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Yoko Ono, the woman once regarded as the most disliked figure in pop, has written in a new book of her continuing desolation at the loss of her husband, John Lennon of the Beatles. Produced to mark the 25th anniversary of his murder in New York, Memories of John Lennon is a collection of stories of, and tributes to, the man widely regarded as the defining spirit of rock and protest. It includes contributions from contemporaries, Sir Mick Jagger, Pete Townshend and Ray Charles, political activists such as Tariq Ali, actor Dennis Hopper and later stars, among them Sir Elton John. In an emotional foreword, Ono writes that she still feels grief when she thinks of the husband that assassin Mark Chapman’s bullets took from her: "When John passed away so suddenly that night, I felt as though half of me flew away with him. My body, especially my knees, shook so badly I had to hold on to a friend to walk out of the hospital ... Others less close to Lennon have more upbeat recollections. Desmond Morris recalls how the London literati came to the launch of Lennon’s first book ready to sneer, but went away charmed as the Beatle worked the room like a seasoned politician. Mick Jagger reveals why he thinks of Lennon every time he goes to the US. Like Lennon, he had problems obtaining a visa to enter the United States because of a previous conviction in Britain for marijuana possession. Jagger said that Lennon’s successful court battle ensured objections to his own visa were overturned. Sir Elton John recalls how he was "terrified" of meeting Lennon because of his "biting wit and musical genius". He needn’t have worried. "There was no attitude, no swagger - just humility and warmth," he writes. Cilla Black reveals how she got her big break after Lennon insisted that the Beatles’ manager, Brian Epstein, go to see her perform. Over more than 20 pages, close friend, Elliot Mintz describes the Lennon he knew "beyond the veil of ‘entertainer". He writes: "I always viewed him as a softy ... John was close to six feet but appeared smaller." While many of the entries recall how Lennon influenced music, some of the most fascinating insights into his life concern his politics. Anti-war activist Tom Hayden recounts the efforts made by both the American and British security services to prevent Lennon from performing in the US during the 1972 presidential election. FBI files uncovered by Hayden laid out plans to "neutralise any disruptive activities". Tariq Ali, left-wing writer, reveals that Epstein barred Lennon from going on the major anti-Vietnam war marches in London in 1967 and 1968. Ali writes. "I was in no doubt that Yoko had radicalised him further on the artistic and the political front." Channel 4 is screening a documentary in which Mark Chapman reveals his thoughts as he waited outside the Dakota building in Manhattan for Lennon to arrive back home on the night of December 8, 1980. In his pocket was the gun that would silence forever that rasping, soaring voice of song and protest. — By arrangement with The Independent |
