to "Help!" and "Day Tripper."
"Got To Get You Into My Life" - sure, we were doing our Tamla Motown bit. You see, we're influenced by whatever's going. Even if we're not influenced, we're all going that way at a certain time. If we played a Stones record now, and a Beatles record - and we've been apart - you'd find a lot of similarities. We're all heavy. Just heavy. How did we ever do anything light?
What we're trying to do is rock & roll, with less of your philosorock, is what we're saying to ourselves. And get on with rocking because rockers is what we really are. You can give me a guitar, stand me up in front of a few people. Even in the studio, if I'm getting into it, I'm just doing my old bit - not quite doing Elvis Legs but doing my equivalent. It's just natural. Everybody says we must do this and that but our thing is just rocking - you know, the usual gig. That's what this new record is about. Definitely rocking. What we were doing on Pepper was rocking - and not rocking.
"A Day in the Life" - that was something. I dug it. It was a good piece of work between Paul and me. I had the "I read the news today" bit, and it turned Paul on. Now and then we really turn each other on with a bit of song, and he just said "yeah" - bang bang, like that. It just sort of happened beautifully, and we arranged it and rehearsed it, which we don't often do, the afternoon before. So we all knew what we were playing, we all got into it. It was a real groove, the whole scene on that one. Paul sang half of it and I sang half. I needed a middle-eight for it, but that would have been forcing it. All the rest had come out smooth, flowing, no trouble, and to write a middle-eight would have been to write a middle-eight, but instead Paul already had one there. It's a bit of 2001, you know.

Songs like "Good Morning, Good Morning" and "Penny Lane" convey a child's feeling of the world.

We write about our past. "Good Morning, Good Morning," I was never proud of it. I just knocked it off to do a song. But it was writing about my past so it does get the kids because it was me at school, my whole bit. The same with "Penny Lane." We really got into the groove of imagining Penny Lane - the bank was there, and that was where the tram sheds were and people waiting and the inspector stood there, the fire engines were down there. It was just reliving childhood.

You really had a place where you grew up.

Oh, yeah. Didn't you?

Well, Manhattan isn't Liverpool.

Well, you could write about your local bus station.

In Manhattan?

Sure, why not? Everywhere is somewhere.

In "Hey, Jude," as in one of your first songs, "She Loves You," you're singing to someone else and yet you might as well be singing to yourself. Do you find that as well?

Oh, yeah. Well, when Paul first sang "Hey, Jude" to me - or played me the little tape he'd made of it - I took it very personally. "Ah, it's me!" I said. "It's me." Hey says, "No, it's me." I said, "Check, we're going through the same bit." So we all are. Whoever is going through a bit with us is going through it, that's the groove.

In the Magical Mystery Tour theme songs you say, "The Magical Mystery Tour is waiting to take you away." In Sgt. Pepper you sing, "We'd like to take you home with us." How do you relate this embracing, come-sit-down-on-my-lawn feeling in the songs with your need for everyday privacy?

I take a narrower concept of it, like whoever was around at the time wanting to talk to them talked to me, but of course it does have that wider aspect to it. The concept is very good and I went through it and said, "Well, okay. Let them sit on my lawn." But of course it doesn't work. People climbed in the house and smashed things up, and then you think, "That's no good, that doesn't work." So actually you're saying, "Don't talk to me," really.
We're all trying to say nice things like that but most of the time we can't make it - ninety percent of the time - and the odd time we do make it, when we do it, together as people. You can say it in a song: "Well, whatever I did say to you that day about getting out of the garden, part of me said that but, really, in my heart of hearts, I'd like to have it right and talk to you and communicate." Unfortunately we're human, you know - it doesn't seem to work.

"Good Night" Lyrics

by John Lennon and Paul McCartney

As Released by the Beatles (1968)

Now it's time to say good night
Good night, sleep tight.
Now the sun turns out his light
Good night, sleep tight.

Dream sweet dreams for me
Dream sweet dreams for you.

Close your eyes and I'll close mine
Good night, sleep tight.
Now the moon begins to shine
Good night, sleep tight.

Dream sweet dreams for me
Dream sweet dreams for you.

Mmm - mmm - mmm - mmm.

Close your eyes and I'll close mine
Good night, sleep tight.
Now the sun turns out his light
Good night, sleep tight.

Dream sweet dreams for me
Dream sweet dreams for you.

Good night
Good night everybody
Everybody everywhere
Good night.

June 19, 1967 - ITV News

Taped: Monday 19 June 1967
Aired: Monday 19 June 1967

After Paul's admission in Life Magazine, the British press besieged him to make a statement. Paul gave an interview to Independent Television News for broadcast on the 9pm news that evening.

Reporter: 'How often have you taken LSD?"

Paul: "Um, four times."

Reporter: "And where did you get it from?"

Paul: "Well, you know, I mean, if I was to say where I got it from, you know, it's illegal and everything, it's silly to say that so I'd rather not say it."

Reporter: "Don't you believe that this was a matter which you should have kept private?"

Paul: "Well the thing is, you know, that I was asked a question by a newspaper and the decision was whether to tell a lie or to tell the truth, you know. I decided to tell him the truth but I really didn't want to say anything because if I'd had my way I wouldn't have told anyone because I'm not trying to spread the word about this but the man from the newspaper is the man from the mass medium. I'll keep it a personal thing if he does too, you know, if he keeps it quiet. But he wanted to spread it so it's his responsibility for spreading it. Not mine."

Reporter: "But you're a public figure and you said it in the first place. You must have known that it would make the newspapers."

Paul: "Yes, but to say it, you know, is only to tell the truth. I'm telling the truth. I don't know what everyone is so angry about."

Reporter: "Well, do you think you have encouraged your fans to take drugs?"

Paul: "I don't think it will make any difference. You know, I don't think my fans are going to take drugs just because I did. But the thing is, that's not the point anyway. I was asked whether I had or not and from then on the whole bit about how far its going to go and how many people it's going to encourage is up to the newspapers and up to you, you know, on television. I mean, you're spreading this now, at this moment. This is going into all the homes in Britain and I'd rather it didn't, you know. But you're asking me the question and if you want me to be honest I'll be honest."

Reporter: "But as a public figure, surely you've got a responsibility to not say any . . ."

Paul: "No, it's you who've got the responsibility. You've got the responsibility not to spread this now. You know, I'm quite prepared to keep it as a very personal thing if you will too. If you'll shut up about it, I will!"

White Album and Mad Day Out, 1968

It's handy having Paul's house so near the EMI studios. Sometimes if we're feeling a bit peckish by midnight or thereabouts, we troop round to his place for a nosh break. George is getting great at cooking fry-up suppers and his specialty in the kitchen line is a hearty blend of eggs, bacon, tomatoes and fried bread, which stimulates everyone in readiness for the rest of the night's recording!

Incidentally, talking about George reminds me about the fabulous new guitar he gave to our great little Apple singer, Mary Hopkin. Mary came along to one of the LP sessions and, on the spur of the moment, George decided to go out and get her a guitar as a gift. It was a really good one, too. When he came back to the studio with it he must have felt a bit shy about handing it over. So, when we were leaving I gave Mary the guitar saying, very simple, "It's a present from George." She couldn't say "thank you," but her six-foot-deep smile seemed to fit the bill.

Before I finish off for this month I must tell you a bit about the very special photo session we had one Sunday just a few weekends ago. The idea was to get together a whole new collection of pictures, really good ones, from which the fan clubs could have fresh supplies. This time the Beatles were determined to do something a bit better than just putting their four heads together in front of a wall. After all, a selection of pictures would be going all the way round the world to more than 40 different branches of the Beatles Fan Club, so it was worth a bit of special effort to turn out good ones.

We met at Paul's house around lunchtime and set out in a little cavalcade of vehicles. John came with me in my car and I'd brought my small son Gary along for the ride. The others piled into Ringo's white Mercedes and a van carrying all the different costumes and clothes trailed behind us as we crossed London from St. John's Wood through the West End to Fleet Street and beyond. First stop was the Sunday Times building where we used the roof to do the first set of pictures. And we used a wind machine to get nice effects on the fellows' hair. In fact I think it helped to produce some of the first group photographs to show all four Beatle foreheads uncovered beneath wind-swept hair!

Next we turned West again and headed for Bayswater. Our destination was a little place called the Mercury Theatre which is situated not too far from the headquarters of The Beatles Monthly. Good job it was a Sunday with all this town travelling to be done. To try criss-crossing London by road on a weekday would have meant spending half the afternoon getting out of traffic jams!

At the Mercury we dug out loads of strange costumes, had tea in the theatre bar and then did some more pictures. A zoological man brought along a brightly-coloured parrot which settled peacefully upon Ringo's left shoulder and didn't mind having his picture taken!

From there we went East again stopping in a suburban residential area to do a few street shots in front of houses before heading for the London Docks.

Finally, we returned to St. John's Wood and Paul's house for more tea and the last lot of photographs. This time Paul's massive dog Martha got into the act like she always does. Not that anyone minded because she's a great dog and very photogenic what's more!

Paul had the ideal spot for picture-taking. We trooped down to the foot of his garden. There, hidden away behind all the trees, Paul has this fantastic glass-domed sun-thingy. I know there's a special word for it but I'm sure you know what I mean, anyway! It's quite high, a square building at the bottom with glass walls. Four pillars go right up to the glass roof and there's a round hydraulic lift. You just stand on the step and up you go into the dome. Got some great pictures up there with Paul, Ringo and Martha, plus a few shots of all the four fellows. Anyway, if and when you start collceting the new set of photographs which the Fan Club is offering, you'll know all about the background to them. Oh yes . . . and the ones in goggles and crash helmets were done on the Sunday Times roof, too. So now you know!

MAL EVANS

"For No One" Lyrics

by John Lennon and Paul McCartney

Original Manuscript, "Why Did It Die?" (1966)

Your day breaks
Your mind aches
You find that all her words of kindness
linger on when she no longer needs you

She wakes up
She makes up
She takes her time and does not feel she has to
hurry she no longer needs you

Chorus Why did it die?
you'd like to know.
Cry - and blame her

But the last, you wait
You're too late
As you're deciding why the wrong one will wins, the end begins
and you will lose her

(Why did it die
I'd like to know
Try - to save it)

You want her
you need (love) her
so make her see that you believe it may work out
one day, you need each other

As Released by the Beatles (1966)

Your day breaks, your mind aches
You find that all her words of kindness linger on
When she no longer needs you.

She wakes up, she makes up
She takes her time and doesn't feel she has to hurry
She no longer needs you.

And in her eyes you see nothing
No sign of love behind the tears cried for no one
A love that should have lasted years.

You want her, you need her
And yet you don't believe her
When she says her love is dead
You think she needs you.

And in her eyes you see nothing
No sign of love behind the tears cried for no one
A love that should have lasted years.

You stay home, she goes out
She says that long ago she knew someone
But now he's gone, she doesn't need him.

Your day breaks, your mind aches
There will be times when all the things
She said will fill your head
You won't forget her.

And in her eyes you see nothing
No sign of love behind the tears cried for no one
A love that should have lasted years.

Beatle People: Jim Keltner

Jim Keltner (born April 27, 1942, Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States) is a session drummer who has contributed to the work of many well-known artists.

1970s

Keltner is best known for his session work on solo recordings by three of The Beatles, working often with George Harrison, John Lennon (including Lennon solo albums, as well as albums released both by the Plastic Ono Band and Yoko Ono), and Ringo Starr. He and Starr were the drummers on the Concert for Bangladesh, rock's first charity benefit, initiated by George Harrison and Ravi Shankar, in August, 1971 at Madison Square Garden in New York; he also performed at the Garden in 1972 for John Lennon's "One To One" benefit for the Willowbrook State School. Keltner later joined the 1974 George Harrison/Ravi Shankar tour, after many phone calls on the road from Harrison to him. His first gig on the tour was Memphis November 20, 1974.

Keltner's relationship with the former Beatles was such that he was parodied on albums released by both Harrison and Starr in 1973. Early that year, Paul McCartney, the only Beatle not to have worked with Keltner, included a note on the back cover of his Red Rose Speedway album, encouraging fans to join the "Wings Fun Club" by sending a "stamped addressed envelope" to an address in London. Later that year, both Harrison's Living in the Material World and Starr's "Ringo" contained a similar note encouraging fans to join the "Jim Keltner Fun Club" by sending a "stamped undressed elephant" to an address in Hollywood. Keltner plays the role of the judge in the video for George Harrison's 1976 Top 30 hit, "This Song."

As a percussionist, Keltner started out in jazz, although his first session was recording "She's Just My Style" for the pop group Gary Lewis and the Playboys. In addition to his work with three of the Beatles, Keltner, as a free-lance drummer, has also worked with Jerry Garcia, Eric Clapton, Joe Cocker, Van Dyke Parks, the Rolling Stones, Ronnie Wood, Bill Wyman, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Brian Wilson, Seals and Crofts, Bill Frisell, Neil Young, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Phil Keaggy, Steve Jones, Crowded House, Fiona Apple, Elvis Costello, The Bee Gees, Ry Cooder, Sam Phillips, Los Lobos, Pink Floyd, Warren Zevon Steely Dan, Rufus Wainwright, Tom Petty, Gillian Welch, the Steve Miller Band and Lucinda Williams among many others. He is featured on Carly Simon's 1971 album, Anticipation.

1980s-present

In the late 1980s, Keltner toured with Ringo Starr's All-Starr Band. He also played drums on both albums released by Harrison's 1980s supergroup, the Traveling Wilburys, playing under the pseudonym Buster Sidebury.

He has specialized in R&B, and is said to have influenced Jeff Porcaro and Danny Seraphine of Chicago. His drumming style typically melds deceptively simple drum patterns and a casual, loose feel with extraordinary precision. Demonstrations of his style and range can be found from Jealous Guy on John Lennon's Imagine, the hit single Dreamweaver by Gary Wright, Josie on Aja by Steely Dan, Watching The River Flow by Bob Dylan and The Thorns' debut, in which he provides a master class in sensitive musicianship alongside Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge and Shawn Mullins. Has performed as a session artist on many of the classic recordings by J. J. Cale. Often double billed with bassist Tim Drummond - a formidable combination.

In 1987 Keltner, along with guitarist Ry Cooder, and bassist Nick Lowe came together to play on John Hiatt's Bring the Family. Five years later the four musicians reunited as the band Little Village, recording an album of the same name.

In 2002, he played in Concert For George, a tribute to Harrison a year following his death. He reprised his role as the Wilburys' drummer, joining Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne for "Handle with Care."

In 2006 he toured with T-Bone Burnett in The True False Identity tour and featured on Jerry Lee Lewis' album Last Man Standing.

In 2007 Money Mark's, Brand New by Tomorrow, was released featuring Keltner and bassist Carol Kaye.

In 2008 Keltner appeared on Break up the Concrete by The Pretenders and on One Kind Favor by B. B. King: He played the drums on Oasis' "The Boy with the Blues", available on the deluxe edition of Dig Out Your Soul.

Wikipedia

John Lennon's Record Collection: Some Other Guy

Lennon owned both the original by Richie Barrett...



...and the cover by The Big Three:

August 15, 1965 - Raw Shea Stadium Recordings

It's no surprise really that the Beatles felt the need to go over their live recordings made at Shea Stadium in 1965 and make overdubs, given the fact that the Beatles did not have monitor speakers (so they were unable to actually to properly hear what they were playing or how they were singing). On January 5, 1966, the Beatles went into CTS Studios in London an overdubbed new bass tracks, an organ track, and made entirely new recordings for "I Feel Fine" and "Help!" while watching their Shea footage on screen in the studio to match them up. Instead of recording a new version of "Act Naturally," they just scrapped it and inserted the original studio version they had done for the Help! LP. The most obvious sweetening occurred during "Twist and Shout," where part of a live version from the Hollywood Bowl (recorded August 30, 1965) was put overtop, briefly resulting in a double-tracked vocal from John!

This was how people heard the Shea Stadium concert (mostly through the TV special) until more recently. The original audio for "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby" (a song cut from the special) was included on Anthology 2 and a bit of the live audio feed for "Act Naturally" surfaced in conjunction with a television appearance from Ringo on Phil Donahue's show. The original live audio of Shea Stadium was then sold at auction, followed by a release from His Master's Choice in 2007 of the line recordings called The Beatles and the Great Concert at Shea. This has meant that people with a bit of patience have been able to sync up the Shea footage presented in the original special and the remastered footage from the Anthology series to present the concert as it originally looked and sounded, the results of which are presented below.

Samples

Twist and Shout:


She's a Woman:


I Feel Fine:


Act Naturally:

"Good Morning Good Morning" Lyrics

by John Lennon and Paul McCartney

As Released by the Beatles (1967)

Good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning.

Nothing to do to save his life call his wife in
Nothing to say but what a day how's your boy been?
Nothing to do it's up to you
I've got nothing to say but it's OK.

Good morning, good morning, good morning.

Go in to work don't want to go feeling low down
Heading for home you start to roam then you're in town.

Everybody knows there's nothing doing
Everything is closed it's like a ruin
Everyone you see is half asleep
And you're on your own you're in the street.

After a while you start to smile now you feel cool
Then you decide to take a walk by the old school
Nothing has changed it's still the same
I've got nothing to say but it's OK.

Good morning, good morning, good morning.

People running round it's five o'clock
Everywhere in town is getting dark
Everyone you see is full of life
It's time for tea and meet the wife.

Somebody needs to know the time glad that I'm here
Watching the skirts you start to flirt now you're in gear
Go to a show you hope she goes
I've got nothing to say but it's OK.

Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good
Good morning, good morning good.

Beatle People: Astrid Kirchherr

Astrid Kirchherr (born 20 May 1938) is a German photographer and artist and is well known for her association with the Beatles (along with her friends Klaus Voormann and Jürgen Vollmer) and her photographs of the Beatles from their Hamburg days.

Kirchherr met artist Stuart Sutcliffe in the Kaiserkeller bar in Hamburg in 1960 where he was playing bass with the Beatles and was later engaged to him before his untimely death in 1962.

Although Kirchherr admitted she has taken very few photographs since 1967 her early work has been exhibited in Hamburg, Bremen, London, Liverpool, New York City, Washington DC, Tokyo, Vienna, and at the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame. Kirchherr has published three limited edition books of photographs.

Early life

Astrid Kirchherr was born in 1938 in Hamburg Germany and is the daughter of a former executive of the German branch of the Ford Motor Company. During World War II she was evacuated to the safety of the Baltic Sea where she remembered seeing dead bodies on the shore after the ships Cap Arcona and the SS Deutschland had been bombed and sunk; and the destruction in Hamburg when she returned. Following her father's death she was raised by her mother Nielsa Kirchherr in Eimsbüttelerstraße in the wealthy Hamburg suburb of Altona.

After her graduation Kirchherr enrolled in the Meisterschule für Mode, Textil, Graphik und Werbung in Hamburg, as she wanted to study fashion design but demonstrated a talent for black and white photography. Reinhard Wolf, the school's main photographic tutor, convinced her to switch courses and promised that he would hire her as his assistant when she graduated. Kirchherr worked for Wolf as his assistant from 1959 until 1963.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s Kirchherr and her art school friends were involved in the European existentialist movement whose followers were nicknamed Exis by John Lennon. In 1995 she told BBC Radio Merseyside:

“Our philosophy then, because we were only little kids, was wearing black clothes and going around looking moody. Of course, we had a clue who Jean Paul Sartre was. We got inspired by all the French artists and writers, because that was the closest we could get. England was so far away, and America was out of the question. So France was the nearest. So we got all the information from France, and we tried to dress like the French existentialists. ... We wanted to be free, we wanted to be different, and tried to be cool, as we call it now.”

The Beatles

Kirchherr, Voormann, and Vollmer were friends who had all attended the Meisterschule, and shared the same ideas about fashion, culture and music. In 1960, after Kirchherr and Vollmer had had an argument with Voormann, he wandered down the Reeperbahn (in the St.Pauli district of Hamburg) and heard music coming from the Kaiserkeller club. Voormann walked in and watched a performance by a group called the Beatles. Voormann asked Kirchherr and Vollmer to listen to this new music, and after visiting the Kaiserkeller the next day, Kirchherr decided that all she wanted to do was to be as close to the Beatles as she could. They had never heard this new music called Rock n' Roll before, having previously only listened to Trad jazz, with some Nat King Cole and The Platters mixed in. The trio then visited the Kaiserkeller almost every night-arriving at 9 o'clock and sitting by the front of the stage. Kirchherr later said:

“It was like a merry-go-round in my head, they looked absolutely astonishing... My whole life changed in a couple of minutes. All I wanted was to be with them and to know them.”

Kirchherr later said that she, Voormann, and Vollmer felt guilty about being German, and about Germany's recent history. Meeting the Beatles was something very special for her, although she knew that English people would think that she ate sauerkraut, and would comment on her heavy German accent, but they made jokes about it together. Sutcliffe was fascinated by the trio, but especially Kirchherr, and thought they looked like "real bohemians." Bill Harry later said that when Kirchherr walked in, every head would immediately turn her way, and that she always captivated the whole room. Sutcliffe wrote to a friend that he could hardly take his eyes off her, and had tried to talk to Kirchherr during the next break, but she had already left the club. This was due to the strict German law at the time which prohibited young people from frequenting bars after 10 o'clock at night.

Sutcliffe managed to meet them eventually, and learned that all three had attended the Meisterschule, which was the same type of art college that Lennon and Sutcliffe had attended in Liverpool. Kirchherr asked the Beatles if they would mind letting her take photographs of them in a photo session, which impressed them, as other groups only had snapshots that were taken by friends. The next morning Kirchherr took photographs in a municipal park called "der Dom" which was close to the Reeperbahn, and in the afternoon she took them all (minus Best who decided not to go) to her mother's house in Altona. Kirchherr's bedroom (which was all in black, including the furniture, with silver foil on the walls and a large tree branch suspended from the ceiling) was decorated especially for Voormann, whom she had a relationship with, although after the visits to the Kaiserkeller their relationship became purely platonic. Kirchherr started dating Sutcliffe, although she always remained close friends with Voormann.

Kirchherr later supplied Sutcliffe and the other Beatles with Preludin, which, when taken with beer, made them feel euphoric and helped to keep them awake until the early hours of the morning. The Beatles had taken Preludin before, but it was only possible at that time to get Preludin with a doctor's prescription note, so Kirchherr's mother got them from a local chemist, who supplied them without asking questions. After meeting Kirchherr, Lennon filled his letters to Cynthia Powell (his girlfriend at the time) with "Astrid said this, Astrid did that" which made Powell jealous, until she read that Sutcliffe was in a relationship with Kirchherr. When Powell visited Hamburg with Dot Rhone (Paul McCartney's girlfriend at the time) in April 1961, they stayed at Kirchherr's house. In August 1963, Kirchherr met Lennon and Cynthia Lennon in Paris while they both there for a belated honeymoon, as Kirchherr was there with a girlfriend for a few days holiday. The four of them went from wine bar to wine bar, and finally ended up back at Kirchherr's lodgings, where all four fell asleep on Kirchherr's single bed. The Beatles met Kirchherr again in Hamburg in 1966 when they were touring Germany. Kirchherr gave Lennon the letters he'd written to Sutcliffe in 1961 and 1962 and Lennon said it was "the best present I've had in years."

The Beatles Haircut

Kirchherr is credited with inventing the Beatles moptop haircut although she disagrees and is quoted in The Beatles Off The Record by Keith Badman as saying:

“All that shit people said, that I created their hairstyle, that's rubbish! Lots of German boys had that hairstyle. Stuart had it for a long while and the others copied it. I suppose the most important thing I contributed to them was friendship.”

In 1995, Kirchherr told BBC Radio Merseyside:

“All my friends in art school used to run around with this sort of what you call Beatles haircut. And my boyfriend then, Klaus Voormann, had this hairstyle, and Stuart liked it very very much. He was the first one who really got the nerve to get the Brylcreem out of his hair and asking me to cut his hair for him. Pete Best (the Beatles original drummer) has really curly hair and it wouldn't work.”

Stuart Sutcliffe

Stuart Sutcliffe wrote to friends that he was infatuated with Kirchherr, and asked her friends which colors, films, books and painters she liked, and who she fancied. Best commented that the beginning of their relationship was, "like one of those fairy stories." Kirchherr and Sutcliffe got engaged in November 1960, and exchanged rings, as is the German custom. Sutcliffe later wrote to his parents that he was engaged to Kirchherr, which they were shocked to learn, as they thought he would give up his career as an artist. Sutcliffe later borrowed money from Kirchherr for the airfare to fly back to Liverpool in February 1961, although he returned to Hamburg in March.

Kirchherr and Sutcliffe went to Liverpool in the summer of 1961, as Kirchherr wanted to meet Sutcliffe's family (and to see Liverpool) before their marriage. Everybody was expecting a strange beatnik artist from Hamburg, but Kirchherr turned up at the Sutcliffe's house in Aigburth, Liverpool, bearing a single long-stemmed orchid in her hand as a present, and dressed in a round-necked cashmere sweater and tailored skirt. In 1962, Sutcliffe collapsed in the middle of an art class in Hamburg. He was suffering from intense headaches, and Kirchherr's mother had German doctors perform various checks on him, although they were unable to determine exactly what was causing the headaches. While living at the Kirchherrs' house in Hamburg his condition got worse. On 10 April 1962, Sutcliffe was taken to a hospital—Kirchherr rode with him in the ambulance—but Sutcliffe died before the ambulance reached the hospital. Three days later Kirchherr met the Beatles at the Hamburg airport and told them Sutcliffe died from a brain haemorrhage.

Photography

In 1964 Kirchherr became a freelance photographer, and with her colleague Max Scheler she took "behind the scenes" photographs of the Beatles during the filming of "A Hard Day's Night", as an assignment for the German STERN magazine. Harrison later asked Kirchherr to arrange the cover of his Wonderwall Music album in 1969. Kirchherr and Scheler put an advertisement in the Liverpool Echo in 1964, stating that any group who wanted their photograph taken in front of St. George's Hall would be paid £1 per musician, but over 200 groups turned up on the day, which meant Kirchherr and Scheler soon ran out of money.

Kirchherr didn't publish the photographs until 1995, in a book called Liverpool Days, which is a limited edition collection of black-and-white photographs. In 1999, a companion book called Hamburg Days was published (a two-volume limited edition) containing a set of photographs by Kirchherr and "memory drawings" by Voormann. The drawings are recollections of places and situations that Voormann clearly remembers, but Kirchherr had never photographed, or had lost the photographs.

Kirchherr described how difficult it was to be accepted as a female photographer in the 1960s:

“Every magazine and newspaper wanted me to photograph the Beatles again. Or they wanted my old stuff, even if it was out of focus, whether they were nice or not. They wouldn't look at my other work. It was very hard for a girl photographer in the 60s to be accepted. In the end I gave up. I've hardly taken a photo since 1967.”

Kirchherr was quoted as saying that When We Was Fab (Genesis Publications 2007) would be her last book of photographs:

“I have decided it is time to create one book in which I am totally involved so that it contains the pictures I like most, printed the way I would print them, even down to the text and design.... This book is me and that is why it will be the last one. The very last one.”

Kirchherr has expressed respect for other photographers, such as Annie Leibovitz (because of the humor in her work) Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Jim Rakete and Reinhard Wolf (German Wikipedia) and French film-makers François Truffaut, and Jean Cocteau. Kirchherr said that her favorite photos are the ones she took of Sutcliffe by the Baltic sea, and of Lennon and George Harrison in her attic room at 45a Eimsbütteler Strasse. She has expressed reservations about digital photography, saying that a photographer should concentrate on the art of photography and not on the technical results, although admitting that she knows nothing about computers, and is "afraid of the internet."

Kirchherr admits that she is not good at business as she is not organized enough, and has never really looked after the negatives of her photographs to prove ownership. Her business partner Ulf Krüger—a songwriter and record producer—successfully found many of Astrid's negatives and photographs and had them copyrighted, although he believes that Kirchherr has lost £500,000 over the years because of people using her photographs without permission. In July 2001 Kirchherr visited Liverpool to open an exhibition of her work at the Mathew Street art gallery, which is close to the former site of the Cavern Club. She appeared as a guest at the city's Beatles Week Festival during the August Bank Holiday. Kirchherr's work has been exhibited internationally in places such as, Hamburg, Bremen, London, Liverpool, New York City, Washington, D.C., Tokyo, Vienna, and at the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.

Later life

In 1967, Kirchherr married English drummer Gibson Kemp, who had replaced Ringo Starr in Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. The marriage ended in divorce after seven years. Astrid subsequently married a German businessman, but they divorced in 1985.

Kirchherr worked as an adviser on the film Backbeat, which portrayed Kirchherr, Sutcliffe and the Beatles during their early days in Hamburg. She was especially impressed with Stephen Dorff (who played Sutcliffe in the film) commenting that he was the right age (19-years-old at the time) and the way he smoked, talked and that his gestures were so like Sutcliffe's that she had goose pimples. Kirchherr was portrayed in the film by actress Sheryl Lee. Since the mid-1990s Kirchherr and Krüger have operated the K&K photography shop in Hamburg, offering custom vintage prints, books and artwork for sale. K&K periodically helps arrange Beatles' conventions and other Beatles' events in the Hamburg area.

Wikipedia

Photos of Jane Asher - Part 3

Beatles Covers: Annette Funicello - All My Loving

February 16, 1965 - Recording "Yes It Is"

What's amazing about so much of the early Beatles recordings is how much was recorded live off the floor, including vocals. With a two-track tape recording system, this was almost a necessity (listen to the punch-in edit of a harmonic solo in "Little Child" for an example of how awkward edits resulted from this limitation). Advancing to four-track made overdubs a little easier and so when it came time to record "Yes It Is" with three-part harmony, the Beatles took the obvious route, recorded the backing track first and overdubbed the vocals later. This became standing operating practice on Beatles recordings after 1966, as instrumentation became more and more complex. Here, it was just beginning: George was occupied during the recording of the instrumental track with the volume pedal on his guitar, which he had first used in the studio earlier that day, overdubbing onto his song "I Need You."

What has always impressed me with Beatles recordings is the ability of John, Paul, and George in the studio to give excellent vocal performances on cue time and again. Listen as they go from an (intentionally) poor guide vocal from John to superb three-part harmony in a matter of hours: the session for "Yes It Is" lasted from 5:00 to 10:00 pm.

Here are takes 1 through 9...


...and the final version as it sounds on the master tape (take 14):

May 27, 1966 - Eat the Document

Taped: Friday 27 May 1966

Accompanied by Keith Richards and Brian Jones, Paul and Neil Aspinall went to Dolly's Club on Jermyn Street to meet Bob Dylan the day his European tour reached London. Afterwards they all went back to Dylan's room at the Mayfair Hotel to listen to a set of test pressings he had with him from his most recent sessions.

Later that evening John and George attended Dylan's concert at the Albert Hall and watched as a faction of the audience jeered and booed when Dylan switched to electric instruments for the second half and, backed by The Band, gave them some rock 'n' roll.

John made a guest appearance in D.A. Pennebaker's film documentary of Bob Dylan's UK tour Eat The Document. John and Dylan were filmed talking in the back of a limousine, which had picked John up in Weybridge. Out-take footage revealed that both singers, Bob especially, were suffering from the adverse effects of recent drug-taking.

"Yesterday" Lyrics

by John Lennon and Paul McCartney

Original Manuscript (1965)

Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away
now it looks as though they're here to stay
oh I believe in yesterday.

Suddenly, I'm not half the man I used to be
There's a shadow hanging over me
Yesterday came suddenly.

middle 8

Why she had to go, I don't know
she wouldn't say
I said something wrong, now I long
for yesterday....

Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
oh I believe in yesterday



As Released by the Beatles (1965)

Yesterday
All my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they're here to stay
Oh I believe in yesterday.

Suddenly
I'm not half the man I used to be
There's a shadow hanging over me
Oh yesterday came suddenly.

Why she had to go, I don't know
She wouldn't say
I said something wrong
Now I long for yesterday.

Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh I believe in yesterday.

Why she had to go, I don't know
She wouldn't say
I said something wrong
Now I long for yesterday.

Yesterday
Love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh I believe in yesterday.

Mmm mmm mmm - mmm mmm mmm-mmm.

"Golden Slumbers" Lyrics

by John Lennon and Paul McCartney

As Released by the Beatles (1969)

Once there was a way
To get back homeward.
Once there was a way
To get back home.

Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby.

Golden slumbers fill your eyes
Smiles awake you when you rise.

Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby.

Once there was a way
To get back homeward.
Once there was a way
To get back home.

Sleep pretty darling do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby.

Beatle People: Julia Lennon

Julia Stanley Lennon (née Stanley) (12 March 1914 – 15 July 1958) was the mother of John Lennon. Julia was known as 'Judy,' and was the fourth of five sisters. John was her first child and was the only child of her marriage to Alf Lennon. She later had one daughter (who was given up for adoption after pressure from her family) with 'Taffy' Williams, and then had two daughters; Julia and Jacqui, with John 'Bobby' Dykins.

Julia was known as being high-spirited and impulsive, but was also musical and had a strong sense of humor. She bought Lennon his first guitar and encouraged him musically, even though her sister, Mimi Smith, strongly disapproved. She kept in almost daily contact with Lennon, and when he was in his teens he often stayed overnight at her and Bobby Dykins' house.

Julia visited Mimi almost daily (even when Lennon was staying at her house) but shortly after leaving Mimi's house one evening Julia was struck down and killed by a car driven by an off-duty policeman who was drunk at the time, on 15 July 1958. She was buried in the Allerton Cemetery, in Liverpool.

The Stanley family

According to Lennon, the Stanley family once owned the whole of Woolton village. Julia's father, George Stanley, was born in the Everton district of Liverpool in 1874. Her mother, Annie Jane Millward, was born in Chester around 1875, to Welsh parents. Annie's mother hated "the devil's English". Annie gave birth to a boy and a girl, who both died shortly after birth, and then had Mary, known as 'Mimi' (1906-1991), Elizabeth 'Mater' (1908-1976), Anne 'Nanny' (1911-1988), Julia 'Judy' (1914-1958), and Harriet 'Harrie' (1916-1972).

George retired from sailing and found a job with the Liverpool and Glasgow Tug Salvage Company as an insurance investigator. He moved his family from 8 Head Street to the Liverpool suburb of Woolton, where they lived in a small terraced house at 9 Newcastle Road in the district of Penny Lane. Lennon would later comment that the 'Stanley girls' were "five, fantastic, strong, beautiful, and intelligent women." Annie Jane Stanley died in 1945, and Julia had to take care of her father with very little help from Mimi. The Stanley family had relatives in Eketahuna, New Zealand. Julia's maternal aunt, Harriet Millward, married and moved to New Zealand, and Mimi Stanley/Smith exchanged letters with her cousins over the years.

Alf "Freddie" Lennon

Alfred 'Freddie' Lennon—always called 'Alf' by his family—was always quick with a joke or a witty line, but never held a job for very long, as he preferred to visit Liverpool's many vaudeville theatres and cinemas, where he knew the usherettes by name. It was at the 'Trocadero' club, a converted cinema on Camden Road, Liverpool, that Alf first saw an auburn-haired girl with a bright smile and high cheekbones, Julia Stanley.

Alf saw Julia again in Sefton Park, where Alf had gone with a friend to pick up girls. Alf, who was dressed in a bowler hat and holding a cigarette holder, saw "this little waif" sitting on a wrought-iron bench. Julia (who was only 14 years old) said that Freddie's hat looked "silly", to which (the 15-year-old) Alf replied that Julia looked "lovely", and sat down next to her. Julia asked Alf to take off his hat, so Alf promptly took it off and threw it straight into the Sefton Park lake. A nephew later said that Julia could also "make a joke out of nothing", saying that Aunt 'Judy' (Julia) could have "walked out of a burning house with a smile and a joke."

Julia often caught the gaze of men in the street. She was attractive and full-figured, with large brown eyes, although standing only five feet two inches tall in high heels. She was always well-dressed and even went to bed with make-up on so as to look beautiful when she woke up. She frequented Liverpool's dance halls and clubs where she was often asked to dance in Jitterbug competitions with dockers, soldiers, sailors, waiters, and "late-night sharks." It was remarked that she could be as humorous as any man, and would sing the popular songs of the day at any time of day or night. It was said that her voice sounded like Vera Lynn's, whilst Alf specialized in impersonating Satchmo and Al Jolson. Julia played the ukelele, the piano accordion and the banjo (as did Alf) although neither pursued music professionally. They spent their days together walking around Liverpool and dreaming of what they would do in the future, like opening a shop, a pub, a cafe, or a club.

On 3 December 1938, eleven years after they had first met, Julia married Alf Lennon after she proposed to him, and not the other way around, as is traditional. They were married in the Bolton Street Register Office (none of Julia's family were there) and Julia wrote 'cinema usherette' on the marriage certificate as her occupation, even though she had never been one. They spent their honeymoon eating at Reece's restaurant in Clayton Square (which is where Lennon would later celebrate after his marriage to Cynthia Powell) and then went to a cinema. Julia walked into 9 Newcastle Road waving the marriage license and said, "There!—I've married him." This was an act of defiance against her father, who had threatened to disown her if she co-habitated with a lover. On their wedding night Julia stayed at the Stanley's house and Alf went back to his rooming house. The next day Alf went back to sea for three months, on a ship headed for the West Indies.

The Stanley family completely ignored Alf at first, believing him to be of "no use to anyone—certainly not our Julia." Julia's father demanded that Alf present something concrete to show that he could financially support Julia, but Freddie's only idea was to sign on as a Merchant Navy steward on a ship bound for the Mediterranean. He arrived back in Liverpool after only a few months at sea and moved into the Stanley home in Newcastle Road. He auditioned for local theatre managers as a 'ship's entertainer', but had no success. Julia found out that she was pregnant (with Lennon) in January of 1940. As the war had started Alf was sent to work as a merchant seaman during World War II, but sent regular paychecks to Julia, who was living with Lennon at 9 Newcastle Road. The checks stopped when Alf went AWOL in 1943.

John

Lennon was born on 9 October 1940 in the second-floor ward of the Oxford Street Maternity Hospital in Liverpool, during the course of a German air raid in World War II. Julia's eldest sister, Mimi, phoned the hospital and was told that Julia had given birth to a boy. Mimi made her way to the hospital during the air raid—dodging in and out of doorways to avoid the shrapnel—and running "as fast as my legs could carry me". Lennon was named after his paternal grandfather and Winston Churchill. Alf was not present at Lennon's birth, as he was away at sea.

Lennon started at his first school in November 1945—Mosspits on Woolton Road—so Julia found a part-time job at a café near the school so that she could take him to school, and then pick him up afterwards. After numerous criticisms from the Stanley family about the still-married Julia 'living in sin' with Bobby Dykins, and considerable pressure from Mimi—who twice contacted Liverpool's Social Services to complain about the infant Lennon sleeping in the same bed as Julia and Dykins—Julia reluctantly handed the care of Lennon over to Mimi.

In July 1946, Alf visited Mimi's house at 251 Menlove Avenue and took Lennon to Blackpool for a long holiday—although secretly intending to emigrate to New Zealand with him. Julia and Dykins found out and followed them to Blackpool. Alf asked Julia to go with them both to New Zealand, but Julia refused. After a heated argument Alf said the five-year-old Lennon had to choose between Julia or him. Lennon chose Alf (twice) and then Julia walked away, but in the end Lennon (crying) followed her. Alf lost contact with the family until Beatlemania, when he and Lennon met again.

Julia took Lennon back to her house and enrolled him in a local school, but after few weeks she handed him back to Mimi. Lennon then lived continuously at 'Mendips,' in the smallest bedroom above the front door. Julia later bought Lennon his first guitar for £10 19/6d—after he had pestered her incessantly for weeks—but insisted that it had to be delivered to her house and not to Mimi's. As Lennon had difficulty learning chords, she taught him banjo and ukelele chords, which were simpler. She also later taught Lennon how to play the piano accordion. She also played Elvis Presley's records to Lennon, and would dance around her kitchen with him.

In 1957, when The Quarrymen (before Paul McCartney and George Harrison joined) played at St. Barnabas Hall, Penny Lane, Julia turned up to watch them. After each song Julia would clap and whistle louder than everyone else, and was seen "swaying and dancing" throughout the whole concert. Lennon frequently visited Julia's house during that period, detailing his anxieties and problems, with Julia giving Lennon encouragement to stay with music over Mimi's objections.

Victoria

During 1942-1943, Julia lived with Lennon at The Dairy Cottage; 120a Allerton Road, Woolton. The cottage was owned by Mimi's husband, George Smith, and Mimi wanted Julia to live there so they would be closer to her house, and would also be out of the Stanley's house. As Alf was often away at sea, Julia started going out to dance halls. In 1942, she met a Welsh soldier named Williams who was stationed in the barracks at Mossley Hill. Alf blamed himself for this, as he had written letters telling Julia that because there was a war on, she should go out and enjoy herself. After an evening out, Julia would often give the young Lennon a piece of chocolate or shortcrust pastry the next morning for breakfast. She became pregnant by Williams in late 1944, though first claiming that she had been raped by an unknown soldier. Williams refused to live with Julia—who was still married to Alf—until she gave up Lennon, which Julia refused to do. When Alf eventually came home in 1944 he offered to look after Julia, Lennon, and the expected baby, but Julia rejected the idea.

Alf took Lennon to his brother Sydney's house, in the Liverpool suburb of Maghull, a few months before Julia came to term. Julia gave birth to a daughter, Victoria Elizabeth, in the Elmswood Nursing Home on 19 June 1945 Victoria was subsequently given up for adoption to a Norwegian Salvation Army Captain (Peder and Margaret Pedersen) after intense pressure from Julia's family. Lennon was not told about Victoria—who was later re-named Ingrid Marie—and supposedly never knew of her existence. When Victoria/Ingrid was 53-years-old, she was interviewed by a British tabloid newspaper and revealed that she found out that she was related to Lennon in 1966 (when she was a nurse) as she wanted to get married and had to produce her birth certificate.

John Albert "Bobby" Dykins

Julia started seeing Dykins a year after Victoria's birth (although they had known each other before) when she was working in the café near Lennon's primary school, Mosspits. Dykins was a good-looking, well-dressed man who was several years older than Julia and worked at the Adelphi Hotel in Liverpool as a wine steward. Julia later moved into a small flat in Gateacre with Dykins. He enjoyed luxuries, and had access to rationed goods like alcohol, chocolate, silks and cigarettes, which was what attracted Julia to him. The Stanley sisters called him "Spiv", because of his pencil-thin moustache, margarine-coated hair, and pork-pie hat, but the young Lennon called him "Twitchy" because of a physical tic/nervous cough that Dykins had. Julia's family and friends remembered that Dykins also had a fiery temperament, which could result in his being violent when drunk. Lennon remembered Julia once visiting Mimi's when her face was bleeding after being hit by Dykins.

Paul McCartney later admitted to being sarcastic to Lennon about Julia living in sin with Dykins while she was still married. (Although Julia never divorced Alf, she was considered to be the Common-law wife of Dykins). Julia wanted Lennon to live with them both, but he was passed between the Stanley sisters, and often ran away to Mimi's where she would open the door to find Lennon standing there, "his face covered in tears."

Julia was accused by the family of being frivolous and unreliable—she never enjoyed household chores—and was once seen sweeping the kitchen floor with a pair of knickers on her head. Her cooking methods were also haphazard; she would mix things "like a mad scientist", and even put tea "or anything else that came to hand" in a stew. A favorite joke of Julia's would be to wear a pair of spectacles that had no glass in them, and then to scratch her eye through the empty frame.

Dykins later managed several bars in Liverpool, which allowed Julia to stay at home and look after their two daughters and Lennon, who often visited and stayed overnight, at 1 Blomfield Road, Liverpool. Lennon and Paul McCartney would later rehearse in the bathroom of the house where the acoustics "sounded like a recording studio." Dykins used to give Lennon weekly pocket money (one shilling) for doing odd jobs, on top of the five shillings that Mimi gave him. In December 1965, Dykins was killed in a car crash at the bottom of Penny Lane. Lennon was not told about his death for months afterwards, as it was "not [Stanley] family business."

Julia and Jacqui

Julia later had two daughters with Dykins: Julia (b. 5 March 1947) and Jacqueline (Jacqui) Dykins (b. 26 October 1949) As Jacqui was born prematurely, Julia went to the hospital everyday to see her. When Lennon was 11-years-old, he started to visit the Dykins' house and often stayed there overnight. Julia Dykins would give up her bed to him, and share Jacqui's bed. Julia remembered that after Lennon had visited them, her mother would often play a record called, My Son John, To Me You Are So Wonderful, "by some old crooner, and sit and listen to it." (Julia probably meant "My Son John"—sung by David Whitfield—which was released in 1956). After Julia's death, the two girls (aged eleven and eight) were sent to stay in Edinburgh at Aunt Mater's, and were told two months later by Norman Birch (Lennon's uncle) that their mother had died. After the success of The Beatles Lennon bought a 4-bedroom house in Gateacre Park Drive, Liverpool, for Jacqui and Julia to live in with Lennon's Aunt Harriet and Uncle Norman, who were earlier made the legal guardians of the girls—ignoring Dykins' parentage, as he had never legally married Julia. After Lennon's death and Harriet died, Yoko wanted to sell the house—as it was still in Lennon's name—but later gave it to the Salvation Army on 2 November 1993, even though Lennon had once written a letter, saying:

“I always thought of the house he's in [Norman] as my contribution towards looking after Julia and Jacqui. I would prefer the girls to use it.”

When she was older, Jacqui moved in with Mimi for a time when Mimi was living in Poole, but left after she became pregnant. She later reappeared when she became pregnant for the second time, and asked Mimi for money. Julia and Jacqui have both publicly said that they wished Lennon had "never seen a guitar."

Julia and Jacqui later met Victoria/Ingrid when they were present at the ceremony to place a Blue Heritage plaque on Mimi's house, commemorating the fact that Lennon had lived there. Stan (Julia's cousin) was up the ladder fixing the plaque to the wall and said, "I think I can see Ingrid" (walking towards the house). This was a surprise to Julia and Jacqui, as it meant that Stan had seen Ingrid before, even though Julia and Jacqui had not. When all three finally met for the first time Julia was shocked that Ingrid did not look anything like the Stanley family, as she had pale blue eyes and fair hair.

Death

Julia visited Mimi's house nearly every day, where they would chat over tea and cakes in the morning room or stand in the garden when it was warm. On the evening of 15 July 1958, Nigel Whalley went to visit Lennon and found Julia and Mimi talking by the front gate. Lennon was not there, as he was staying at Julia's house in Blomfield Road. Whalley accompanied Julia to the bus stop further down Menlove Avenue, with Julia cracking jokes along the way. At about 9:30, Whalley left her and she crossed the road to the central reservation between the two traffic lanes, which was lined with hedges that covered disused tram tracks. Five seconds later, Whalley heard "a loud thud," and turned to see Julia's body "flying through the air"—Julia's body landed about 100 feet from where she had been hit. He ran back to get Mimi and they waited for the ambulance, with Mimi crying hysterically.

Julia was struck and killed by a Standard Vanguard car (LKF 630) driven by an off-duty constable, PC Eric Clague, who was a learner-driver. Clague later said: "Mrs. Lennon just ran straight out in front of me. I just couldn't avoid her. I was not speeding, I swear it. It was just one of those terrible things that happen." Clague was acquitted of all charges and given a short suspension from duty. When Mimi heard the verdict she was so incensed that she shouted "Murderer!" at Clague. Clague later left the Police force and became a postman. Ironically, in 1964, part of his round was to deliver bags of fan mail to the McCartney's house at 20 Forthlin Road, after The Beatles became successful.

Lennon could not bring himself to look at Julia's corpse when he was taken to view it at the Sefton General Hospital, and was so distraught that he put his head on Mimi's lap throughout the funeral service. Lennon refused to talk to Whalley for months afterwards, and Whalley felt that Lennon somehow held him responsible. Julia's death traumatized the teenage Lennon, and contributed to the emotional difficulties that haunted him for much of his life. Julia's memory inspired songs such as "Julia," "Mother," and "My Mummy's Dead." Lennon's first son, Julian, was named after her.

Julia was buried in the Allerton Cemetery, in Liverpool. Her gravesite is unmarked, but it was recently identified as "CE (Church of England) 38-805." The graveyard's location is approx. 1.19 miles east of 1 Blomfield Road. Baird recently said that the Stanley family hopes to finally put a headstone on Julia's grave, which she said will be a private affair for the family and not for the public.

Wikipedia