The Lives of John Lennon

Rating:
Summary: important read for a real fan
Review: I found this book at a vintage bookstore in Nova Scotia on vacation. It was cheap, long, and seemed like a good read for the long drives ahead of me. Although I seriously doubt that everything said about John is true, it is important to remember that John was troubled, he was genius, but troubled. When I bought this book I had no idea of the author's intentions nor his reputation and was shocked by what I read. As a life long John Lennon and Beatles fan, this was not the first account of his life that I have read but believe that it is an important perspective for a real fan. I do not take all of this as true, but understand what it is, a different way of seeing someone that I have idolized. The most interesting biography of John I have read is "Come Together" by Jon Weiner. This book is a biography of John's generation and the time he lived in, with John as the main character. The opening lines are enough to draw you in "Is rock revolutionary?"

Rating:
Summary: The Lives of John Lennon
Review: This book is full of exagerations and many falsities, i have done research on Lennon over the past few years and the book i feel gives a very good overview of his life would be "Lennon: the defenitive biography." I am not saying "The Lives of John Lennon" is just one big lie, it has truthful, and quite factual information, but it sensationalizes many incidents in his life.

Rating:
Summary: IMAGINE NO LENNON BUSTERS
Review: John Lennon was not a saint. John Lennon was not a martyr nor was he a demon. Goldman appears to have an agenda; he appears to look for any possible way to demonize the late former Beatle.

John Lennon was not without his problems. A highly gifted, high spirited and expressive boy, John's boyhood behavior can be described as hyperactive. In today's world, John would most likely be categorized as ADD/ADHD. Artistically gifted and creative, John appeared to be a right brained learner. His behavior appeared to fit the classic profile of ADD/ADHD. It is to his credit and the world's fortune that he had many artistic outlets to channel his energy and talent. Merely reducing John's work to "yeah, yeah, yeah" records as another reviewer noted is to do all a grave disservice. John the man was much more complex and multifaceted than any type of music can describe him. In many ways, John defied description. His talent and how he developed it throughout his life is something that many find interesting.

John was neither demon nor saint. However, he was a deep and complex man and his talent spoke volumes. Goldman appears to have nothing positive to say about the late Beatle; rather he appears to seek ways to tarnish John and reduce his life and career to the level of tabloid journalism.

My chief complaint about the Goldman book are the inaccuracies regarding dates and times. The section covering John's untimely death in 1980 is choppily written; the dates covering John's assassin's movements during late 1980 are inaccurate and Goldman's account of John's death are at variance with other sources.

Skip this book. Read Ray Coleman's biography of John Lennon instead. Coleman is fair and objective and he did his homework concerning the late Beatle's life and times. You might also want to read newspaper articles covering John at various points throughout his life until his tragic death in 1980 for accurate, objective information.

Rating:
Summary: Decide this book's validity by reading it yourself.
Review: Those in the rock world largely denounced this book, and for all I know it may be hooey, but boy was it a page-turner. It works largely because the events and descriptions seem consistent with what we already know of the Beatles and Rock & Roll in general. The private descriptions of Lennon and all of the Beatles seem to match their public persona just enough that you nod your head.

The Goldman assessment that Lennon's Beatles evolved into Paul's Beatles as John grew tired of the intricacies of music production is in step with other things we've read about the band. We know that Sergeant Pepper was a Paul creation, but Goldman contends that Lennon never put in enough effort to match it. He had the opportunity, but instead of getting the best out of himself creatively, he fought Paul over control of the band's business management. From that point on, Paul was the creative center and it was only a matter of time before Lennon would flee.

The characterization of Lennon and Yoko as largely apolitical must anger a great many social revolutionaries, but it does seem to ring true. Their bed-in peace faze was short-lived in the grand scheme of their lives. The only real political battle Lennon had in the last 10 years of his life was trying to fight the Nixon Administration's attempts to deport him. He also showed up for Carter's inaugural, shook hands, and promptly left.

Like I said, I don't know how true Goldman's account is. It's probably best not to read this book as the sole authority on Lennon and the Beatles, but I certainly wouldn't skip it either.

Rating:
Summary: Could have been much better
Review: The major flaw with this book is that Goldman chose to focous on Lennons post Beatle days, the days he thought would be most disturbing to Lennons fans, & he was right to think that.This book could have been 100% better if he had instead concentrated more on the years 1960-1963, the years when the Beatles were only known in Liverpool/Hamburg, before they cleaned up their image & John was their undisputed leader.He could have dug up an equall amount of sensationalistic journalism from those days (they were WILD in Hamburg)& it would have made for a far more interesting book - showing how the Beatles synthasized everything in rock & roll that had come before them & forged it into a newer, better sound.
I mean, I really dont care to know about Yoko, but it seems there is as much about her in this book as there is on John. That being said, the good news is that there are some fine chapters in the 1st half of the book, Goldman DOES have a clear understanding of why Lennon was so unique. If you do read this book, I would suggest you supplement it with 3 other books-
1. "The Beatles Live" by Mark Lewisohn
2. "Beatle" by Pete Best
3. "The man who gave the Beatles away" by Alan Williams

Rating:
Summary: *Sigh*
Review: I wonder, if a donkey had some writing on it's rear end would it get 3/5 stars and sell well? Hmm. Interestingly enough, this book is even worse than my example. If only, if only, I could give this less than zero. God help the gullible person who reads and believes this bull/crap of a book. Okay, sure this book is true, and guess what? The underground railroad had tracks, and the best "Star Wars" film is "Spaceballs." Come on, wake up and smell the coffee! Biographies don't have to be black or white, portraying a saint or a sinner. But portraying a gunned down hero as an alcoholic and abusive bigot is a bit overboard. There is a thing called balance you know...

Rating:
Summary: Flushed it down a toilet (literally)
Review: This book may (or may not) be factually accurate. On the other hand, it's not true. (There *is* a difference, you know.)

....

You're better off going to the primary sources and buying a copy of _Plastic Ono Band_, _Imagine_, or _Double Fantasy_, instead. If you've already got those and want to read a bio, read the Hunter Davies or Ray Coleman books, instead.

Rating:
Summary: A TORMENTED LIFE, BUT NONETHELESS A HUMAN ONE!
Review: This is definietly going to be one of those extremely controversial books in the marketplace. John Lennon was not a saint nor did he ever pretend to be during his lifetime. Then again, how many among us have been promoted to the status of sainthood either? He was, however, an interesting, talented human being with a life story that at times seems so bizarre, outrageous and off-beat, that one wonders how the man survived the number of years that he did.

From childhood, through "Beatlemania" to the later years, this is indeed a story that will certainly keep the readers riveted in their seats from start to finish. Goldman certainly does not believe in embellishing the finer qualities of a person, and surely for all John's almost eccentric lifestyle, he must have had at least one or two finer qualities. Goldman tells it as he sees it and definitely not in a glorified manner. How much is truth and how much is fiction? Readers will have to draw their own conclusions on that one for John certainly is not going to tell us. It is very difficult for a man to defend himself when he is no longer among the living, and very easy to slander someone who is not alive to refute the comments. For all that I enjoyed the book immensely, I did find there was a very negative slant to the whole story and for this reason the book lost a star in the rating. Overall, it does make an interesting story and leads to controversial discussions with friends who have also read the book.

Rating:
Summary: No-one sued Albert Goldman...
Review: A reader below states, "Fact: No-one ever sued Albert Goldman. The reason? Every word was the truth."

Well, no. The reason was that every subject to which Goldman seriously took his scythe (here Lennon and Epstein and elsewhere Elvis Presley) was dead. It is a principle of defamation law around the world that you can't slander the dead.

The same reader also said, "Goldman took rock biography into the realms of serious literature. No other rock writer except Lester Bangs even comes close." Absolute nonsense. Not only does Goldman's work not even pretend to be serious literature, the field of rock writing is well endowed with outstanding literature. There are too many to mention.

As for this book, well, it's true Albert Goldman aims deliberately, maliciously below the belt, and he hits hard. It's also true his (deceased) subjects cannot hit back. My guess is he is right as often as he is wrong, but inevitably it's impossible to judge; you have to take - or refuse, as you see fit - the author's word for it.

The Lives of John Lennon is a very entertaining book to read, unless one of your sacred cows happens to be John Lennon. It also works on a far more important level: somehow (mostly by dint of getting shot) Lennon has acquired amongst people who should know better cult status as some sort of Messianic perfect citizen of the world. He was nothing of the sort. He was frequently a horrible little man. Imagine, far from being a defining anthem of our time, is a vaccuous and hypocritical pile of tripe.

Albert Goldman, for all his insidiousness and for all his trite attempts to be highbrow, makes these points very well indeed.

Rating:
Summary: Provocative to say the least, Disturbing overall
Review: Occasionally, I have read a novel powerful or so contraversial that I had to set it aside, like a type of reader's "Time out".

This was such a book. Never had I read of a life so bizarre, a life so conflicted and tormented from a man so very talented. Not to mention the unfortunate early family life, one can only wonder how any person could cope with all the chaos in John Lennon's life. He marries a woman (Yoko) who, according to this novel is as mentally afflicted with drug and adjustment as he is.

From a page turner review, this rates high. You want to read just what can happen next, and relish in the life of someone so unreal. You feel awkward, as I love this man, for his talent and his music, but I realize this is just a speculative book and certainly no absolute.

It is a provocative page turner, but be prepared to see some extremely disturbing events and recreations. It may just make you want to put the book down for a while.