BW talks Lennon

[Awesoman]

On John Lennon's official YouTube site there is a video of Brian Wilson discussing Lennon and his work.  Brian mentions that he had never actually met Lennon before (although he had met the other Beatles before).  I thought he had met Lennon at least at one point.  Is Brian having selective memory or did the two never actually grace each other with their presence?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNdy6NSEF5I

[Mikie]

I don't know if this story is true or not. Somebody wrote it in a book - maybe it was Mickey Dolenz or May Pang or somebody. Maybe the source was talking out his butt, maybe not, but here's the fact/rumor. Not sure if it was the late 60's or early 70's. Take it with a grain of salt:

Brian and John were at the same party somewhere in Malibu or elsewhere around L.A. near the ocean. Both had consumed some kind of substance(s) and were standing still next to each other by a large window staring out into the Pacific Ocean. Neither one of them said a word to each other - they just stood there and stared out the back window.

Lennon would have been 70 tomorrow.  Damn........

[jeremylr]

Also liked how Brian didn't pick obvious Lennon songs as his favorites; instead, he went for "Across The Universe" & "With A Little Help From My Friends!";  definitely wasn't expecting "Little Help From My Friends," but when I think about it, that's quintessential Brian

[Jon Stebbins]

They definitely met at Ricci Martin's 21st birthday party Sept. 1974. Lennon claimed that Brian walked up and asked him if he had any reds. Lennon said no. I think that was about it.

[Mikie]

May Pang:

"I don't remember Brian hanging out with us that much. Brian, we saw a couple of times. We saw him once at this birthday party…in fact, that was the first time that we had seen him. I think it was for Ricky Martin - I'm talking about Dean Martin's son - it was like his 18th birthday or something. I remember seeing this guy - and this was at a time when he was really heavy - and I saw him coming towards us and went, "Oh my god". And I whispered under my breath, as I did quite often with John, "The man that's about to come over to us is Brian Wilson. Remember, we saw Dennis Wilson, his brother, the other day? This is Brian…Beach Boy". And John turned around and he was like, "Ohhh". Just as Brian was about to speak, John spun around and said, "Hi Brian". And you could see this look in Brian's eyes as he said, "Hey man, you have any reds?" John looked at him and said, "Don't do that stuff, sorry man". And he walked away. That's where Brian was at that moment in time. "

[rogerlancelot]

Micky Dolenz from his autobiography:

"A word about drugs. I have made no secret about the fact that I dabbled in the world of chemical realities. But by most standards, I was pretty tame. And I was lucky. I'm not going to preach to anyone about the dangers of drug abuse, they should be self-evident. All I can tell you is that, in my experience, it simply isn't worth it. It wasn't worth the money, the time, the energy, the damage to my physical and mental being, the damage to my relationships and my disposition. And in the end, it also got so boring. My last experience with LSD was at a Malibu beach house in the company of Harry Nilsson, Brian Wilson, John Lennon, et al. With those participants, you'd think it would have been a stimulating, inspiring occasion. Unfortunately, it was not. Harry went off into his own world; Brian, who was already long-gone even at that time, played just one note on a piano, over and over again; and John stood and stared into a swimming pool for four hours. What fun! I ended up sitting in the living room, watching the walls breathe and my hand turn into a snake, impatiently looking at my watch thinking, "Here goes the old hand-into-a-snake routine. I wonder when I can get out of here and go home to work on my gyrocopter?"

Okay, so what really happened??? Anybody???

[Shady]

That was really nice...

Happy Birthday John!!

[c-man]

Okay, so what really happened??? Anybody???

Probably all of the above.

[Mr. Cohen]

If Brian met John and doesn't remember it, that's sad. Or, it could be that the sources claiming Brian met John are wrong. Or, it could be that it's like how Brian is about Pacific Ocean Blue: he denies ever having heard it to avoid talking about (because, really, who could believe that?). What's Brian going to say? "I met John a few times and we were so high all I could do was stare at him like I just saw Jesus, or ask him for more drugs."

[Myk Luhv]

I care more about what Brian thought of Yoko!

[adamghost]

It could be that Brian didn't even realize it was John.

I know that sounds kind of crazy, but I MAY have met Jan Berry in a record store in Burbank in 1988.  The thing is, I am not sure it was him.  And I was enough of a Jan & Dean fan that I should have known, but it didn't occur to me until afterwards that that the stranger who talked to me in a garbled voice about something vaguely musical as if I should have known who he was might have been Jan noticing me browsing old J & D records.  But my head wasn't in that place, I didn't process the situation until afterwards, and I'll never know if that was Jan Berry, or some random speech-impaired guy who decided to talk to me for no apparent reason.

Now you're Brian Wilson at a random party in 1974 looking to score.  This guy turns around and calls you by name and catches you off guard as you embark on your quest for reds.  Might you not recognize John Lennon?  You betcha.

[PongHit]

Yet it was "Strawberry Fields" that made him almost crash his car.

[Mr. Cohen]

You're right, you might not recognize John Lennon. I accept that as a possibility, but at the same time, I'm sure John and his Liverpoolian accent cut a very distinctive figure in places like LA. Sadly, we'll never know the truth. It's one of those mysteries of life that will have to go unanswered.

[Mikie]

Of course you've heard the DJ with Brian and the Beatles talking about haircuts (on Youtube).

[Aegir]

What is a red?

[Mikie]

Street drug. Secobarbital. It's a barbiturate.

[Ron]

I think looking back, it's easy for us to say things like "Oh, they probably never met" or whatever, but think of all the things you did in the 11th grade.  Think of every day you were in the 11th grade in high school.  Do you remember Joe?  



HELL NO you dont' remember Joe! I'm 32 and I cannot tell you what I did two years ago, much less who I met or ran into 15 years ago.  It's the same for Brian... even with somebody as famous as John Lennon... I mean Brian has known EVERYBODY, he probably honestly doesn't remember if he ever met John.  Especially if he was drunk or high when he met him.  

I saw a television show last year called "Intervention", and I don't remember who the kid was, but he was the son of a famous rock star.  Anyways, he mentioned when he was a kid, there were always big parties at his house, and people like Cher, Ike & Tina Turner, Brian Wilson, and others were always around the house, his parents were always drunk and high, and now he's doing the same thing, etc.

Brian probably went to 200 parties a year for a while there.  

[Mr. Cohen]

Maybe, but John wasn't just another celebrity to Brian. He worshiped the Beatles. How many times do you think Brian listened to songs like "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away", or "Norwegian Wood"? "Girl Don't Tell Me" is like an unofficial tribute to "Ticket To Ride". My personal opinion is that Brian doesn't like to reflect on his '70s partying days, and that he blocks a lot of it out (which the drugs helped him to do, I'm sure). But that's just an opinion.

[Runaways]

I think looking back, it's easy for us to say things like "Oh, they probably never met" or whatever, but think of all the things you did in the 11th grade.  Think of every day you were in the 11th grade in high school.  Do you remember Joe?  

um no, but joe wasn't john lennon

[adamghost]

You could absolutely not recognize John Lennon.  Living in Los Angeles, you bump into random people all the time, and a lot of people look like a lot of other people.  It's a crowded party, it may be poorly lit, it sounds like John may have been turned away from Brian until the critical moment, Brian's in a weird chemical state and focused on other things and hell, Brian is so shy he may not even have looked at John.  From all accounts, they were never actually introduced, and in that situation if you're not sure who you're talking to the natural thing to do is just play it off and play dumb so as not to make a fool of yourself.

As I said, I should have recognized Jan Berry, right?  And yet, I didn't, if that was him (and I've told the story to friends of Jan's and they are more convinced it was him than I am, frankly).  If you're head's in another place, you just don't process it, particularly if a social situation is sprung on you out of nowhere...which it appears was the case here.

[adamghost]

Another story from my younger and brasher days...I was at some random party, a little drunk, and there was a long haired guy and a beautiful woman standing around and I said to the guy, "you look just like Neil Schon," and he just smiled, and the girl was mouthing something to me that looked like "He IS Neal Schon," and the guy just looked tight-lipped and uncomfortable.  And I then said, "of course, maybe you are Neal Schon and you're both thinking I'm an idiot for not figuring that out!"  And the guy kind of nodded and the girl kind of shrugged and I just got the hell out of there.

So WAS it Neal Schon?  I have no idea.  But I promised you, in L.A. that kind of stuff happens more often than you think.  The first (and actually only) time I met Brian Wilson he was playing pool in a restaurant my girlfriend dragged me to.  Of course, I did recognize him, so I guess that works against my point...but anyway, in L.A. it's really easy to get confused about this stuff, because there are random celebrities showing up out of nowhere all the time, not just at famous parties, and you don't expect to see them, but you don't rule out that it's them either.  If you're not introduced, it's really easy to walk away not knowing who the hell you've just talked to.  Was that really John Lennon, or just some guy that's trying to look exactly like John Lennon?  I don't know, but I sure could use some reds...

[adamghost]

[duplicate post]

[Mike's Beard]

You'd recognise John Lennon in a dark room, from ten feet away with one eye poked out. I'm sorry but Brian's just being Brian and talking out of his ass.

I know I'm a day late but...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHN LENNON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Aegir]

Danny Tamberelli (from Pete & Pete) and I drink at the same bar, but I only realized who he was after like a year.

[LostArt]

I saw a television show last year called "Intervention", and I don't remember who the kid was, but he was the son of a famous rock star.  Anyways, he mentioned when he was a kid, there were always big parties at his house, and people like Cher, Ike & Tina Turner, Brian Wilson, and others were always around the house, his parents were always drunk and high, and now he's doing the same thing, etc. 

Yeah, that was Chuck Negron's son, Chuckie.  He looked to be in pretty bad shape on that show, but Chuck really looked great.  It's too bad that he, Danny Hutton and Cory Wells can't mend fences and perform together again.  I saw Three Dog Night with Hutton and Wells a few years ago, and they sounded really good.

Back in the '90s I played in a band with one of the guys from the late '60s-early '70s Grass Roots.  I was just a 'covers band guitar player' who had played mostly in Wisconsin, and I had listened to this guy on records and seen him on TV when I was in high school, so I was, at first, sort of in awe.  We would often share a ride to gigs, and during my early days in the band I would ask him all kinds of questions about his life in L.A., and his journeys around the globe, and 'did you ever meet so-and-so?', etc.  On one occasion, I asked him if he had ever met Brian Wilson.  He told me that he had been invited to Brian's house for dinner or a party, and when he got there Brian wasn't in very good shape.  I asked if he had talked to Brian at all, and he said that Brian wasn't in any condition to talk to anybody that night. 

I can imagine that there are many things that Brian simply does not remember from those days.  Even something like meeting John Lennon. 

Man, that's sad.