Glass Onion: On John Lennon

• Episode 108: The Gospel According To John Lennon (Part 4 of 4)

  Another podcast journey comes to an end as we conclude our look at John Lennon (and The Beatles’) religious, spiritual and philosophical journey by use of Steve Turner’s excellent book ‘The Gospel According To The Beatles’ After a brief recap of the previous episodes, Part 4 picks up from the formation of Apple in 1967, our four favourite rock gods soon discovering that utopian ideals, while often a good thing for the world, usually run into problems when they rub up against harsh reality. From there we cover the break-up of the Beatles, John’s psychic solo adventures (therapy, zen, astrology, magic) and an encounter that Steve Turner had with John & Yoko in 1971. We hope you’ve enjoyed this alternative look at the many changes that John and his bandmates went through in those crazy and remarkable years up to 1980, when one quarter of the famous foursome was gunned down by an individual who was apparently grappling with the forces of light and darkness in his head, even possibly praying to Satan himself. Like everything else, an exploration of the world just beyond visible light can be used for good or bad. If nothing else John Lennon was mostly striving, through various means, to improve his life and make himself a better person, which is something we can all aspire to. See you soon for our next podcast adventure   Feedback to [email protected]   Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno OR https://www.buymeacoffee.com/antonyrotunno   Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod   Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon   Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com   Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com   Steve Turner’s book https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22515.The_Gospel_According_to_the_Beatles?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=q7FtACTtFS&rank=1   episode links John, Paul and Apple (New York 1968) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC5bUE2d_c0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmBFFIwrttk   It’s all going wrong at Rutle Corps! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8ifa3wqqDE   What is Primal Therapy? https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-primal-therapy-5211136   Zen https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zen   Alan Watts on the Zen game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP87pQ3Yb0c   How to access your Higher Self https://scottjeffrey.com/higher-self-meaning/   John Lennon: Knocking on Dylan's Door https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVI7fwfwrzk   ‘The Art & Music of John Lennon’ by Peter Doggett https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/798473.The_Art_And_Music_Of_John_Lennon

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• Episode 107- The Gospel According To John Lennon (Part 3 of 4)

  Continuing our lengthy exploration of John Lennon’s religious, spiritual and philosophical journey by use of Steve Turner’s excellent book ‘The Gospel According To The Beatles’, Part 3 covers some fascinating chapters spanning the years 1964 to 1968 in the book’s rough chronology. John starts to consider the limitations of fame, is influenced by Bob Dylan and starts to finally put some of the spirit of his books into his song lyrics. The lads are ‘turned on’ by Dylan and take a somewhat logical trajectory through pot, LSD and meditation, always looking for some kind of answer and meaning. The concept of ‘love’ is changing in society at this time, and it seems that more and more people are trying to find God on their travels, usually without entering a church. The figure of Jesus Christ continues to linger in John’s life in this period, culminating in one of his most offbeat revelations in May 1968 after returning from their meditation sojourn in India. Tune in for Part 4 next month Enjoy!   Feedback to [email protected]   Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno OR https://www.buymeacoffee.com/antonyrotunno   Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod   Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon   Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com   Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com   Jon Stewart’s book ‘Dylan, Lennon, Marx & God’ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59593530-dylan-lennon-marx-and-god   Steve Turner’s ‘A Hard Day’s Write’ book https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35666.A_Hard_Day_s_Write   episode links John and George discuss meditation on the David Frost Show in 1967 (parts 1 & 2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpYg2H34piw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXfkdLZLqXg   All You Need Is Love in colour! (June 1967) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16IQt0bEqZI   Joe Goodden’s superb look at the Beatles and drugs (reviewed in episodes 49 & 50 of this podcast) https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36379732-riding-so-high   What is LSD? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LSD   Albert Hoffman gets on his bike (LSD discovery) https://www.bicycling.com/culture/a39763696/bicycle-day-albert-hofmann-lsd-psychedelic/   Paul McCartney spliffing very recently https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtklrYCzugo   Revolver: Death and Rebirth https://medium.com/the-riff/the-beatles-revolver-a-spiritual-journey-of-death-and-rebirth-e73113b07242   Religion in the Beatles’ songs https://www.huffpost.com/entry/beatles-songs-religion_n_4760561   The religious views of The Beatles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_views_of_the_Beatles   ‘The Art & Music of John Lennon’ by Peter Doggett https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/798473.The_Art_And_Music_Of_John_Lennon   Excellent audiobook about the Rolling Stones’ Altamont disaster https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_76909yHfc

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• Episode 106- The Gospel According To John Lennon (Part 2 of 4)

  We kick off 2025 with the continuation of our lengthy exploration of John Lennon’s religious, spiritual and philosophical journey. Part 2 starts with more of John and the Beatles’ general beliefs about the world before starting a chronology of the Beatle years from the particular perspective of Steve Turner’s book ‘The Gospel According To The Beatles’ We go back to John’s Sunday School grounding and his always ambivalent attitude to Jesus Christ and the religion he spawned, through the school years, his ‘religious’ (so to speak) devotion to rock and roll, Stu and Astrid, Hamburg, existentialism and finally the freedom-loving philosophy and behaviour of the Beatlemania-era foursome in 1963 and 64. Ref- the intro clips come from John Lennon’s Playboy interviews shortly before his death in 1980. The outro song is by ‘The Fab Four’ Beatles tribute band Enjoy!   Feedback to [email protected]   Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno OR https://www.buymeacoffee.com/antonyrotunno   Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod   Twitter handle https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon   Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching) https://www.antonyrotunno.com   Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media) https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com   Jon Stewart’s book ‘Dylan, Lennon, Marx & God’ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59593530-dylan-lennon-marx-and-god   Steve Turner’s ‘A Hard Day’s Write’ book https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35666.A_Hard_Day_s_Write   episode links Royston Ellis on the 1960 Beatles https://www.ibtimes.com/beatles-1960-liverpool-royston-ellis-remembers-996876   The original ‘Beatnik Horror’ article from 1960 https://www.flickr.com/photos/29873672@N02/6897934379   Jude Kessler on John & Stu’s relationship (‘Pop Goes The 60s’ channel) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbED8SRpUoI   ‘Angry Young Men at the Kitchen Sink’ (linking 2 genres) https://literaturestudies.co.uk/angry-young-men-at-the-kitchen-sink/   Existentialism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existentialism   Did Lewis Carroll’s migraines inspire his ‘Alice’ books? https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(05)74368-3/fulltext   ‘Looking For Lennon’ documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVpyOa2Kn1Y   ‘The Art & Music of John Lennon’ by Peter Doggett https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/798473.The_Art_And_Music_Of_John_Lennon   The religious views of The Beatles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_views_of_the_Beatles   Liverpool’s Anglican cathedral https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liverpool_Cathedral

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• Episode 105- The Gospel According To John Lennon (Part 1 of 4)

  We end Glass Onion’s 6th year with the start of another multi-part series, the first 4-parter in the history of the podcast. Using (mostly) the John Lennon parts from Steve Turner’s excellent 2006 book ‘The Gospel According To The Beatles’, we trace our hero’s religious, spiritual and philosophical journey through its many twists and turns in his intense four-decade ride through life. Antony also comments on his own journey in these areas, some of which overlaps with that of John Lennon and The Beatles. Part 1 looks at the first two chapters of Steve’s book, focusing a lot on the ‘Bigger Than Jesus’ controversy of 1966. This is preceded by an attempt to lay some groundwork for this series by defining ‘religion’ and ‘spirituality’ and pondering what the differences (if any) between them are. There are multiple audio clips at the start to help us along, and you will find many useful web links in the show notes below   Enjoy! And see you in January 2025 for part 2. Best wishes from Antony   Feedback to [email protected]   Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno OR https://www.buymeacoffee.com/antonyrotunno   Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod   Twitter handle  https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon   Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching)  https://www.antonyrotunno.com   Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media)  https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com   episode links Steve Turner’s book https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22515.The_Gospel_According_to_the_Beatles   Jon Stewart’s book ‘Dylan, Lennon, Marx & God’ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59593530-dylan-lennon-marx-and-god   Steve and Jon on the ‘Unbelievable ?’ podcast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COHA7qRQX5o   John defends ‘Bigger Than Jesus’ in Chicago https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZaI7m1xpAg   Brian Epstein speaks about the controversy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsqdzC2kFeA   John Lennon- God ‘video’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SX7GsonWTJA   Andrew Hickey’s podcast on the Beatles in 1966-67 (including ‘Bigger Than Jesus’) https://500songs.com/podcast/episode-150-all-you-need-is-love-by-the-beatles   Beatles interviews database http://beatlesinterviews.org/   Joe Goodden’s superb book on the Beatles and drugs https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36379732-riding-so-high   ‘The Rest Is History’ podcast about Jesus’s existence (2 parts) https://therestishistory.com/287-jesus-christ-the-mystery/ https://therestishistory.com/288-jesus-christ-the-history/   John Cleese and Michael Palin defend ‘The Life of Brian’ in 1979 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYMpObbt2rs   Band Aid 40th anniversary documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6_6PzRQ9sQ&t=1s   William Mann ‘oustanding composers’ article in The Times in 1963 https://www.beatlesbible.com/1963/12/27/the-times-what-songs-the-beatles-sang-by-william-mann/

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• Episode 104- John Lennon The Actor with Ross Marshall (Part 2 of 2)

  We conclude our look at John Lennon as an actor, starting from 1965’s ‘Help!’ and with particular emphasis on what was arguably his only ‘serious’ role, albeit in an anti-war satire ‘How I Won The War’. He also voices a famously sprawling Beatles TV film about a bus, and there’s a film cameo and brief comedy sketch in amongst it all as well. Antony is joined once again by professional actor Ross Marshall, and there are multiple audio clips to complement the conversation. Glass Onion will return in December for 1 or possibly 2 more episodes looking at John Lennon’s religious and spiritual life.   Enjoy!   Feedback to [email protected]   Support the show at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/antonyrotunno OR https://www.buymeacoffee.com/antonyrotunno   Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/glassonionjlpod   Twitter handle  https://www.twitter.com/OnionLennon   Antony's website (music, podcasts, blog, life coaching)  https://www.antonyrotunno.com   Antony's 'Life And Life Only' podcast (on Psychology and Alternative media)  https://www.lifeandlifeonly.podbean.com   Ross’s acting page and his new film, currently streaming on A***** Prime https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6892498/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt19632160/?ref_=nm_flmg_knf_t_1   episode links John’s scenes in ‘Help!’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FesTTkMcSd4   How I Won The War (filmed in 1966, released in 1967) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_I_Won_the_War   John’s scenes in ‘How I Won The War’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEZFe94xpkk   Our original review of the film https://glassoniononjohnlennon.com/episode-38-how-i-won-the-war-reel-britannia-film-podcast   John is interviewed on the set of the film in Almeria, Spain https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8u5Ct8cdpQ&t=137s   John as the doorman of the ‘Ad Lav’ (‘Not Only But Also’, Nov 1966) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qAo0wx--C0   James Hargreaves’s very imaginative interpretation of the ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CTIlgC0P0Q   John riffs with Little Nicola on the bus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTjP74avEpQ   ‘I Am The Walrus’ in 4k (glorious!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMOrBbcoFbo   Mr Creosote scene (somewhat influenced by Magical Mystery Tour) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aczPDGC3f8U   The Beatles’ cameo in the ‘Yellow Submarine’ film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SM8S4Y7FPMk   John needles Peter Sellers in Twickenham https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpcAUdgCChc   ‘Daytime Revolution’ trailer (new doc about John & Yoko) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkjiRlTVVnQ   John at his charismatic peak playing DJ in 1974 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCq-kdYEvT4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_G7PN9Yovw

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