Sheena (dazeerae) reviewed All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono on + 55 more book reviews
The last 7 chapters of this book make the whole interview worthwhile, in which Lennon delves into the background of Beatles' songs, including Strawberry Fields, Revolution, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, and many many more. He talks about what was going on at the time of each song, who was the primary author (usually himself or McCartney), and the inspiration for the lyrics and instrumentation.
It's interesting to note which songs were "given away," such as "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" and "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You" (both written by Lennon with lead vocal responsibilities given to Harrison) and "I Wanna Be Your Man" (first given to The Rolling Stones, later recorded by The Beatles with Ringo on lead vocals). John is very forthcoming on which songs were Paul's, heaping high praise or harsh criticism on numerous McCartney compositions, with equal parts praise and criticism of his own work.
He eventually discusses some post-Beatles songs, including Jealous Guy, Imagine, Mind Games, and others. The interview done just days before his death is summed up beautifully and prophetically with Lennon saying, "Something could change [...] Who knows what's going to happen?"
It's interesting to note which songs were "given away," such as "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" and "I'm Happy Just to Dance with You" (both written by Lennon with lead vocal responsibilities given to Harrison) and "I Wanna Be Your Man" (first given to The Rolling Stones, later recorded by The Beatles with Ringo on lead vocals). John is very forthcoming on which songs were Paul's, heaping high praise or harsh criticism on numerous McCartney compositions, with equal parts praise and criticism of his own work.
He eventually discusses some post-Beatles songs, including Jealous Guy, Imagine, Mind Games, and others. The interview done just days before his death is summed up beautifully and prophetically with Lennon saying, "Something could change [...] Who knows what's going to happen?"
