reading the phil norman book

[james1985]

about 2/3 through - a very good read

more new stuff than any 2008 Lennon book has any right to be, loads of new quotes from Paul Mac and George Martin. Very good on Hamburg and Liverpool - always the best bits in Beatle books, no?

and, post-"Shout", he goes out of his way to be kind to Macca - though I havn't got to Apple yet!

[Scott Dossett]

about 2/3 through - a very good read

more new stuff than any 2008 Lennon book has any right to be, loads of new quotes from Paul Mac and George Martin. Very good on Hamburg and Liverpool - always the best bits in Beatle books, no?

and, post-"Shout", he goes out of his way to be kind to Macca - though I havn't got to Apple yet!

I got it for a Christmas present but have yet to start it..."It Won't Be Long" though

[cjm320]

Same here, can't wait to dig into that one, still reading the books I got for Christmas.

[ahawk66]

I'm about three quarters of the way through the book now, right about the time Paul announces the split, and one thing I think the book relays that others haven't for me is that around the time that Paul made the announcement of it "for the public record," it seems the Beatles still half-assumed that they would record again together at some point in the future. That's just a sense I'm getting from the way Norman is presenting the info. They had gone different ways on a lot of levels, but in early 1970 there didn't seem to be an irrevocable split, so it's feasible that they would've continued recording much more sporadically together, almost out of habit (not to mention because of the new royalty contract with Capitol!). It's all speculation, which means nothing at this point in time, but I think we all read these things in search of some speculative items to prove that under all the crap, they really did care about one another. The book goes further into the scene at Apple where John says he's leaving. That's pretty much all I'd heard before, that Paul had said they should tour little places, John said, "You're daft!, and by the way, I'm leaving," but Norman illustrates a scene that involves a deeper discussion among the Beatles about what had been bugging them (John saying that Paul was heavy-handed in the studio, Paul agreeing and saying he'd like to make amends for that, John talking about George getting short shrift on his songs, John admitting that he hadn't much to offer in terms of songs the past couple of years, etc.). Interesting meeting, if that's the case. ...Also revelatory for me was that John apparently first offered "Cold Turkey" to the Beatles as a single and the other 3 declined. It seems the initial time away from one another (plus that fact that the only way they could capitalize on the new deals was to stay together in some form) gave them a little perspective. Like I said, just speculating, but it's fun sometimes.

[Mattal1958]

I'm in the midst of reading it, and there's just too much fancy prose and subjectivity to the comments. I guess if you're a kid, or an adult unfamiliar with the Beatles, it might be of interest...but, I really don't want to hear Norman's "take" on the music, trying to read John's mind (or Paul's or the other's for that matter).

I prefer books that tell more of a linear story, that maybe surprise us with facts and nuggets that we've either never known before, or shed more light on what we DO know.

This is just another book by some guy who fancies himself a "writer" not a documenter.

Again, give me meat, Norman...not your dim-witted opinions or projections on things.

[james1985]

I'm in the midst of reading it, and there's just too much fancy prose and subjectivity to the comments. I guess if you're a kid, or an adult unfamiliar with the Beatles, it might be of interest...but, I really don't want to hear Norman's "take" on the music, trying to read John's mind (or Paul's or the other's for that matter).

I prefer books that tell more of a linear story, that maybe surprise us with facts and nuggets that we've either never known before, or shed more light on what we DO know.

This is just another book by some guy who fancies himself a "writer" not a documenter.

Again, give me meat, Norman...not your dim-witted opinions or projections on things.

it's pretty much impossible to be completely objective if you're a biographer. Any historian/biographer gets their sources and forms their opinion from those sources. There's nothing worse than dry biographies that don't offer interesting opinion.

I don't think he really does try "to read John's mind". And I think he does offer "meat": all-new interviews (especially the early insights from Macca), that offer many stories hardcore beatles fans would never have heard before. The correspondance between mimi and the young fan was fascinating. And he's toned down the polemic, macca-bashing side of his writing since Shout! was released.