2021

Back in 2018, I had a conversation with Dr. Robert Hieronimus  and Laura Cortner, authors of Inside the Yellow Submarine: The Making of the Beatles’ Animated Classic – the definitive history of the 1968 film.

There’s been loads of speculation as to the exact nature of the friendship between John Lennon and Paul McCartney; during and after The Beatles

In this discussion, Dr. Duncan Driver (SATB 205, Fab4ConJam, One Sweet Dream podcast) springboard off of the title Paul McCartney quote, in which he asserted that each Beatle was as important as another to the group’s success. We explore the shifting power dynamics within the group and the question of leadership; we also discuss Duncan’s thesis of the four distinctive elements of the Beatles collective identity: live performers – singles makers – album makers – songwriters.

In this episode, we examine the process of a song becoming a record, as heard through the ears of those in the producer’s chair. Luther Russell,

My guest Tim English (Sounds Like Teen Spirit, Popology) discuss his newest book, examining the artists that John was listening to in the last few years of his life and how certain artists and records influenced the recordings he (and Yoko) made during the summer of 1980. Some of the acts we’ve known about for awhile (B-52s, Lene Lovich, etc) but many others were less obvious (The Selecter, Christopher Cross, The Doobie Brothers). John Lennon: 1980 Playlist is out now.

Back in SATB 205, Dr. Duncan Driver (showcased 2+xs at Fab4ConJam) and discussed his article on the timeline to The Beatles break-up.  In this episode, returning guest Gary Wenstrup and I dissect the subject further: when exactly did The Beatles – or individual members within – decide they were quits exactly? The answer – like so much else in Fab history – is not as straightforward as you might think.

It was in 1968 that a young Canadian filmmaker, seeking solace in TM for a broken heart, was befriended by The Beatles in Rishikesh during their immersive study with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In 2000, Paul Saltzman published his wonderfully immediate photos in a book (The Beatles in Rishikesh), later augmented and re-published as The Beatles in India in 2018. 2020 saw the release of his documentary, Meeting The Beatles in India – a film that brings together others who were there (Pattie and Jenny Boyd) as well as the real “Bungalow Bill,” Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn and filmmaker David Lynch, a major booster of TM. You can check out Paul’s website here, and see the film as well as participate in a Q&A with Paul at the first Fab4ConJam on February 21, 2021. Details: fab4conjam.com

Big things take much time to execute: both this episode and the long-awaited event I’ve been teasing for the last few months….