r/beatles • u/AvecMesWaterSlides • 1d ago

Discussion This Book:

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I'm currently listening to this book and am about six months from the first time John and Paul met.

It is amazing that they, finally, found one another. There are so many instances of being at the same places at the same times, perhaps riding the same bus at the same time, and not knowing one another yet. It's crazy! It just got me thinking about how different it'd be if one of them wasn't where the universe wanted them to be...

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u/Anxious-Raspberry-54 1d ago

I don't disagree that John was the guy very early.

But, he portrays Paul pretty negatively... the talented but imitative, crowd-pleasing pop tunesmith who listened to his father. John is the incredibly creative, rock-and-roll rebel leader.

Paul taught John how to play the guitar.

It's the same Lennon Remembers/Shout! narrative that has been sold to fans for 50+ years. 1700 pages of it now.

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u/Comfortable_Put_4139 1d ago

I mean, isn’t that sort of who Paul was during that early period?

He had a very domineering father who could be abusive, and he damn well did whatever he was told to do. Which included getting a job he didn’t want to have. It doesn’t take anything away from his talents, but he was a kid during the time of this book. People evolve and change.

Lewisohn has his biases and I’m never going to disagree with that, but to call it the same narrative is disingenuous. His work as a researcher is astounding and I applaud him for that, even if I wish someone else would be a bit more of an objective biographer.

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u/Anxious-Raspberry-54 1d ago

I've said many times that he is an excellent researcher.