John Lennon
Radio interviews
John & Yoko interviewed by David Wigg 21st October
1969
This page details Radio interviews made by John
Lennon (alone
or with Yoko
Ono) plus other audio speech recordings of special significance. It does
not make any claims to be a complete list as John must have given hundreds
of interviews during his career, particularly whilst on tour around the
world with the Beatles and during the height of the peace campaign in 1969,
but hopefully we have managed to include the more important ones. If you
feel we have missed something of interest or can fill in missing details
then do please e-mail us at urthepob@hotmail.com.
Fred Robbins
Interview
Recorded: 10/Feb/1964
Transmitted: Radio Luxembourg ??/Feb/1964
American DJ Fred Robbins interviewed the Beatles
individually for Radio Luxembourg during their first visit to the USA in
February 1964. Robbins' questions focussed on Beatlemania and coping with
super stardom. There was one particularly awkward moment when Robbins probed
into Lennon's family life....
Robbins: What about your parents
Johnny, what do they say about it?
John: Well, er, I haven't got any
(laughs). You'll have to goof that bit.
This 10 minute interview is
in circulation
Today
Recorded: 17/Mar/1964
Transmitted: BBC Home Service 18/Mar/1964
(between 7:15-7:45am, repeated an hour later)
Jack De Manio interviewed John on the subject of his first solo venture,
the imminent publication of
In His Own Write, during a break in
the Beatles filming at Les Ambassadeurs private club in London for a sequence
in A Hard Day's Night.
A Slice Of Life
Recorded: 31/Mar/1964
Transmitted: BBC Home Service 02/May/1964
(between 4:00-4:30pm)
A 3 minute interview by Brian Matthew for an edition devoted to 'Hobbies',
John talked about his writing and the new book.
The Teen Scene
Recorded: 07/Jul/1964
Transmitted: BBC Light Programme 09/Jul/1964
(between 9:30-10:00pm)
John discussed the film A Hard Day's Night with Chris hutchins
in a 3:27 segment.
North American
Tour
August-September 1964
John did a number of solo interviews during this,
the Beatles second visit to the United States and their first proper North
American tour. One such interview was released on one of the very first
Beatle interview albums, John's chat with John Steck in L.A (Aug 24/25)
takes up all of Side One of the Vee-Jay album Hear the Beatles tell
all (curiously accompanied by background percussion that was overdubbed
before its' release on September 14th), brief snatches of solo Lennon interviews
by Dave Hull appear on Side Two.
Another interview with John
on August 25th was released the following year (Dec/1965) on "The Beatle
Around the World" which was later re-released as "Not a Second Time" in
1986. Lennon interviews from 29th August and 2nd September appear on "East
Coast Invasion" (1985).
The Teen Scene
Recorded: 28/Nov/1964
Transmitted: BBC Light Programme 29/Nov/1964
(between 10:45-11:31pm)
John had bought his first proper house ('Kenwood' in Weybridge) back
in July and this was the subject of an interview given to Chris Hutchins
who, as well as being a freelance contributor to The Teen Scene,
was the news editor for the music paper NME which included a full page
article about the property for the 4th December issue.
Gene Loving
interviews
Recorded: 22&24/Feb/1965
Transmitted: ?
Gene Loving interviewed John at least twice in the Bahamas when the
Beatles were filming scenes for Help!, the first interview took
place at Nassau airport on the 22nd...........
Loving: John, how was the trip
over? Did you all get bored on the flight or do you have things that usually
keep you entertained, that you all were doing?
John: Well, uh, we got stoned.
Loving: All right - No, I know
you're only kidding.
John: Uh, I'm not.
Larry Kane also interviewed
John at Nassau Airport together with Paul.
Derek Taylor
interview
Recorded: February or March 1965
Transmitted: KRLA (Los Angeles) ??/???/1965
John was interviewed during a break in filming Help! in the
Bahamas by the Beatles former Press officer Derek Taylor.
This interview was later released,
along with Taylor's chats with the other Beatles, on Cycadelic's 1986 album
"Here, there and Everywhere".
From Britain...
With Beat
Recorded: ?22-28?/Feb/1965
Another Bahamas interview, John talks about Julian
and a recent ski-ing holiday.
Recording in circulation - 4
minutes
Today
Recorded: 16/Jun/1965
Transmitted: BBC Home Service 21/Jun/1965
(between 7:15-7:45am, repeated an hour later)
The first of two interviews recorded during an evening at NEMS office
in London to promote John's 2nd book of prose and verse A Spaniard in
the Works, this Today sequence was conducted by Tim Matthews.
John read two verses from The National Health Cow.
Recording in circulation - 30
seconds
The World Of Books
Recorded: 16/Jun/1965
Transmitted: BBC Home Service 03/Jul/1965
(between 10:10-10:40pm)
Wilfred De'Ath asked the questions in this 15 minute interview (12
mins were broadcast), it was the 2nd BBC Radio Lennon recording of the
evening to be taped at Brian Epstein's NEMS office, again the focus was
on John's latest book and this time he read The Fat Budgie. Extracts
also found their way into two other BBC Radio programmes (The Teen Scene
& Pick of the Week). The BBC's Transcription service (for overseas
sales) distributed the interview on 7 inch discs which were entitled
John
Lennon - Bookbeatle.
De'Ath: There's more social conscience
somehow in this second book, more awareness of what's going on. What about
this preoccupation 'We must not forget, we must not forget, we must
not forget?' There's almost a kind of message here, a kind of purpose.
You know, in spite of yourself, this almost, I'd call it, social conscience
emerges.
John: Ah, well. I'm not a do
gooder about things. I won't go around marching or, I'm not that type.
It just so happens that my feelings about coloured people, or religion,
or anything like that, do happen to work with the way I write. I make fun
of coloured people in the book, and Christians and Jews, but really, I'm
not against them.
Recording in circulation
North American
Tour
August 1965
Among the many interviews Lennon gave during
this tour was one for Brian Matthews of BBC Radio who included it in The
Beatles Abroad broadcast 30/Aug/1965 (10:00-10:45am) and there were
also a series of interesting chats with American DJ Jerry G. Bishop including
one conducted a few days after Lennon had taken LSD for only the 2nd time
during a break in the tour.....
Jerry G.: What happened last week
in Los Angeles? I know you relaxed alot, was that about the story really?
John: Uh, we just sort of
got up about twelve or one, swam, had breakfast and odd people came round
to see us.
Jerry G.: You met the Byrds, who
else?
John: The Byrds have practically
been there all the time when they weren't working. We met Elvis last night
which was great.
Pop Profile
Recorded: 30/Nov/1965
Transmitted: Not known
Pop Profile was a programme exclusively produced for the BBC's
Transcription service and it was not aired in Britain. Brian Matthew visited
NEMS office to record the John Lennon edition which lasted for 9 minutes,
it was pressed on 7 inch discs and distributed by mail in March 1966.
Brian Matthew: Do you have any
kind of political leanings at all?
John: Yeah, I have, you know, but
I can never place what they are. You know, I can go on about it.
Brian Matthew: You don’t fit into
any party line.
John: They’re not, not any party
line that I’ve heard of yet. I don’t object to people inheriting money
or having a big lot of money, I never did, but I do object to people being
stoney broke and starving.
Recording in circulation
North American
Tour
August 1966
The most difficult questioning John ever had
to endure was during the Chicago press conferences that kicked off the
final Beatles tour, Lennon was forced to explain his quote that the Beatles
were "more popular than Jesus". Although strictly Beatles group recordings
(they were all present) the audio tapes from this important episode in
Lennon's career could not be overlooked on this page for, as well as extracts
being played on Radio stations worldwide, the first of these two press
conferences (recorded on 11th August) later became the most re-issued of
all Lennon interviews appearing under a variety of different titles (including
The
way they were with Red Robinson and Timeless), the first release
occurred in the Autumn of 1966 as a mail order single-sided LP entitled
I
Apologize.
Q: Do you personally 'believe'?
John: My views are only from what
I've read or observed of Christianity and what it was, and what it has
been, or what it could be. It just seems to me to be shrinking. I'm not
knocking it or saying it's bad. I'm just saying it seems to be shrinking
and losing contact.
John also gave further interviews
to DJ Jerry G. Bishop during this tour, parts of which, as with the '65
chats, found their way onto the albums "Talk with Jerry G." Volumes 1 &
2 in 1983. Other '66 tour interviews with John were included on 1980's
picture disc albums "Timeless II" (Released in 1982 featuring an interview
by Dusty Adams) and (in 3D! ) "The British are Coming" which included interviews
by British DJ Ken Douglas.
Fred Robbins
"Somewhere In Spain"
Recorded: 29/Oct/1966
During a break in the filming of How I won
the War, John gave a 14 minute taped interview to USA DJ Fred Robbins
on location in Carboneras. As well as discussing his acting role in the
movie, John talked about the use of the Sitar on Beatle records and the
'bigger than Jesus' debacle on the last U.S tour.....
Q: Such a ridiculous thing happened
on this experience that you had. I wanted to know, just to rap this thing
up, what kind of reflection do you have on that whole thing John?
John: Well now, it's just like
a bad dream, you know, it's just way in the back of my mind somewhere and
it just comes back when you read odd things that crop up now and then,
like Cardinal so and so says it's OK, or things like that, but it's really
way in the back of my mind.
Q: What frightening implications
- a thing like that. It could happen to anybody, you know, not just famous
people, but what a frightening implication when things like that can be
used to hurt a person.
John: Yes, a pretty amazing scene
that was, it was very frightening.
Q: It's really, you know like,
the McCarthy era, any kind of wildly out of context -
John: It's just that certain things
seem to whip up certain emotions and at certain times as well.
Released on a cassette entitled
"Historic Interviews Volume Two"
Where It's At
Recorded: 19/May/1967
Transmitted: BBC Light Programme 20/May/1967
(between 4:00-5:30pm)
One of Britain's best loved media personalities of the latter 20th
century was Kenny Everett who had first met the Beatles on their final
US tour - A then shy young non-pushy character, Everett had failed to gain
a single interview for his pirate station back home until the Beatles realised
the plight of their fellow scouser and befriended him to the point of giving
Everett all the exclusives. In May 1967 he recorded separate interviews
with John, Paul and Ringo to promote the Beatles' soon to be released album
Sgt.Pepper.
John gave a series of humorous introductions to various songs on the album
and expressed his love of ADT (Artificial double tracking) or.........
"Double Flanging we call it...
we're always doing it, you name the one it isn't on, you name it - you
spot it, you get a prize and a Sgt.Pepper badge! ....phasing is
tooooooooooo much"
Recording in circulation
Where It's At
Recorded: ??/Nov/1967
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 25/Nov/1967 (between
2:00-3:00pm)
An 18 minute interview conducted by both Kenny Everett and Chris Denning.
Typical of most of John's radio interviews with Everett during this psychedelic
period (1967 through to mid '68) it was a somewhat chaotic affair.
Everett: When did you first realise…
Lennon: (Interrupting): When I
was about 7 actually.
Recording in circulation
Late Night Extra
Recorded: 05/Dec/1967
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 05/Dec/1967 (between
10:00pm-12:00am)
Brian Cullingford caught John for a quick chat
during the party marking the opening of the Apple shop on Baker Street
in London. Just under 2 minutes worth of tape found its' way onto that
night's edition of Late Night Extra.
The Kenny Everett
Show
Recorded: 27/Jan/1968
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 04/Feb/1968 (between
10:00am-12:00pm)
Kenny Everett visited John at his Weybridge home
to record an interview for his Sunday morning series which included a particularly
idiosyncratic Lennon introduction. John also talked about Strawberry
Fields Forever.
Only clips of the recording
are in circulation
The Kenny Everett
Show
Recorded: 06/Jun/1968
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 09/Jun/1968 (between
10:00am-12:00pm)
For Everett's last edition of his current series
he was granted an interview (and a goodbye jingle) at Abbey Road studio's
during the recording of the White album. Although it becomes a group participation,
the other three Beatles only emerge towards the very end of a 13 minute
recording with John in a very playful mood, barely giving Everett any sensible
answers preferring instead to ad-lib bits of songs made up on the spot
and drift in and out of various parodies.
On Sgt.Pepper "It
only got high 'cus everybody said how high it was, it's no higher than
it was when we made it..... What I mean Kenny is, it doesn't pose a problem
to us, it was so long ago we've forgotten what it was about anyway. And
let me put it this way......... [Silence]"
Everett was a genius of editing and sound effects
and was able to piece together a montage suitable for broadcast that impressed
enough to warrant it becoming a 7-inch Apple promotional disc (curiously
only available in Italy). Everett (real name Maurice Cole) was also given
the task of producing the Beatles Christmas Flexi discs given away to fan
club members in 1968 & 1969.
In 1985 the complete raw version
of this interview found a place on an album called "The Golden Beatles".
Late Night Extra
Recorded: 06/Aug/1968
Transmitted: BBC Radio One & Two 06/Aug/1968
(between 10:00pm-12:00am)
Matthew Robinson found John at a fashion show
at the Revolution in London and interviewed him together with Pattie Harrison
and fashion editor Suzy Menkes.
Maurice Hindel
& Daniel Wiles Interview
Recorded: 03/Dec/1968
An interview given to two students who recorded two hours worth at
John's home Kenwood which he was then in the process of clearing
out before it was sold.
Just over 16 minutes of the
recording are in circulation.
Night Ride
Transmitted Live: BBC Radio One & Two
12/Dec/1968 (between 12:05am-1:15am)
Following the filming of John & Yoko's performances
for The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus, they travelled to the
BBC's Broadcasting house for a live chat with the legendary British disc
jockey John Peel. Lennon read two of his most recent poems (which were
both later re-recorded for the Beatles Fan Club Xmas Flexi) and discussed
the Two Virgins album from which a 3 minute 20 second extract was
played.
Bootlegged - 1 hour 7 mins
John Peel later wrote a touching
column about John & Yoko's "Give peace a chance" in Disc & Music
Echo which you can find on this
page.
Amsterdam Bed-in
Interviews
Recorded: 25-31/Mar/1969
The first of two 1969 bed-in events which saw
John and Yoko spend 7 days in bed whilst inviting the world's press to
their hotel room to hear the message of peace. The Amsterdam bed-in took
place in room 902 of the Amsterdam Hilton, Apollolaan, Amsterdam, Holland
where John and Yoko gave a virtually endless parade of interviews for up
to 18 hours a day, many of which were recorded for Radio stations around
the globe.
John: We had the idea to do the
event where we stayed in bed and grew our hair or go to the Albert Hall,
everybody comes, and we just grow our hair on stage.
Yoko: We like to really create
a kind of vibration and communicate with the world about peace, there are
many ways of doing it and we just do it in our own way which is just to
give a laugh, you know.......This is a bed peace, let's just stay in bed
and grow your hair, instead of being violent.
An audio collage made up of
snippets from various conversations (as well as John & Yoko singing
along to John's acoustic guitar) made up Side Two of "The Wedding Album"
released in November 1969. Just over 9 minutes of bed-side chat appears
on the 1995 CD "Inside Interviews: In my life".
Vienna
Press Conference
Recorded: 31/Mar/1969
John and Yoko flew from Amsterdam to Vienna to
promote the world premiere of their film Rape on Austrian TV, they
held a press conference in the Hotel Sacher covered from head to toe in
a large bag.
Reporter (to the bag): Could you
come out?
John: No!
Reporter: Why not?
John: Because this is a bag event.
Total communication.
Reporter: How could you prove that
you are John Lennon?
John: I don’t have to, I’m here
to talk about peace, it doesn’t matter who I am.
Over 9 minutes of this press
conference appears on the 1995 CD "Inside Interviews: In my life"
Late Night Extra
Recorded: 01/Apr/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio One & Two 01/Apr/1969
(between 10:00pm-12:00am)
John & Yoko returned to England from their
honeymoon in Paris, Amsterdam and Vienna on April 1st 1969 and among a
number of interviews they gave was this one of 2 minutes worth to Ian Ross.
Interview For
Publication (in US?)
Recorded: ?05?/?May?/1969
A very interesting interview although it was
probably not intended for broadcast (the interview carries on with various
phone conversations and background noises almost drowning out some of John's
replies). John talks frankly about the impact that his relationship with
Yoko has had on the Beatles.
"She's [Yoko] released me and now
I'm me again. I got lost in the Beatles and now it's John Lennon again."
"A Beatle? I suppose it's something
four guys turn into when they get together, you know, and project 'Beatle'."
"I'm always 'John and Yoko', that
never stops, we're a 24 hour couple so whatever I'm doing as 'Beatles',
Yoko's sitting on my shoulder like a parrott. So there's no 'four guys
together' bit, which there used to be"
Recording in circulation
Scene And Heard
Recorded: 08/May/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 11&18/May/1969
(between 3:00-4:00pm)
David Wigg visited Apple for what turned out
to be perhaps the most philosophical interview that Lennon ever gave and
quite possibly his best. For certain he never sounded more relaxed than
this. John talked candidly about drugs as well as his and Yoko's thinking
behind the recent Bed-in event.
"John & Yoko are like the wind
- you can't see it, but when it passes, the trees bend"
"It doesn't help murderers to hang
them, it doesn't help violent people to be violent to them. Violence begets
violence. You can't kill off all the violent people or all the murderers
or you'd have to kill off the government."
"We're all god, I'm not A god or
THE god, but we're all god and we're all potentially divine and potentially
evil, we all have everything within us, there is a power we can all tap,
god is a power and we're all light bulbs that can tap the electricity -
you can use electricity to kill people or to light the room, god is that"
"I don't need to go to church,
I think people who need a church should go, the others who know the church
is in your own head should visit that temple 'cus that's where the source
is."
"I don't regret anything, meditation
I still believe in and occasionally I use it... I don't regret drugs because
they helped me - I don't advocate them for everybody because I don't think
I should, you know, but for me it was good.... I met Yoko just before I
went to India, and had a lot of time to think things out there, 3 months
just meditating and thinking, and I came home and fell in love with Yoko,
and that was the end of it and it's beautiful."
12 minutes of this interview
was released by Polydor in 1976 as part of the "The Beatles Tapes", a double
album which was a compilation of David Wigg's many interviews with
all four Beatles, sadly most of the dates given on the record are incorrect
and in some cases separate interviews are presented as one.
Pete Drummond
interview
Recorded: ?08?/May/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio One ?09/May/1969 (6:00pm?)
John and Yoko talk about the Life with the
Lions LP.
11:21 minutes in circulation
Tony Macarthur
interview
Recorded: ?08?/May/1969
Transmitted: Radio Luxembourg ??/?Jun?/1969
Another interview to plug Life with the Lions.
28:23 minutes in circulation
Montreal Bed-in
Interviews
Recorded: 26/May-02/Jun/1969
John & Yoko's 2nd bed-in event took place
in room 1742 of the Hotel Reine-Elizabeth, Dorchester Boulevard West, Montreal,
Canada. Once again there was a huge amount of interest with hours of interviews
being recorded for Radio stations around the world.
"The establishment irritate you
- pull your beard, flick your face - to make you fight because once they've
got you violent they know how to handle you. The only thing they don't
know how to handle is non-violence and humour.... Change the people first,
even if it's to tell the people that YOU are the government and take no
notice of the government, sit down ok, don't do anything, with your help
it'll work, with everybody's help it'll work, all we've got to do is turn
people on to the fact they THEY ARE the government NOW and they have the
power NOW. It's not something that somebody's gonna give 'em - they have
it!"
On May 29th 1969 John was interviewed
via telephone by Tom Campbell and Bill Holley for San Francisco radio station
KYA, they issued a 7 inch blue vinyl disc entitled "The KYA 1969 Peace
Talk" shortly afterwards.
Just under 10 minutes of bed-side
questioning appears on the 1995 CD "Inside Interviews: In my life".
Everett Is Here
Recorded: 14/Aug/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 20&27/Sep/1969
(between 10:00am-12:00pm)
Just over a year after his previous studio chat,
Kenny Everett came to EMI studio's again to interview John in the control
room during a break in mixing parts of the Abbey Road album.
Recording in circulation - 3:39
mins
Meeting Prabhupada
Recorded: 11/Sep/1969
The meeting of John, Yoko, George Harrison and the founder of the International
Society for Krishna Consciousness, Prabhupada (aka
Swami Bhaktivedanta) at Tittenhurst Park.
Prabhupada: What kind of philosophy
are you following? May I ask?
Yoko Ono: We don't follow anything.
We are just living.
Prabhupada's claims that his branch of philosophy
was the absolute authority was questioned.....
Prabhupada: Krishna is the authority,
because Bhagavad-gita was spoken by Krishna. Can you deny that?
John: What about Yogananda, Maharishi,
and all these other people who have translated the Gita? How are
we to tell that their version isn't also Krishna's word?......... Who says
who's actually in the line of descent? I mean, it's just like royalty,
Yogananda also claims to be in line, he talks about his guru's guru's guru's
guru, like that. Maharishi claimed that all his gurus went way back. I
mean, how are we to know?
Prabhupada: Whatever Maharishi
may be, his knowledge does not extend up to Krishna.
John: That's what he used to say
in exactly the same way about everybody else.
Whilst history shows that George appeared to
be convinced, John went on to dismiss the organisation in his song I
found out, however this did not prevent The Bhaktivedanta book trust
from issuing a publication in the wake of Lennon's death under the title
"Lennon
'69 - Search for liberation" which contained excerpts from the conversation
and the recollection of a dream that Prabhupada had in which he saw Lennon
as a wealthy Indian musician in a previous life.
26 minutes of the conversation
are included on the 1995 CD "Inside Interviews: Beatlemania"
Press interview
Recorded: 12/Sep/1969
Interview with several reporters at once at Apple. Topics include the
Self
Portrait and Mr & Mrs Lennon's Honeymoon films that had
been premiered in London two days earlier.
38:37 in circulation
Tony Macarthur (Radio Luxembourg)
Recorded: ??/Sep/1969
Transmitted: Radio Luxembourg 27/Sep/1969
(between 12:30-2:05am)
Maccarthur recorded this interview at Apple to
promote the Abbey Road album, John talks about each track.
On I Want You (She's so Heavy)"It's
pretty heavy at the ending, you know, because we used the Moog synthesisers
on it and the range of sound is from minus to way over.... well, you can't
hear it, that instrument can do all sounds and we did it on the end, if
you're a dog you can hear alot more."
Bootlegged - with the Abbey
Road tracks cut this interview runs for 24 minutes
Pop Goes The Bulldog
Transmitted: 27/Sep/1969
John interviewed in Canada. He talks about the
Cavern Club, Abbey Road and the Toronto gig.
Recording in circulation - 27
minutes
Scene And Heard
Recorded: 21/Oct/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 26/Oct/1969 (between
3:00-4:00pm)
A second interview for David Wigg at Apple by
which time John had finished the Beatles. Delicate business matters dictated
that an announcement of the split could not be made, but a clue could be
found in Lennon's reply to Wigg's question as to what John hoped for the
Beatles future, Lennon referred to his former group as "The Beatles, so
called".
Part of this interview (just
under 3 minutes) was included on the 1976 Polydor album "The Beatles Tapes"
although this gave the impression that the 21/Oct/69 recording was actually
a part of the chat with Wigg earlier in the year (See also the image at
the top of this page).
John Small (WKNR)
Recorded: ?22?/Oct/1969
Transmitted: WKNR (USA) 26/Oct/1969
It was the Detroit station WKNR that began the
'Paul [McCartney] is dead' rumour on October 12th 1969 when DJ Russ Gibb
took a call from somebody who identified themselves as 'Tom' who then made
the announcement. The station then produced an hour long special "The Beatles
Plot" outlining the apparent clues on the Beatles albums that were said
to confirm the rumour to be true. John gave his opinion via telephone from
London to WKNR DJ John Small, dismissing the clues as a joke. Along with
Yoko, he also discussed forthcoming Plastic Ono Band releases.
This interview is available
for download at this link
Everett Is Here
Recorded: ??/Oct/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 08/Nov/1969 (10:00-12:00pm)
Another interview with Kenny Everett. John talks
about religion and the Woodstock and Isle of Wight rock festivals.
Recording in circulation - 2:43
mins.
Wolfgang Frank interview
Recorded: ??/Nov/1969
John and Yoko interviewed at their Tittenhurst
Park home. John and Yoko touch upon their recent visit to Greece and a
possible future visit to West Germany (which never happened).
Recording in circulation - 3:36
mins.
Today
Recorded: 25/Nov/1969
Transmitted: BBC Radio Four 26/Nov/1969 (between
7:15-7:45 & 8:15-8:40am)
A busy day of interviews for John in light of
his decision to return his M.B.E to Buckingham Palace in protest against
her Majesty's government's support for federal Nigeria in the Civil war
and for the US in Vietnam. David Bellan's turn to interview John was taped
and included in the BBC's flagship Radio magazine programme Today the
following morning.
Ken Zelig interview
Recorded: 27/Nov/1969
As well chatting about returning his MBE and
his anti-war views, John recalls his most memorable Christmas present;
a harmonica he received when he was about eight or nine, Yoko remembers
her family receiving a lava lamp. The interview was recorded at Tittenhurst
Park.
Recording in circulation - 5:18
mins.
Pop Goes The Bulldog
Recorded: early Dec/1969
Transmitted? 14/Dec/1969
John talks to Don Chandler about the Live
Peace in Toronto album and early rock 'n' roll and 'Mersey Beat' for
broadcat on a Canadian Radio show.
Recording in circulation - 15:27
minutes
Tony Macarthur (Radio Luxembourg)
Recorded: ??/Dec/1969
Transmitted: Radio Luxembourg ??/Dec/1969
Discussing and playing each track from the Live
Peace in Toronto album.
Recording in circulation - 25:36
mins.
Radio South
Africa
Recorded: 12/Dec/1969
Promoting the Live Peace in Toronto album
in an interview with Harry Flower which also touched upon John and Yoko's
support for those seeking in inquiry into the Hanratty case and his plans
for the "War is over" poster event. A ban on Beatle records being broadcast
in South Africa in the wake of the "Bigger than Jesus" fiasco had recently
been lifted.
Recording in circulation - 7:09
mins
December 1969
Canada Press Conference
Recorded: 17/Dec/1969
John held a press conference to announce plans
for a Toronto Peace festival in 1970. Some, if not all of it, would likely
have been aired on Canadian Radio. Whilst in Canada they also recorded
a "Radio Peace Network" message for Japan on the 18th December and there
were probably other interviews too.
A 10 minute portion of the press
conference is included on the 1995 CD "Inside Interviews: In my Life"
Howard Smith (WPLJ)
Recorded: 17/Dec/1969
Broadcast: WPLJ ??/Dec/1969
Still unable to enter the United States but next door in Canada, John
and Yoko gave an interview to Howard Smith for broadcast south of the border
in New York. They talked about the proposed Peace Festival, the "War is
over" poster campaign and their idea for a "peace vote"........
"We wanna set up a thing to get
a
vote, a world wide vote: War or Peace?, which do you want? and when all
these politicians are galloping around with "84% want hanging" and
"200%
don't like blacks" and that bit, well we'll have "35 million say
No War!", just a positive move and somewhere where the youth can send
their vibe to."
Recording in circulation
Jutland, Denmark
Press Conference
Press Conference Recorded: 05/Jan/1970
The Lennon's held a couple of press conferences
during their holiday with Yoko's ex-husband Tony Cox to spend time with
Yoko's daughter Kyoko, the first of these was shown on Danish TV, the one
that followed was audio-taped and may have been broadcast by a small Danish
radio station - In this 2nd interview John said that he hoped that the
Beatles would play a Peace concert in the coming year but also stated that
he felt it was important that they smashed the image and be seen as individual
artists. John also attempts to sing a traditional Danish Christmas carol
O Kristelighed and plays acoustic versions of Radio Peace and
Give
Peace a Chance accompanied by Yoko and Kyoko.
3 minutes of the Televised press
conference was included on the 1995 CD "Inside Interviews: In my Life".
Kyoko Tapes
Private Home Tapes Recorded: Between 29/Dec/1969
- 25/Jan/1970
Also during the Denmark trip, six private home
tapes were recorded by Tony Cox, these were mostly of John and Kyoko singing
and telling stories.
Some 'Kyoko tapes' are in circulation.
Scene And Heard
Recorded: 06/Feb/1970
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 15/Feb/1970 (between
3:00-4:00pm) & BBC World Service 28/May/1970 (2:15-2:30pm)
A third appearance on Scene And Heard
but this time it was David Bellan who came to interview John at Apple with
the latest single Instant Karma audible in the background. A longer
portion of the interview later made for an edition of Pop Profile, this
being for global consumption on the BBC's World Service.
Bellan: Are you at the moment,
do you think, more involved in your peace effort than your music?
John: No, I try and use both you
know, me songs are all about peace.... It's like the Beatles singing All
you need is love, I'm just singing All you need is peace now.
At least parts of the recording
are in circulation
Midday Spin
Transmitted Live: BBC Radio One 15/Feb/1970
(12:00-1:00pm)
A chat with DJ Emperor Rosko (MC at the 15/Dec/1969
Lyceum gig) on his lunchtime show to promote the Instant Karma single
and to answer questions sent in by listeners.
Recording in circulation - 25:26
mins.
Scene And Heard
Recorded: 18/Feb/1970
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 22/Feb/1970 (between
3:00-4:00pm)
For the 2nd successive week, John was to be heard
on the Sunday afternoon programme Scene and Heard, this time he
was interviewed by a concerned David Wigg who revealed that he himself
had been 'advised' against writing about John's involvement with the campaign
for an inquiry into the hanging of convicted murderer James Hanratty. Wigg
also alluded to the association with Michael X and the increasing speculation
of the Beatles demise.
"Anything that gets down to the
nitty gritty, becomes unsavoury for some people….. like they find nudity
very unsavoury, they found long hair very unsavoury at one time and they
will continue to find things unsavoury for the rest of the million years
we’re all going to be together."
This was another part inclusion
(over 5 minutes) on the 1976 Polydor album "The Beatles Tapes".
Lennon Remembers
Recorded: 08/Dec/1970
Never intended for broadcast, this interview
with Jann Wenner was conducted at Allen Klein's office at 1700 Broadway
in New York City for the US Rock magazine Rolling Stone, but such
was the depth and quality of the material, audio extracts have since turned
up all over the place including a Radio special broadcast on BBC Radio
35 years later. Perhaps the most famous passage is where John talks about
his first LSD experience but he also touched upon his use of Heroin.
"Heroin?, OK, it's just, it was
not too much fun you know, I never injected it, we [John & Yoko] sniffed
a little when we were in real pain, people were giving us such a hard time....
We took 'H' because of what the Beatles and their pals were doing to us."
Recording in circulation - 4
hours 25 minutes
Howard Smith (WPLJ)
Recorded: 12/Dec/1970
A 2nd interview during John & Yoko's pre-Christmas stay in New
York City, this one given to Howard Smith for Radio broadcast. They talked
about the Plastic Ono Band albums, Phil Spector, Primal Therapy,
promiscuity and explained why they never spent any time apart from oneanother.
"I’ve been through a lot of fantasy,
I think we all have, I’ve been through the whole generation trip with everybody
else, we’ve all been through it and I feel as though I’ve just come out
of one period. One reality back to reality."
You can read a transcript of parts
of this interview here.
Bootlegged - This gives the
date of broadcast as 6th December 1970 on WABC.
Japan Interview
(????)
Recorded: ?15-19?/Jan/1971
Probably conducted in the Lennon's hotel room as John can be heard
playing guitar and answering the phone.
Recording in circulation - Over
19 minutes.
Scott Muni (????)
Recorded: 17/Feb/1971
From his home Tittenhurst Park, John gave a live
radio interview to the American DJ Scott Muni.
Kenny Everett (Radio
Mote Carlo)
Transmitted: Live 27/Mar/1971 (between 1:00
and 2:00am)
Kenny Everett visited Tittenhurst Park for this
live interview in the twighlight hours. Almost 5 months after its' release
John
Lennon/Plastic Ono Band had yielded relatively disappointing sales
(although it is now regarded by many as Lennon's finest work), this interview
was designed to re-promote the album from which all the tracks were played.
In the days before commercial radio was allowed to broadcast from British
soil, Radio Monte Carlo was aimed primarily at an English speaking audience,
it had begun transmissions on December 1st 1970 but came to end the weekend
of this Lennon special due to the poor reception which had resulted in
the collapse of advertising revenue.
Everett: Have you ever considered
suicide?
John: Oh, yes. As a teenager, even,
I think everybody sort of thinks about it. I don't remember standing on
the edge of a cliff, I've never been that near. But I've considered it.
Most of us have been through that. Most have been through things with mothers
and fathers, most of us have been through something with religion, or not
with religion, whatever; most of us have been isolated or been in love,
most of us remembered things and most of us have wondered what love is,
you know.
Recording in circulation - 26
minutes
Cannes Interview
Recorded: 15/May/1971
French Radio interview
Recording in circulation
Howard Smith (WPLJ)
Transmitted: 06/Jun/1971
During another trip to the United States, John & Yoko made this
guest appearance on Howard Smith's radio talk show, Smith took them along
to see Frank Zappa who was staying at a nearby hotel and as a result of
that meeting they joined Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention on stage
that very night to perform live at New York's Fillmore East.
Recording in circulation - 30
minutes
Alex Bennett (WPLJ)
Transmitted: Live 08/Jun/1971
Two days after the Zappa gig, Alex Bennett interviewed John and Yoko
as well as inviting listeners to call in with their own questions.
Caller: Can you run down what therapy
is like at the Primal institute?
John: For me it was a good experience
and it helped me a lot, I don't know whether it would help everyone, you
know, it just sort of worked for me and I enjoyed it, as much as you can
enjoy torture [laughs].
Bennett: Is it tortuous?
John: It's very hard facing up
to 30 years of falsehood, or repressed emotion, which is virtually what
it is. It's like, to put it one way, it' like a 6/7 month acid trip, but
very slow and you really see.
This interview is available
for download at this link
Oz Magazine
Press Conference
Recorded: 14/Jul/1971
A John & Yoko press conference in support of the Oz magazine in
their obscenity trial.
John's brief version of 'The
End Of The Road' during the conference was included on a flexi-disc given
away with Oz magazine.
Grapefruit Press
Conferences
Recorded: 19&20/Jul/1971
Press conferences conducted at Apple and Tittenhurst to promote the
re-publishing of Yoko's book "Grapefruit".
Anne Nightingale
(BBC)
Transmitted: BBC Radio ? ??/???/1971
Woman's Hour
Recorded: ??/Aug/1971
Transmitted: BBC Radio Two 09/Nov/1971 (between
2:01 and 2:59pm)
Perhaps the most intimate interview with John and Yoko was this one
given for a Woman's Hour special on the subject of exploitation
of sex in the media. The Lennon's were filming Imagine at the time
(A pre MTV series of "video's" for a TV special designed to accompany their
soon to be released albums Imagine and Fly) and this interview
was captured by one of the cameramen, a brief snippet appeared in the finished
film.
The entire film of this interview
(including blank screens during the change of reels) was included as a
bonus feature on the 2000 released DVD "Gimme Some Truth".
Apple To The Core
Interview
Recorded: 05/Sep/1971
Shortly after John & Yoko left England for the final time, Peter
McCabe interviewed John for the book "Apple to the core" at the St.Regis
Hotel, New York City.
Howard Smith (WPLJ)
Recorded: 12/Sep/1971
Transmitted: 26/Sep/1971
Another appearance on the Howard Smith Show.
Japan Interview
(????)
Recorded: ??/???/1971
Another interview for Japan sometime after the release of the Imagine
album.
Recording in circulation - 22
minutes.
Scott Muni (WNEW)
Recorded: ??/Sep or Oct/1971
Topics discussed include Fly, early Rock'n'Roll,
Haiku, Zen & more.
Recording in circulation - Just
over 1 hour
Syracuse Press
Conferences
Recorded: 05&08/Oct/1971
John and Yoko held press conferences at the Hotel
Syracuse, New York on the 5th and at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse
on the 8th (at 2pm) to promote the opening of Yoko's art exhibition
This
Is Not Here which ran from October 9th-27th.
Yoko: "In this show, I'd like to
prove you don't need talent to be an artist. Artist is just a frame of
mind. Anybody can be an artist. Anybody can communicate if they're desperate
enough."
As well as being filmed, audio
extracts of the Museum Press Conference were later released on vinyl in
1976.
The Hotel Press Conference is
also in circulation.
"The Argument
Interview"
Recorded: 09/Oct/1971
During a Syracuse hotel room birthday party for John, Japanese journalist
Takahhiro Imura interviewed John and Yoko.
Recording in circulation
Elliot Mintz (KLOS)
Transmitted: KLOS FM 10/Oct/1971
A transcript of this interview also appeared
in the Los Angeles Free Press (October 15-21, 1971).
"I've never voted. I've never voted
yet although I could have voted for the last ten years..... Because I've
never believed any of them. And I just couldn't vote for someone I couldn't
believe in. I was always waiting for somebody to believe in. But I don't
believe they'll ever come."
Scene And Heard
Recorded: 25/Oct/1971
Transmitted: BBC Radio One 13&20&27/Nov/1971
The 4th and final interview given to David Wigg
in which John gave his most concise opinion on the end of the Beatles.
"It’s natural, it’s not a great
disaster, people keep talking about it as if it’s the end of the Earth,
it’s only a Rock group that split up, it’s nothing important, you have
all the old records there if you want to reminisce….. Even the young people
refuse to accept change, that’s what the problem is….. I told people 20
years ago, or whenever it was, that I’m not going to be singing She
Loves You when I’m 30, I was 30 last year and it was then when I broke
the band up....... that’s when it happened. I knew I wouldn’t be doing
the same thing. It just doesn’t work like that, it’s like a rugby team,
sometime you have to get married and leave the boys on a Saturday night.
That’s how it is."
As with sections of his 3 previous
chats with John, part of this David Wigg interview (just under 10 minutes)
was included on the 1976 Polydor album "The Beatles Tapes".
Don Singleton Interview
Recorded: ??/Nov/1971
An interview with the Daily News (New York City) writer shortly
after the Syracuse exhibition, which is among the topics discussed.
Recording in circulation
Chicago Radio
Interview
Recorded: ??/???/1972
Immigration & Marijuana
Recording in circulation - 29
minutes
Howard Smith (WPLJ)
Transmitted: 23/Jan/1972
Another interview with Howard Smith this time at the Lennon's apartment
where Smith caught John and Yoko listening to the Beatles on the radio.
As the music continued in the background, John's old band became the topic
of conversation.
Smith: People would sit around
and there'd be like the latest Beatle album, and there'd be whole rooms
full of people usually stoned out of their mind and going Wow, they've
done it again! Another fantastic album.
John: People still do that, no
only about our music, I mean friends of mine have done it with the new
albums I've made. Friends of ours have done a mescalin trip on Fly[Yoko's
album] and things like that and I'm sure they get off on the Stones and
all the artists that way, when they get together. I think it's still there,
it's just that there's so much good stuff out now, you'd have to spend
all your life locked up in a room listening, right?
An Hour With John
& Yoko (WIBG AM)
Recorded: 10/Feb/1972
An appearance on a Philadelphia station.
Recording in circulation
Kup's Show (????)
Transmitted Live: 13/May/1972
John and Yoko, along with Elephant's Memory, appeared at a benefit
concert held in a Methodist Church in Washington Square. Backstage John
gave an exclusive live interview to Irv Kupcinet.
Recording in circulation, 30
minutes.
The Beatles Story
Part One Transmitted: BBC Radio
One 21/May/1972
Not certain if John contributed an interview especially
for this 13 part BBC Radio series, they may have used archive material
- possibly including an interview with Anne Nightingale from 1971, can
anybody confirm?
Elliot Mintz (KLOS?)
Transmitted? 09/Jun/1972
Elliot Mintz recorded an interview for his Los Angeles radio station
with John at a house in Ojai, CA. They Talked by the pool, then inside
by a bathtub claiming the house may be bugged. John was under investigation
by the FBI at the time.
"The David Peel
Interviews" (????)
Transmitted? 12/Jun/1972
John recorded an interview with the freelance
American radio journalist Scott Johns at his Greenwich Village apartment
to promote the Some Time in New York City album, he also discussed
his relationship with the singer/songwriter David Peel.
This interview was later released
on vinyl in 1980 as "The David Peel interviews"
Howard Smith (WPLJ)
Transmitted: WPLJ FM ??/???/1972
Described as a New York City “street” interview, mid-summer 1972
Recording in circulation
INS Press Conference
Recorded?: 23/Mar/1973
Saul Marx and Leon Wildes
International Feminist
Conference Interview (WBCN)
Recorded: 03/Jun/1973
John and Yoko attended the International Feminist Planning conference
at Harvard Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts where Yoko had been
invited to perform before the 350 delegates. John & Yoko also gave
a taped interview to Danny Schechter. John said that living with Yoko had
given him a grasp of the aims of the feminist movement, he also discussed
the formation of their conceptual country Nutopia and news of the battle
with the immigration department.
Recording in circulation - 13
minutes
Capital Rap (Capital
Radio)
Transmitted Live? 12/Nov/1973
John gave a transatlantic phone call interview to the one month old
Capital Radio (the first Independent commercial radio station in the UK,
serving the South East region). The interviewer was his old friend Kenny
Everett and John was promoting his latest album Mind Games.
Recording in circulation - 11
minutes (with music cut)
Rockspeak (????)
Transmitted? 23/Nov/1973
Another interview to promote the Mind Games album.
Tony Price (Radio
Luxembourg)
Transmitted: 09/Dec/1973
Radio Luxembourg had organised a national petition to gain a pardon
from the Queen for John's 1968 drug offences which had resulted in him
fighting a deportation order. Over the phone, Tony Prince interviewed John
who appealed for "clemency and the right to travel freely between America
and Britain". Following the transatlantic phone conversation, Price remarked,
"I believe there is a terrible injustice taking place with regard to John
Lennon. When found guilty of drug possession back in 1968 his sentence
was a fine, which he paid, but the sentence hasn't stopped at this. Lennon
misses Britain but he can't come home."
Recording in circulation - 26
minutes
1974 - 1980 Radio
appearances & Taped Conversations
09/Apr/1974 Capital
Radio - Nicky Horne in London interviews John
17/May/1974 WFIL
Radio - Guest DJ for Philadelphia station
fundraising
18/May/1974 WFIL
Radio - 2nd day DJ guest spot for fundraising
??/Aug/1974 RKO
Radio Networks - 70 minute interview
??/Sep/1974 KSAN
FM - San Francisco interview to Tom Donahue
20/Sep/1974 KHJ
AM - Promoting "Walls & Bridges" in L.A
25/Sep/1974 RKO
Radio - 70 minute interview
26/Sep/1974 CHUM
Radio - Toronto station interview
??/Sep/1974 WMMS
FM - Cleveland interview with Denny Sanders
27/Sep/1974 KHJ
AM - Los Angeles, John is Guest DJ on Breakfast
show
27/Sep/1974 WAXB
FM
- Mark Parenteau interview for Detroit
station
27/Sep/1974 Capital
Radio
- Kenny Everett interview
27/Sep/1974
"Rock Speak" BBC Radio 1 - Michael Wale interview
28/Sep/1974 WNEW
FM - New York interview by Denis Elsas
29/Sep/1974 WRKO
-
40 minutes
01/Oct/1974 KRQS
Radio - Minneapolis interview by Alan Stone
06/Oct/1974 "Speaking
of Everything" (WABC) Howard Cosell interview
??/Oct/1974 WEBN
Cincinnati - Short 4 min phone interview
10/Oct/1974 Jim
Ladd Interview - More promoting "Walls &
Bridges"
20/Dec/1974 KHJ
AM - Interview in George Harrison's hotel
room
29/Dec/1974 CKLW
Radio - Interview for Detroit station
??/Dec/1974 Capital
Radio - Phone interview to Kenny Everett in
London
13/Feb/1975 WNEW
FM - New York interview to Scott Muni
21/Feb/1975 (Various)
-
20 station link up for chaotic interview
02/Mar/1975 Alex
Bennett - Phone interview alongside Bowie
& Yoko.
18/Mar/1975 Capital
Radio - Transatlantic phone chat with Nicky
Horne
09/May/1975 WFIL
Radio - 3 day fundraising for station in Philadelphia
??/Jun/1975 ???????
-
Scott Muni interviews John
??/Dec/1975 WNEW
FM - Home taped replies to listeners questions
??/Dec/1975 "Sean
Interview" - John 'interviews' his baby son
01/Jan/1976 "Earth
News Radio"
- 60 min interview to Elliot Mintz
04/Oct/1977 Japan
Press Conference - 45 mins, Yoko translates
05/Sep/1979 "Diary
Tape" - John's controversial home recording
10/Oct/1979 "Diary
Tape" #2 - more audio musings
17/Sep/1980 Newsweek
- Barbara Graustark interview (WNEW highlights)
/Sep/1980 Playboy
Interviews - David Sheff 30 hours taped interviews
24/Sep/1980 97FM
-
Lisa Robinson interview for Buffalo station
05/Dec/1980 Rolling
Stone - Jonathan Cott taped interview
06/Dec/1980 BBC
Radio One - Andy Peebles interview
08/Dec/1980 RKO
- The final interview
Posthumous Specials
08/Dec/1985 "The
Words & Music of John Lennon" (BBC Radio
1)
18/Jan/1988 - 23/Mar/1992
"The Lost Lennon Tapes" (Westwood One)
14/Sep/1988 "Yoko
Ono's Response" to Goldman Bio (Westwood One)
06/Oct/1990 In
My Life - Lennon Remembered (BBC
Radio 1) 10 parts
04/Dec/1990 Cult
Heroes - John Lennon (BBC
Radio 5)
/Dec/2000 "Lennon's
Legacy" (BBC Radio 2) in 3 parts, new Yoko
int.
03/Dec/2005 "The
Wenner Tapes" (BBC
Radio 4) Dec70 + new Yoko int.
03/Dec/2005 "Bigger
Than Jesus"(BBC Radio 2)story of infamous
quote
08/Dec/2005 "Lennon"
(BBC
Radio 2) incl new Yoko interview
Source material for this article include - Mark Lewisohn's "Beatles
Chronicle", Keith Badman's "Off the Record" & "After the break up",
Chip Madinger and Mark Easter's "Eight Arms To Hold You" and John
C. Winn's "That Magic Feeling".
This unfinished page was last updated March
2008.
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