July 2025

In 2014, sociologist Candy Leonard published Beatleness: How the Beatles and Their Fans Remade The World. It was a groundbreaking work, representing a serious exploration into the phenomenon of fandom and the reciprocal relationship between artist and audience, and the impact that all of it had on lives – and the world – that reverberates ever onward even today, sixty years on.  Candy has twice been a guest on the show (155: 1968 and 180: “…I buried Paul…”) but for this conversation, we focused on the politics of Beatles: not their personal convictions per se but what they meant fresh out of the gate – what they represented and how they were received by fans and the establishment alike.    In this talk, we covered hair (as a statement) – drugs – evolution – One to One – Beatles ’64 – feminism – Taylor Swift – The Monkees.   Check out Candy’s site for her essays and more (https://www.candyleonard.com/beatleness ). 

Director Alan G. Parker’s newest film is a personal expression of gratitude toward John Lennon for being a figure that helped him through some difficult years when he was growing up. Borrowed Time: Lennon’s Last Decade includes interviews with dozens of figures who knew him; everyone from Aunt Mimi (archival footage) to journalists like Ray Connolly, Chris Charlesworth, and Anthony DeCurtis, plus writers like Philip Norman and Ken Womack and other figures of influence, like Tariq Ali. The result is an impressionistic portrait of John’s post-Beatles years, tapping the creativity that comes from working without official sanction. Parker’s other work includes 2017’s It Was Fifty Years Ago Today on Sgt. Pepper, plus other films and books covering punk acts including The Clash and the Sex Pistols.