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PART III: PRIMAL SOUNDS

After the Beatles stopped touring in 1966, John Lennon received several offers to build up his literary and artistic career. He accepted a supporting role in the film, How I Won the War, produced by Richard Lester, based on the novel by Patrick Ryan. In September of 1966, filming began; the world premiére took place over a year later, on October 18, 1967, in London. As I stated in Chapter 2, John revealed his empathy for Germany and Nazis in How I Won the War, an anti-war movie masked in avant-garde comedy. It’s an odd anti-war movie because it lampoons the role of the British during the Second World War.

The lead character is young British Lieutenant Earnest Goodbody, played by British actor Michael Crawford. Lennon plays a supporting role, British Musketeer (Private) Batman Gripweed, a self-proclaimed former fascist, albeit a non-threatening friendly one. Although Lennon did not play the lead role, he lent his name to the movie which gave it more attention amongst critics and the public than it would have otherwise received.

I suspect John’s decision to accept a supporting role in this particular movie was partially because he respected the anti-war theme, and partially as a jab at the people who had attacked him a few months earlier for making an innocent remark about the Beatles being more popular than Jesus. I am referring of course the people who run the news media in America and most of the Western world: The Jews. As I inferred in Chapter 2, John Lennon probably admired Adolf Hitler, as did many Germans. And John had spent a great deal of time in Hamburg, so there is little doubt that he heard the German perspective about Hitler. Klaus Voorman, Astrid Kirchherr and other young Germans probably confided in Lennon regarding their feelings about World War II, Hitler, and his treatment of Jews. In fact, Klaus Voorman was a practicing Existentialist, an intellectual philosophy that deals with human existence in the world. My point this: Intellectuals are not above discussing taboo topics like Hitler’s treatment of Jews, and Voorman was an intellectual—an Existentialist—and Lennon was an intellectual. Therefore, it is only far-fetched to suggest that two intellectuals—one of them German—would not discuss Hitler’s treatment of Jews.

Biographer Barry Miles gave an insightful description—in Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now—of Voorman’s interest in Existentialism, plus some background on the philosophy and its popularity among young German students in the early 1960s. The following is an excerpt:

So in a sense, the Beatles were caught between the worlds of the Rockers and the Exis, which was essentially two different social classes of German youth. The Rockers were from blue collar families, the working class; the Exis were college students, most of them from the upper middle class and wealthy homes. The clubs the Beatles played at the Reeperbahn were hangouts for the Rockers, but an Exis (Klaus Voorman) accidentally discovered them one night and began bringing his friends around. The Exis learned to run for cover when the Rockers would start fights, but they kept coming back.

With this understanding of the Beatles’ following at the clubs of the Reeperbahn, let me restate a previous assertion: Klaus Voorman, Astrid Kirchherr and other young Germans probably confided in Lennon regarding their feelings about World War II, Hitler, and his treatment of Jews. We do not know this absolutely; however, we know John was close friends with Klaus and Astrid, two young Germans—one of them an Existentialist—who certainly were not thrilled with the post-war fate of Germany. They’ve never stated it overtly, but how could they be anything other than disenchanted with the way Germany was treated after World War II? Look at the history. Only 15 years had passed since World War II when the Beatles first played clubs of the Reeperbahn and Hamburg was still recovering. Through the anguish of war and its residual effects on Germany’s youth population, Hamburg flourished as an artistic hub, a creative center in Europe in the Fifties and early Sixties. Few people in the Western world today will give credit or recognition to the children of Nazi soldiers for being the lightening rod for the cultural revolution of the Sixties in America, but they deserve a high degree of praise. After all, they gave us the Beatles. But if Lennon admired Hitler, he was certainly not the first prominent public figure to do so. In 1945 a young Jack Kennedy wrote the following words in his diary in praise of Adolf Hitler:

This was the backdrop of John Lennon’s rise to worldwide fame as a rock legend. Within this context, a different picture of Lennon and the other Beatles begins to emerge. In fact, Lennon displayed an obsession with Hitler, frequently injecting his name in conversations or making references to him in song lyrics. For example, British actor Victor Spinetti (who starred in A Hard Days Night, Help!, and Magical Mystery Tour) observed how the Beatles—led by John—playfully imitated Hitler in front of crowds of Austrian teenagers. The following is Spinetti’s description of the event:

On January 19, 1984, Yoko Ono released posthumous recordings of John on an album entitled, Milk and Honey. One of the songs, "Nobody Told Me," mentions "Nazis" in the first verse. The following are the lyrics to the first verse of "Nobody Told Me:"

And as previously mentioned, in Chapter 2, John mentioned Hitler in the 1969 song, "God," recorded with the Plastic Ono Band. There is really no question that John had a fixation with Hitler, and consequently, and his decision to play the supporting role in How I Won the War was apparently the culmination of that fixation. Again, the movie is essentially pro-Nazi, at least in the sense that Nazis were portrayed as human beings. The British were portrayed as buffoons, while the Nazis are treated with a degree of humanity mixed with humor. Often the Nazi soldiers seem like wise sages who offer insightful advice about war. Here is an example where the nitwit Lieutenant Goodbody—after being captured by Nazis—attempts to convince a Nazi commander that he (Goodbody) is a really a civilian, even though he wears a British uniform, and should be released.

In another scene, Goodbody asks the Nazi Commander if he’s had any humorous incidents. The Nazi gives very thoughtful responses, acting almost like a psychiatrist for the troubled young Brit. At one point, the Nazi accuses Goodbody of being a fascist; something I found hysterically funny. They even discuss Nazi treatment of Jews. Here’s the scene:

There’s one particularly funny Lennon scene where Goodbody, Gripweed (Lennon) and another musketeer break into a civilian home. Goodbody announces to the surprised man of the house reading a paper, "We are English!" Gripweed/Lennon then proceeds to smash a window out and knock over a potted plant, then turns to the man of the house and politely says, "Nice place you’ve got here." It’s hysterical, particularly if you’re a Lennon fan.

At the end of the film there’s an irreverent but poignant moment when Lieutenant Goodbody says goodbye to the Nazi Commander on the bridge. As a show of respect, Goodbody gives him a Nazi salute and the Nazi reciprocates with a British salute. Suddenly the Nazi Commander is run down by a British tank and killed; it’s very bloody and gruesome. Goodbody is sick with grief. The scene changes, moving ahead in time about 30 years. An older, less cocky Goodbody reminisces about the war with one of the soldiers under his command, one who was afraid to fight. Goodbody pours drinks for the two men as the former soldier reflects on the war.

On November 9, 1966, John went to an art exhibit at London’s Indica Gallery and met Yoko Ono for the first time. Many people wonder what he saw in her. It doesn’t take rocket science to realize that John obviously understood the malevolence of Jewish supremacy, that he felt empathy for Germans and Hitler, but he had to be careful what he said on those topics in public, or his career would be destroyed. Therefore it is quite understandable that he would be interested in an intelligent Japanese woman, whose countrymen had sided with Hitler during World War II. Keep in mind, he met Yoko about two months after the Beatles had stopped touring because he feared assassination and he was pretty shaken up, particularly after the incident in Memphis where someone had ignited a fire cracker on stage and he and everyone else thought an assassin was shooting at him. I expect John’s Jewish friend and manager Brian Epstein had warned him that certain powerful Jewish forces were after him. I don’t know this absolutely, but we know Epstein feared the Beatles would be assassinated on their 1966 tour, and he later feared he would be killed in a plane crash as well. Given John’s sudden interest in playing a fascist in a pro-Nazi movie, it’s safe to presume his feelings about many Jews were less than cordial. Within this context, falling in love with a Japanese woman would be as natural for John as playing a guitar or writing a song. Besides that, Yoko was an artist like him, and sexy too. The following are John and Yoko’s recollections of their first meeting:

While on the set for How I Won the War, John wrote a new song, "Strawberry Fields Forever." On November 24, 1966, the Beatles began recording the song, which turned out to be a landmark recording in the overall Beatles history. The song and the recording itself marked a major shift in the direction of the Beatles music at the time. It’s a fascinating song about a boys’ reformatory, in Liverpool, near the house where John grew up. The lyrics are as follows:

The phrase "I think I know I mean a Yes" is classic Lennon wordplay. John described the inspiration for the song to David Sheff in a 1980 Playboy interview:

The recording of Strawberry Fields Forever was one of the Beatles’ most elaborate efforts to date. In an interview years later, producer George Martin described how he worked with Lennon to get just the right sound for Strawberry Fields. The following is an excerpt:

"Strawberry Fields Forever" and another song, "Penny Lane," set the stage for the new Beatles’ sound which was introduced to the world on Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. After completion of Strawberry Fields, Paul McCartney began working alone on Penny Lane, a song with a similar theme as Strawberry Fields: Liverpool. Penny Lane is another classic Beatle song with a catchy Beatle melody, but the recording approach—led by McCartney—was quite different from previous recordings, even Strawberry Fields.

According to musicologist Mark Lewisohn, Paul began recording Penny Lane by himself on December 29, 1966. He spent hours recording the distinctive piano part. Using a four-track machine, Paul recorded the basic piano part, playing a conventional piano, on Track 1. On Tracks 2 and 3, he recorded electric pianos played through a Vox guitar amplifier; someone played a tambourine as well. Track 4 contained a variety of special effect noises. The next day the four tracks were mixed down to one track on another four-track tape recorder and the song evolved from there. On January 4, 1966, John added yet another piano part and George played a lead guitar part. Paul added a vocal track. The next day, January 5^th, Paul overdubbed another vocal part. On January 6th, Ringo finally added the drum tack, along with Paul’s bass guitar and John’s rhythm guitar. This was the rhythm section which is normally recorded first, rather than near the end. On January 9^th, six classical musicians were brought in to overdub four flutes and two trumpets. Three of the musicians also overdubbed two piccolos and a flügelhorn. Additional vocal harmonies and various novelty sounds were added on January 10^th. A second round of classical instruments were added by five classical musicians on January 12^th (two trumpets, two oboes, two cor anglais and a double-bass). The last portion of Penny Lane—added on January 17^th—added the distinctive high-pitch piccolo trumpet performed by classical musician Dave Mason.¹⁰ (different from Dave Mason the rock star)

On February 17, 1967, EMI released a single of Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields Forever. Ironically, neither song reached the coveted number one spot, the first time since Please Please Me was released four years earlier. The songs were intended to be released on Sgt. Pepper, but Brian Epstein had urged them to put out a single because several months had passed since a new Beatle song was released. So they released Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields Forever as a single; and because the Beatles had a long-standing policy of not including singles on their albums,^* the two songs do not appear on Sgt. Pepper.¹¹

On June 1, 1967, the Beatles released Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, their most industrious album yet. Sgt. Pepper was cutting edge for several reasons. First, it used a variety of musical sounds, combining classical instruments with rock ‘n’ roll guitars, bass, and drums. This musical approach began in a limited way with the previous album, Revolver, but Sgt. Pepper took that approach to a new realm. Second, Sgt. Pepper contained 13 songs, not a single love song among them. Instead, the songs conjured up imagery of all sorts: marmalade skies; tangerine trees; rocking horse people eating marshmallow pies; four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire; life flows on within you and without you. This was unprecedented in rock music in 1967. Overall, Sgt. Pepper was a team effort, but Lennon’s lyrical influence began to shine brightly above the other Beatles, above other rock stars for that matter. The music, the lyrics, and the arrangements on Sgt. Pepper took listeners to another place. In my opinion, the album’s strongest songs are Lennon’s "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and "A Day in The Life" and George Harrison’s "Within You and Without You," the latter song exhibiting Harrison’s growing interest in Eastern music and the sitar.^†

Third, the album cover—designed by Peter Blake—conjures up all sorts of images. Besides the Beatles, the cover has pictures of comedian W. C. Fields, actor Johnny Weismuller (Tarzan), singer Bob Dylan, actor Tony Curtis, actress Marilyn Monroe, comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, actor Marlon Brando, and former Beatle Stuart Sutcliffe. And once again, John tried to display a picture of Hitler, this time beside a picture of Jesus. The following is Peter Blake’s description of how the "magic crowd" concept was developed, and how John Lennon almost included Hitler and Jesus with everyone else:

Ironically, Pepper is considered a milestone in Paul McCartney’s career, but in my opinion, it’s one of his weakest Beatle albums as a songwriter. He wrote the title song, "Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band," an interesting rock number, but not a brilliant work by any stretch of the imagination. The rest of his contributions are mediocre, nothing like his previous works. Besides the title song, Paul’s contributions were "Getting Better," "Fixing a Hole," "She’s Leaving Home," "When I’m Sixty-Four," and "Lovely Rita." Not one of them are comparable to "Penny Lane," "Here, There, and Everywhere," "Got to Get You Into My Life," or "Eleanor Rigby," the latter three tunes he wrote for Revolver. He and John teamed up to write "A Little Help From My Friends" for Ringo to sing lead, perhaps not a brilliant song, but a classic Beatle song with impeccable Lennon-McCartney backup harmonies. Singer-songwriter James Taylor, for example, says he was inspired by Sgt. Pepper. The following are Taylor’s recollections about the remarkable album:

Most devout Beatle fans are aware that A Day in the Life was banned by BBC Radio, on May 20, 1967, ostensibly because its lyrics might encourage recreational drug usage. Beatle fans also know that A Day in the Life was written primarily by John Lennon, but McCartney added a middle section and helped extensively with the arrangement. I was eleven when the censorship incident occurred. I remember reading about the ban before the song was released. Twelve days later, on June 1st, the Beatles released their most artistic LP to date, Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which contained the controversial tune.

I recall being anxious to hear the song, wanting to learn exactly what line my rock heroes had crossed lyrically. When I bought the album, I was somewhat confused about the ban. Lyrics to all the tunes were printed on back of the album cover. I read and analyzed A Day in the Life looking for something that appeared unacceptable. I never found it. One of the articles about the ban claimed the British censors objected to the line, "I’d love to turn you on." At eleven, I didn’t understand why that line would get a song banned. But I accepted it as a "grown-up" thing and assumed it would make sense when I got older. It never did. I’m now forty-seven and I still don’t understand why the those lyrics would get a song banned.

Even more puzzling, John Lennon stated in his last interview (Playboy, 1980) that he and Paul loved the lyrics to She’s a Woman because it contained the following words: "…turn me on when I get lonely, people tell me that she’s only foolin’, I know she isn’t." Where were the BBC censors when She’s a Woman was released? Why was it acceptable to turn us on with She’s a Woman but not with A Day in the Life?

The answer is simple. A Day in the Life was banned for another reason, one that had absolutely nothing to do with drugs. The drug thing was a pretext for something more serious, a matter of state. In two lines of the song, Lennon plugged his new movie, How I Won the War, and the novel—written by Patrick Ryan—on which the movie was based. Here are the critical lyrics:

Can there be any doubt that Lennon was plugging How I Won the War, the movie scheduled for release the following fall? I don’t think so. The movie premiered in London on Oct. 18, 1967, three and a half months after A Day in the Life was released.

What was so offensive about the movie? No one openly objected to Lennon’s newfound love of pacifism. But How I Won the War essentially said Britain was wrong to fight Germany in World War II. That’s pretty extreme. For someone of Lennon’s stature to support such a position was scandalous. Britain, the US and most of the other Western powers spent (and still spend) billions of dollars annually on propaganda designed to sway public opinion in favor of their respective actions—past, present, and future. The two lines in Lennon’s song could potentially undo a vast amount hard work and money spent getting citizens of the world to believe that Hitler was a monster, that Jews were poor wretched victims, that President Harry Truman was right to drop two atomic bombs on Japan, that World War II was fought for a noble cause, and so on. Lennon was openly challenging all of these things. And he did it with two lines in a song. It was vintage Lennon.

The Western powers must have been quite perplexed by this young lad from Liverpool turned international rock star. He was clearly no ordinary teen idol. He was different from Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, or the Rolling Stones. Lennon was not merely a rock star, his intellect set him apart from his peers. He was not an elected official, but he wielded more power than any politician around because he was so beloved by the world’s young people. Even more confounding to his critics and enemies, he obviously knew he commanded such power. In fact, in a 1970 Rolling Stone interview, Lennon boasted about his ability to "maneuver people."

Lennon’s point of view about World War II was more than reasonable, albeit taboo. Germany had been treated harshly by Europe and the US after World War I; World War II was merely an adjunct to the first war. In certain academic circles, this is a completely acceptable point of view. But for a rock star to display such empathy for Nazis, this was sedition. How would people of influence handle the troublesome working class young man from Liverpool?

In the midst of Lennon’s fun and games with the power elite, his partner, Paul McCartney, made what most people consider a colossal faux pas. On June 18, 1967, McCartney’s birthday, he claims he told a reporter he had used LSD.¹⁴ The next day he made further statements to the news media to clarify his first comment. Public reaction was immediate and negative. McCartney was criticized heavily, but he proved to have the same Teflon armor worn by many politicians. Today, few people remember his controversial statements. But upon closer scrutiny of the comments made, McCartney’s public admission is quite suspicious, for reasons that have little to do with substance abuse. Was the LSD comment really an error in judgment, or was it a calculated statement designed to weaken Lennon? Regardless of McCartney’s intentions, his LSD remark validated the BBC’s position that the Beatles were experimenting with drugs, that A Day in the Life would encourage drug use, something that was clearly untrue. As I pointed out before, A Day in the Life had minimal drug references. But McCartney's comment—whether accidental or by design—provided the spin needed by the BBC to convince the public that it was justified in banning Lennon's renowned song.

In addition, there appears to confusion regarding Paul’s specific statements and the precise dates they were made; however, my research indicates Paul made at least three public statements, one on his 25th birthday (June 18, 1967) and at least two the next day. On June 18, Paul reportedly made a statement in London to a male newspaper reporter, but it is unclear who the reporter was or for what media outlet he was employed. Presumably the reporter asked Paul if he took LSD, and Paul said Yes. The next day, Paul made follow-up statements on British television and to Life Magazine primarily to explain his previous comment to the unknown reporter.

Kristofer Engelhardt is the only source I have found to assert that Paul’s initial LSD statement was made on his 25th birthday, June 18, 1967^h. Most accounts indicate Paul made the statement on June 19^th; however, if you read what Paul says in the June 19^th statements, he refers back to a previous statement he made to a "newpaperman" regarding LSD use. Therefore, it seems as though Engelhardt’s timeline is probably accurate. The following is an excerpt from Engelhardt’s 1998 book, The Beatles Undercover, where he claims Paul "announced to the world" he used LSD on his birthday, June 18, 1967:

David Pritchard and Alan Lysaght claim Paul made statements about LSD use to Life Magazine on June 19, 1967. The following is an excerpt from Pritchard and Lysaght’s 1998 book, The Beatles: An Oral History, where Paul explains why he admitted to Life Magazine that he had taken LSD:

I found a website called "The Beatles Ultimate Experience" which contains a database of interviews with the Beatles. The database contains what it describes as a transcript of a filmed interview with McCartney, on June 19, 1967, where he states he used LSD four times. The following is an excerpt of the interview, as presented on "The Beatles Ultimate Experience" website:

As it turns out, McCartney didn’t make one colossal faux pas, he made three and possibly more. He reportedly told reporters on at least three occasions that he used LSD. In two interviews on June 19, 1967, McCartney claimed a reporter had asked him—on a previous occasion (presumably the day before)—if he had ever taken LSD, and he said Yes. What reporter? What was his name? McCartney claimed the reporter spread his answer to the public. How? What media outlets ran the story of Paul’s LSD use before Paul himself restated the incident to Life Magazine and to British television reporters on June 19, 1967? Where was the original story published? The only record I have found regarding huge media coverage of Paul’s admission were staged by McCartney himself on June 19, 1967. If a reporter ever approached McCartney on an earlier date, as McCartney claims, I have found no record of it.

If McCartney’s statement was in fact designed to weaken Lennon, the next question is Why? Why betray his friend? The motivation is obvious: Jealousy. In 1967, McCartney was only 25. He was obviously talented, but many viewed him merely as Lennon’s subordinate, a decent musician with the ability to sing tenor with John, croon a few ballads, and imitate Little Richard from time to time. In September 1967, Tony Palmer described the Beatles in London Magazine as "one giant, his side-kick and two midgets."¹⁷ Comments like that must have bruised McCartney’s ego quite a bit, not to mention the egos of George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Nevertheless, Palmer’s abrasive words accurately reflected Lennon’s stature at that time. In 1967, Lennon was king. Many had declared him a genius. Within this context, it is quite plausible that someone from the FBI or British intelligence might have approached McCartney and asked him to more or less stab his friend in the back. In return, strings would be pulled; McCartney would be declared a genius from time to time, and Lennon would be viewed as HIS subordinate. Whether or not anyone approached McCartney with such a proposal remains a mystery, but it is a fact that McCartney began to gain more recognition around 1967.

If someone wanted to weaken Lennon, the smartest thing to do would be to turn McCartney against him. Despite his vast success, in many ways, McCartney must have felt cheated. He lived in the shadow of Lennon's brilliance. He was quite talented, a powerhouse singer, a talented and prolific songwriter, a top-notch bass player, a not too shabby pianist, and a hot guitarist. (NOTE: McCartney played the cutting edge guitar break in the middle of Ticket to Ride, not Lennon or Harrison.) Few stars have grown as much as Paul McCartney after achieving such monumental early success. Still he lacked something. He simply did not have Lennon’s inspiration, his creativity, or his charisma. McCartney did not have Lennon’s mind or his wit.

No one could blame McCartney for being jealous. All human beings succumb to the green-eyed monster at some point in our lives. Who among us would have been stronger in McCartney's place? Again, he was only 25. I am not asserting that McCartney had anything to do with Lennon’s murder. But it is quite plausible (and probable) that he was manipulated by Lennon’s powerful enemies to push the brash young rock star from his throne. In exchange, McCartney’s career was likely advanced. As time passed, Lennon became the Beatle most known for using drugs while McCartney's image as a family man flourished. Quite a role reversal for someone who once publicly admitted taking LSD.

Within two years, McCartney broke up with his longtime girlfriend Jane Asher and married Jewish American Princess Linda Eastman whose father Lee Eastman was a well known entertainment lawyer; so was her brother John Eastman. Lennon quickly developed a loathing for both men, particularly John Eastman, openly calling him an obnoxious "Wasp Jew."¹⁸

Brian Epstein’s death—on August 27, 1967—was officially ruled an accidental drug overdose, but rumors quickly spread that there was more to the story than the public was told.¹⁹ Consequently, Epstein’s death remains a topic of controversy to this day. Epstein was 32, Jewish and homosexual. Many believe the Beatles would not have achieved their superstar status had it not been for Epstein. He had been their manager for nearly six years—since December 1961—and had witnessed first-hand their rise to worldwide fame. My personal view of Epstein is (a) he was a competent businessman, but not necessarily an outstanding one; (b) he was slightly greedy, taking 25 percent of their earnings, more than an individual member made; (c) he genuinely loved the Beatles as artists and as people; (d) as a gay man, Epstein was extremely attracted to John Lennon; and (e) Lennon used Epstein’s homosexual attraction to his advantage.

Based on Lennon’s public statements of contempt for Jews, his interest in Hitler, and his deep kinship with the city of Hamburg, Germany, there can be little doubt that he held Judaism—as a culture—in low esteem. Of course, this is not to say that he was a bigot who hated every single Jew he came into contact with. Clearly Lennon associated with Jews, but I suspect he was cautious of getting too friendly with them. Nevertheless, he apparently understood that to achieve success in the entertainment business, one must deal with Jews. As a result, Lennon may have gone out of his way to find a Jewish manager. When he found one that was gay, and in love with him, he likely used that to his advantage the way some women exploit wealthy men in order to get at their wallets. This is probably where the rumors of Lennon’s bisexuality originated. Whether he and Epstein ever had a physical encounter is mere speculation, but it would certainly fit Lennon’s psychological profile to use someone like Epstein in order to achieve celebrity status. Of course, one does not need to consummate a physical relationship in order to exploit someone sexually. This was likely the true nature of Epstein’s relationship with Lennon.

Epstein apparently became more than a manager for the Beatles, he was the de facto mediator between the growing rivalries within the group and their entourage, particularly between the Lennon and McCartney camps. He was part of the Beatles’ inner circle, but he was not an artist himself. He was a businessman who genuinely loved the Beatles and their music. This made him the perfect person to resolve personal clashes between the four young superstars. Lennon and McCartney have stated separately that they knew the Beatles were doomed when Epstein died. "The Beatles broke up after Brian died," John told Jann Wenner (Rolling Stone Magazine, 1970). "I didn’t really have any misconceptions about our ability to do anything other than play music. And I was scared. I thought, We’ve fuckin’ had it."²⁰ Years later, George Harrison described Brian Epstein as being extremely responsible. The following are his comments:

Sixties rock star Billy J. Kramer^* described Brian as a thoughtful, responsible, caring person. The following are his comments years after Brian’s death:

John Lennon’s first wife, Cynthia Powell, credits Epstein for the Beatles’ fame and says he his contribution to their success has been vastly underrated. The following is an excerpt from an interview with Cynthia Powell years after the Beatles’ success:

Surprisingly, certain writers have portrayed Epstein as an alcoholic and drug abuser in the last year of his life. Logically this doesn’t make sense. How could someone that unreliable have held the Beatles together as John Lennon, George Harrison, Billy J. Kramer, and Lennon’s ex-wife Cynthia Powell claimed? It is widely accepted that Epstein became somewhat depressed after the Beatles decided to stop touring a year before his death. But frankly, this seems like a normal reaction under the circumstances. Epstein was their manager, and they weren’t going to tour anymore. Naturally he was sad. It was the end of an important part of his life. But I suspect the depths of his depression have been greatly exaggerated. After all, he was involved with several others acts besides the Beatles. It wasn’t as though he had nothing left to do. As manager, he dealt with record deals and promotional events other than touring. Nevertheless, some have depicted the last year of his life in extremely unflattering terms. Peter Brown, for example, described Epstein—in his book, The Love You Make—as "sick...deteriorating...on the edge of collapse" and needed to "get help" at a hospital. Here's an excerpt from Brown's book:

One has to ask: If a guy is so doped up he can barely function, which is the image Brown presented of Epstein, then how does this same person—a spaced out, doped up, drunken fool—hold the Beatles together as Lennon, Harrison, Kramer, and Powell claimed?

Brown's portrayal of Epstein is simply not believable. Perhaps Epstein's drinking and drug intake increased somewhat after the Beatles stopped touring, but was he unable to function? Did he miss—or nearly miss—interviews because of drug dependency and alcoholism? I seriously doubt it. History shows that the Beatles did in fact deteriorate after Epstein died. This supports Lennon, Harrison, Kramer, and Powell's view of Brian, that he was responsible and fully capable of managing the Beatles’ business affairs. A sick drug user could not do that.

Peter Brown's exaggerations about Epstein makes one wonder if there was more to the death of the Beatles' first manager than we've been told. Epstein’s death occurred less than two months before How I Won the War—a movie that was certainly viewed as pro-Nazi by many Jews—premiered in London on October 18, 1967. If someone wanted to destroy the Beatles, the best way to do it would be to create division amongst the band members. And what better way to create division than to eliminate their mediator and manager, Brian Epstein, the man who held the group together? As previously stated, rumors quickly spread about Epstein’s death, but the main controversy was whether Brian committed suicide versus the official conclusion that his death was truly accidental. Few people wondered if he was murdered. Why would anyone entertain such a thought? After all, Epstein was the manager of a rock group, he was not a politician. But this particular rock group had the power to influence world opinion more than any head of state, more than all world leaders combined.

Hunter Davies pointed out—in his book, The Beatles—that Epstein had a premonition he was going to die a few months before his demise. At one point he was certain his plane would crash. Here’s an excerpt from The Beatles:

Was Brian merely superstitious and eccentric or had someone threatened him? If my hypothesis is correct—that Jewish political forces hated Lennon—then Brian’s life might have been in danger if he refused to betray his friend. Recall that Brian was more than friends with John, he was attracted to him as a homosexual. This is not to say that they were lovers, but it is generally accepted that Brian had homosexual feelings—romantic feelings—for John. Davies further described the official ruling on Brian’s death. Here is an excerpt:

According to Davies, there was apparently concern to persuade the public that Brian had not taken his own life; however, homicide was never considered. As a footnote, it should be remembered that Epstein died at the height of Jewish expansion, less than three months after the Six Day War, an aggressive Israeli land-grab that was immediately labeled illegal by the United Nations per Resolutions 242 and later 338. Since then, one American president after another has given Israel virtually everything it wants. It should also be noted that the late William Sullivan (former assistant to J. Edgar Hoover at the FBI) revealed in his book, The Bureau: My Thirty Years in Hoover’s FBI, that Hoover detested the CIA because he wanted to expand the Bureau into international intelligence but his plans were circumvented when President Truman created the CIA in 1947 under the National Security Act. Nevertheless, Hoover continued to maintain offices in London, Paris, Rome, Ottowa, and Mexico City as well, in violation of the FBI’s domestic charter.²⁷ What this means, is the FBI had the means to murder Brian Epstein at his London home because the Bureau maintained an office in that city. It should also be noted that Jimi Hendrix died in London and Jim Morrison died in Paris; Princess Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris as well.

As stated in the previous chapter, "Tomorrow Never Knows" had a profound impact on rock music. Typically, other bands began to follow the Beatles’ creative instincts. In 1967, a San Francisco-based band, Jefferson Airplane, had a hit single, "Somebody to Love," which made dark lyrical references to lies, death, blood and tears. Sung by female vocalist Grace Slick, Somebody to Love was a groundbreaking song, similar to Tomorrow Never Knows. It was featured on the Jefferson Airplane’s second album, Surrealistic Pillow, obviously a psychedelic name. Many of the songs on the album made overt references to drugs and anti-war themes.

Musically, Somebody to Love has a driving, haunting sound that can only be described as psychedelic. The lyrics are as follows:

In 1967, Jimi Hendrix released another psychedelic song, "Purple Haze," which lyrically describes an LSD experience. The tune was included on Hendrix’s debut album, Are You Experienced?, with his trio, The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Hendrix is considered the personification of psychedelic music, probably inspired by Lennon’s song, Tomorrow Never Knows. And Purple Haze is considered the definitive psychedelic song which was not only inspired by LSD, but deals with it overtly.^* The following are the lyrics to Purple Haze, written by Jimi Hendrix:

Hendrix began to experiment with distorted feedback sounds on several recordings. He had been a sideman for Little Richard and reportedly was the only person to upstage the wild rock ‘n’ roller. In 1990, Little Richard made the following comments about Hendrix to writer Parke Puterbaugh (Rolling Stone Magazine). The following is an excerpt:

Jimi Hendrix may have attracted the attention of the FBI for reasons other than being a flamboyant rock star who wrote songs about LSD trips and played the guitar with his teeth. He seemed to be out of step with the segregated music industry of the Sixties. Hendrix had about as much in common with Berry Gordy as Janis Joplin had with Mother Teresa. Although Hendrix’s singing voice was clearly that of a black man, his fans were predominately white. His two side men, Mitch Mitchell (drums) and Noel Redding (bass) were white.^* In fact, many white teenage boys actually wanted to be Hendrix. This was unprecedented.

For example, during the Sixties, many whites preferred the soul music of James Brown to music being played by white bands of that era, but I have never seen a white male who actually wanted to be James Brown. Although no one ever admitted outright that he wanted to be Hendrix, it was obvious many did. White guitarists imitated his physical movements, white teenage boys lived out their fantasies of being Hendrix while playing air guitar as they listened to Hendrix albums. When you think about it, Jimi Hendrix was an amazing individual in that regard. I can think of no other black man—and that includes Martin Luther King—for whom white people held in such high regard. If there was in fact a masterplan in place to keep rock music segregated in the Sixties, then Jimi Hendrix was obliterating it.

From June 16, 1967 through June 18^th, the first commercial American rock festival was held in Monterey, California; it was called The Monterey Pop Festival. The event was organized by Dunhill Records executive Lou Adler and John Phillips of the Mamas and the Papas, patterned after the successful Monterey Jazz Festival and staged at the same site. It also introduced Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix to a large audience and featured performances by the Who, the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Byrds, Canned Heat, Buffalo Springfield, Otis Redding, Ravi Shankar, and many others.²⁹

The Doors

(L to R: Ray Manzarek, Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger)

Several new bands emerged during 1967, offering songs of social unrest. Musically, the style shifted towards straight blues with whaling guitars, bending strings to express emotional feelings. In 1967 The Doors took America’s youth by storm with their song, Light My Fire, which contained provocative lyrics about getting high and having sex. The lyrics are as follows:

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

(L to R: Dallas Taylor (drums); Greg Reeves (bass), Graham Nash, Stephen Stills, David Crosby, Neil Young)

As the Sixties drew to a close, rock music became very blues intensive, a phenomenon that likely upset the FBI quite a bit. As previously stated, blues was the music of slaves and it was primarily an expression of emotion, usually frustration, sadness, and melancholy feelings, particularly about romance. Such an artform could easily be transferred to public outcries for revolution against a government intent on sending young draftees to Vietnam to fight a war without an apparent purpose. As rock music incorporated more blues guitar, and blues in general, public support for the Vietnam war diminished—particularly within the youth culture. As anti-war sentiment intensified, rock stars began to die more frequently.

Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix rose to superstar status at virtually the same time, around 1967. Both played the blues at core, both bent their guitar strings to produce a whaling guitar cry, both used distortion, and both were considered incredibly innovative by their peers and fans. Clapton had been a sideman for John Mayall before joining the Yardbirds. Clapton gained international recognition with his group, Cream, a trio with Jack Bruce on bass and lead vocals, and super-drummer Ginger Baker.

Another blues-oriented rock group of that period was Led Zeppelin. Like Clapton, the group’s lead guitarist, Jimmy Page, had played in the Yardbirds. Another super-guitarist from the Yardbirds was Jeff Beck who formed the Jeff Beck Group, featuring lead vocalist Rod Stewart, who went on to become a pop superstar as a solo artist. Clapton, Page, and Beck were all British. Hendrix was American, from Seattle, Washington, but had lived in London at the time of his initial success. Probably the one American rock group to incorporate blues guitar in its purest form was the Allman Brothers Band, founded by guitarist Duane Allman. He popularized the electric slide guitar, playing with the finesse of a black blues master from the Thirties, but with more precise intonation, enhanced technical prowess, and tasteful use of distortion employed by other rock guitarists of the era. Prior to forming the Allman Brothers Band with his brother Greg, Duane was a session guitarist at Muscle Shoals studio where he recorded with Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett. The Allman Brothers’ fusion of authentic blues guitar with contemporary rock became known as Southern rock, primarily because the band members were born in Southern states.

With the exception of Jeff Beck, most of the stated blues artists eventually tangled with the Grim Reaper directly or through a band member or relative. Clapton developed serious heroin and alcohol addictions early in his career and has struggled with them for decades. Over the years he began drifting away from the blues, but released a live CD in 1991, 24 Nights Live, recorded at various Royal Albert Hall concerts in 1990 and 1991. His performances were shared with other blues artists: Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, Johnnie Johnson, Jerry Portnoy, and Jimmie Vaughan. On March 20, 1991, tragedy struck when Clapton’s four and a half year old son died after falling from an open window on the 50th floor at Clapton's Manhattan apartment. A maintenance man reportedly left the window open by accident.³⁰ Hendrix was found dead in a London flat on September 18, 1970. He died from drowning in red wine. He was 27. Led Zeppelin’s original drummer, John Bonham, was found dead in Windsor, Berkshire, England on September 25, 1980. He reportedly drank large amount of vodka, went to bed, vomited in his sleep and choked on it. He was 32. Led Zeppelin disbanded after Bonham’s death.³¹ On October 29, 1971, Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident in Macon, Georgia. He was 24.³² On November 11, 1972, Berry Oakley (bassist for the Allman Brothers Band) was also killed in a motorcycle accident, close to the same spot where Duane had been killed.³³

On December 10, 1967, rhythm and blues singer Otis Redding was killed when his chartered plane crashed into a Wisconsin lake. Redding was a singer-songwriter, one of the great soul stylists of the 1960s. Victims included Redding and his backing band. Redding was 26. His death was merely the tip of the iceberg of what was in store for rock stars in the next few years.

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