How the UK Press Reacted to Lennon & McCartney's New Music in 1980
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- Опубликовано: 7 сен 2024
- The records John Lennon and Paul McCartney's made in 1980 are treated completely differently today than they were back in the day. In this video we use contemporary archive UK press cuttings spanning 334 days in 1980 - January 1st to December and find out how they reacted to it and exactly what they said. We also uncover a few other stories about John, Paul & Ringo which time has forgotten.
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Thank you!
I was working at the Record Plant in NYC where John originally started to mix Double Fantasy. The mixing originally started at Record Plant as Jack Douglass had worked at Record Plant NYC for many years. The final mixes would eventually be done at Hit Factory as they offered John a big cut on the hourly studio rate (Roy Cicala who ran the Record Plant NY refused to budge on the hourly rate for Lennon). John and Yoko would usually show up (at Record Plant) later in the day and mix to about 8PM. Despite all the press about how much John loved Yoko he would some nights (at the Record Plant) treat Yoko terribly.
Fascinating story! Thank you for sharing it.
i love this kind of video. I was 6yo on December 1980 and probably got to know Lennon and The Beatles on this day.
@@Parlogram I wonder if that behavior was the general state of play or part of the good and bad times of many marriages?
Terribly like how?
@@bbsoni4814 Yeah! Specifics, if you don't mind.
I remember Paul appearing on SNL after the Japan incident. It was hilarious. (Something like, "Do me a favor," he said. "Don't mention the drugs." "Okay, Paul. That's fine. But why did you do it?" )
Prior to recording DF, John himself went to NYC's fabled 48th St. to shop for new gear at Terminal music. Making several visits, the staff got used to seeing him, and he chatted with everyone regularly. "How's your demo coming along," he asked one staffer, adding, "You sound good." The staff member was testing some new basses that had arrived, strung for left-handed players. As John was leaving the store, "I think I've got eveything I need, finally. Thanks all for your help!" As the staff said their goodbyes, the bass player decided to go for it. "Thanks, John, and hey, if you ever need a bass player..."
John stopped, turned and smiled, "Thanks friend, but the last thing I need in my life right now is another left-handed bass player." It broke up everyone in the store, John winked, and then was out the door.
GREAT John story!!! I think the SNL interview was with Father Guido Sarducci? I loved watching Coming Up on the show and wanted to see it more than that (it was hard in the pre-internet days).
@@rjpg I saw that in a rerun, it was with Guido and it was hilarious. They did a sendup of John around the same time and John saw it and approved.
He said friend and not mate?
@@OakwiseBecoming He well may have said 'mate,' but that's not the way the guy who worked there told me the story.
Don't forget that John had been living in NYC for quite some time, and if he indeed said "friend," that might have had something to do with it.
I can't argue because I wasn't there, my mate...err...friend was.
(I see left out the part where the whole staff kind gasped in horror and fell silent after Mr. Bass Man decided to go for it. The laughter came as much from the cleanly and quickly broken tension, thanks to John's adept handling of a potentially awkward situation, as it came from John's answer being funny.
The store went quiet again for a moment, because it was a reminder to everyone just who it was that had been coming in and shopping and hanging out over the previous weeks or months.)
I saw that as well. I actually thought it was a put on until Paul and Linda came out. I remember Father Guido throwing pebbles at the window of the home they were staying in . And of course the video of Coming Up
McCartney II is one of my favs. Very inspiring from a home-recording perspective and almost every track has a really distinct and memorable personality.
I was a college student waiting for a bus at a stop just outside a record store near 7 corners at the U of M. I was a massive Beatles fan but had never purchased any solo material even though I thought that All Things Must Pass was amazing. The date was December 8th, 1980 and I had some time to kill before the bus arrived so I went into the record store and perused the records. I ended up buying 3 Lennon albums: Rock N Roll Music, Imagine, and Double Fantasy. I went home and played them over and over and then fell asleep. I was living with my grandfather and he had been listening to the albums with me. I don’t know how much he knew about the Beatles or John Lennon but he was watching Monday Night Football and he came rushing into my room and woke me, letting me know that John Lennon had been shot. I went into the living room, groggy as hell only to hear later that Lennon had died. I don’t care what “American Pie” says. Dec. 8th is the Day the music died for me! I am so sad that MDC took our beloved JOL from the world. I thought the new album was great and I was so excited for what was going to be! I thought the title “Starting Over” said it all - a new beginning where John was reinvigorated and ready to create once again. How lucky we all were to be to experience a world of new songs, paintings, writings, and more Lennon wit and political insights. I hope there concept of multiverses is real and that some people somewhere are experiencing what we cannot!
Lennon's songs on Double Fantasy are as good as he's ever done in his solo career. Watching the Wheels is super emotional and also Beautiful Boy.
John had mellowed matured spent much of his time fathering his second son Sean he I think was the happiness in his life and more confident about himself unfortunately the year ended up the horrible after being shot to death I think had he lived the Beatles no question would reunited because they were all at a point they were missing each other and the old days they spent together
@@johntoomey357 If they got together and did concerts, it would have been huge. Queen like huge.
Oh, come on. You're joking right?!
I’m in bed sick and this was a tonic thanks! it’s very bitter sweet looking back, I was 22 when John was killed and truly believed I was his biggest fan..i remember that time being very irreverent towards the Beatles, nostalgia not having time to have set in and I was extremely defensive of them in the face of criticism..nothing really matters now and I see it for what it actually was, im thrilled that the Beatles popularity has never been higher now which is in some part nostalgia but in the main it’s because they were special..very very special. 💙
Thanks for watching, James. Get well soon!
I was only 7 on 12/8/80, but I knew the Beatles from TV and my mother’s collection of vintage Capitol 45s, and I remember the radio reports and my mother’s shocked reaction to the news. After that, I became fascinated with the music, history, and cultural impact of John and the Beatles.
I’ll be honest, at first I wasn’t sure of the value of this but after watching it, it’s absolutely fascinating to see the little stories that were lost along the way and the context of what was happening at the time.
For Beatle fanatics, it’s a must watch.
I always love the context.
This is one of the most fascinating editions I've seen of your show, because the press clippings are an irreplaceable treasure, and a primary source for Beatles historians, amateur and professional. I loved Double Fantasy when released in 1980, and it's aged so well, just like all of John's solo albums. I remember seeing a short article in People magazine in August 1980 saying John and Yoko were back in the studio, and I was thrilled! Double Fantasy is genius: John and Yoko had found a more mature happiness in their marriage, as reflected in the words and music, and that made the rock press talking heads explode in incredulity. McCartney II is a disappointment to me, especially when compared to it's predecessor. But of course it's still lovely music. Thank you again for sharing these unique historical sources!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I was 20 and in college in 1980. I first heard McCartney II on the radio during a camping trip. The first song I remember hearing was "Temporary Secretary". I thought it was pretty weird and that McCartney was jumping on the New Wave bandwagon for electronic pop. But the rest of the album has some really great songs. One regret is that I got the record and it had a 45 of the live "Coming Up" bonus disk enclosed and I gave away it to a friend. I still the vinyl album though.
That summer I went to basic training, and a girlfriend sent me a letter that mentioned the live "Coming Up" single was a huge hit. One thing I have never understood is that McCartney, and Brits in general. like the studio version of "Coming Up" more than the live, energetic version with McCarney's actual voice.
Later there were rumors of John and Yoko going back into the studio. That caused a lot of excitement. That fall, around Thanksgiving, Paul released the movie, "Rock Show" that was about his 1976 Wings Over America tour. I remember him promoting it with Linda on one of the morning news programs on Thanksgiving, and a reporter asked him what he thought of John recently saying something controversial about Paul's music. Paul, being smart, didn't take the bait. He just said that he and John are often asked to respond to "quotes" made about each other that they later find out were never actually said, just members of the media trying to stir things up.
When "Starting Over" was released, I remember hearing it on my buddy's car radio on the way to school. We both looked at each other like, "What was that?" It sounded very different from a John song, very 50's-ish.
I didn't get the DF album until mid December, and was both surprised and and a bit saddened about how optimistic the tracks sounded. Even Yoko's stuff was years ahead of what people were calling New Wave at the time. I still consider it a very good album that is fun, but a little bittersweet, to listen to. It's a great record. And I still have the vinyl.
I still have two 90 minute cassettes of John's 8 December RKO interview broadcasted a couple weeks after he passed. RKO interspersed old and new music during the interview, and John seemed so happy and optimistic. He was his usual witty and funny self. Just hours later he would be gone.
Thanks Andrew.
I was born in 1964, and share your love of all things Beatles, though not quite your depth of fascinating and fantastic knowledge!
I really enjoyed your scrapbook-enabled journey through 1980. It brought back many memories of life in the fifth year of high school, and through many of the contemporaneous newspaper stories you mention, evoked a powerful dose of nostalgia.
Sociologically and historically, I think this type of video is very important. I struggle to capture the sense of how the solo Beatles were viewed in this era when I’m taking to my younger friends (who range from early 20s to mid 40s) who are also big Beatles fans.
Your work, and this type of video, is invaluable in this regard.
Thanks again.
I was working for WEA when J&Y released DF , it was big news here. We loved it. Then Dec. 8th came. Everyone was crying in work. Great video, thx!
Thanks for sharing that, Robert. Glad you enjoyed the video.
I always enjoyed John's songs on Double Fantasy. I really wish the album was all John that that included his tracks later released on Milke & Honey. The political anger of the early 70's had vanished by the summer of 1980 and it would have sounded out of place. John was a happy man now and his music reflected his current state of mind, just as he'd always done.
Paul also recorded two fantastic progressive extended B-sides during this period. Secret Friend is a sublime slice of experimental Latin tinged electronica which sounds like contemporary lounge music and Check My Machine which wouldn't be out of place on a Gorillaz album.
I played “Check My Machine” for a guy at work and he legit thought it was Gorillaz 😂
What a great walk down memory lane - I saw the stage show Beatlemania in the spring of 1979, and 1980 was my first full year as a confirmed Beatles fanatic. I was reading these stories/reviews in the American Press, but I was following them breathlessly all that year. I got McCartney II for my 11th birthday in July that year, and was ecstatic when I read in Newsweek that John was working on a new album. Double Fantasy was the next album on my want list and then...well enough about 1980, eh?
Andrew, that was FANTASTIC!! I was 16 and a crazed Beatles for 7 years in 1980. I followed the 4 legends as much as I could back then. Your installment here is just as I remember it. Thanks for the info that I never knew about, like that sad tale of the car accident and Paul's Good Samaritan response. LOVE what you do and loved the way you set this one up. Thank you Sir.
PS: ADAM AND THE ANTS!!!!!
Ironically, John perfectly anticipated (and perfectly rebuffed) the critical reaction to “Double Fantasy” with “Watching the Wheels,” possibly my favorite of his solo songs. The fact that so many hopeless 30-somethings, as late as *1980*, were still desperate for people like John and Bob Dylan to be “the spokesmen” for their generation is just so on-brand for the spoiled attitude of so many of the Baby Boom generation, especially here in the states. John and George were telling them as early as 1965 to “Think for Yourself.”
George wrote that song, but I get what you're saying. Warmed-over hippies are bad enough, warmed-over hippies who happen to be music critics are beyond insufferable.
@@jms1963 I believe that’s why he included George when he said “John and George”… George wrote that song, but John shared a similar attitude of shedding the Beatles “myth”.
I disagree. John loved to preach and tell people hoe to think.
@@cuda426hemi troll much? :)
@@cuda426hemi Totally false but that's what you opine. Poor thing. :)
I love Double Fantasy when it came out and love it now. Mccartney ll grew on me and l love since 1980. Paul"s album waas far ahead of his time and took alot of years to recognized how great a n album it was.
A fascinating review of what John and Paul -and Ringo- were up to in 1980, Andrew! Press cuttings are an invaluable source of information because they are written as events happen. I would love to see more videos like this one and I suspect that the books of press cuttings that you bought will reveal more fascinating stories from other years involving The Beatles!
I was 11 when this came out, and loved it from the start, and still do as one of my favourite albums ever 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I tend not to compare releases, and see them all as individuals, but sadly many compare every album to their absolute ever favourite 🤔😔
First visit but not the last. Having grown up with the Beatles, I believed, erroneously, that I pretty much knew all the stories. But there's much here that's fresh so I thank you for your diligence.
Thanks for watching, Brent.
Thank you for putting this together, well done! In 1980 I was a senior in high school living in New York City and being a Beatlemaniac, bought both "McCartney ll" and "Double Fantasy". I did enjoy some of Paul's new tracks, thought "Coming Up" was catchy as hell but on the whole thought his record with Wings from the previous year, "Back to the Egg" was a much better effort. As for Double Fantasy, I have to be honest, I never cared for Yoko as a performer and after listening to her side of the album, once was enough for me. But I thought John's songs were great, especially "Watching the Wheels". It's one of my favorites to this day. And then soon after on the day we lost him, I was just destroyed. It was just so, SENSELESS....
Very well done, and it was a relief that you said you would end the accounts before a certain date. Thank you for that. Very sensitive of you. In 1980 my Mom had bought a new car with a surprisingly good stereo. That Fall, I knew that a new John single was imminent and I was eager to hear it. I was in my first year of college and was in classes that day, so I wasn't able to listen for it until the evening. I was running an errand with her car and on the local rock radio station, suddenly "(Just Like) Starting Over" came on. No introduction, so my guess is that they had been playing it all day, and the DJ just put it on between two other songs.
Before John's voice kicked in, I knew from the sound of the music that this was it. I howled and blew the horn on the car in celebration. I absolutely loved the song from the first listen.
Anyway, this was a great way for you to present the stories from the clippings, and I would love to hear more years presented this way. Cheers!
Thanks for watching and for sharing your memories, JP. We will be covering more years this way - 1981 has already been done: ruclips.net/video/RTBK3gv-rWI/видео.html
I can’t help it, I’ve loved McCartney II since the first time I heard it. It really was ahead of its time and it has all the weird quirks and captivating melodies only Paul can deliver. It remains so special to my heart and I still listen to it quite often. “Coming Up”, “Frozen Jap”, “Waterfalls”, “Darkroom”, “One of These Days”, “On The Way”, and the hilariously silly yet dark “Temporary Secretary.” The archive release gave me a wonderful surprise with the orchestrated version of “Blue Sway” and it’s AWESOME!!
I fell in love with the Double Fantasy tracks instantly when I heard them on the John Lennon Collection album right after his death. Watching the Wheels is perhaps one of the most sophisticated songs John ever wrote. A Day in the Life would be another example of such songs.
Really enjoyed this. McCartney 2 was way ahead of its times. Double fantasy has three all time classic songs: Watching the wheels, Beautiful Boy and Woman. Critics huh!
I love your tone, research and clear love for John. It still hurts. Thank you.
Double Fantasy has clearly stood the test of time. It was a kind of a comeback album for John having taken off to raise Sean for 5 years. The songs are as good as ever and show that he was an amazing artist. The world was robbed of perhaps 40 more years of his genius.
Well the Lennon songs have for sure.
Totally disagree. I thought they sounded feeble and dated when they came out and even worse now. For me, even Yoko's songs were more interesting.
@@blackmore4 Finding Yoko more 'interesting' is a perverse opinion. Her screeching is unlisteneable under any circumstances, like nails on a chalkboard as well as possessing the least charming of any figure in public life apart from maybe George Bush and Donald Trump. The Lennon songs are indeed pedestrian and the production is saccharine but at least it is identifiable as 'music'. 'Watching the Wheels' has hints of profundity. A million times better than any McCartney song of the 80s to boot.
John's DF songs were & are awesome. :)
I love John’s songs on double fantasy and milk and honey too. Watching the wheels, woman, beautiful boy etc. Real quality
Brother as always, you really cover the four lads in such interesting ways!
Like you, I too was very interested in these 2 key post-Beatle albums! And they are SO telling in ‘where’ each former Beatle were at that point in their career at the time!
Sadly, it was the last time we could truly even begin to compare them!😉
I’m a fan!❤
Fabulous Parlogram! I've seen you unpacking collections you'd purchased before and now putting those boxes of memorabilia to perfect use! Great work!
Many a time I've wondered about John's own personal record collection and what albums he might have owned by Paul, George and Ringo, which ones he listened to and which ones he liked. I also think of the LP's released in the year 1980 as "this would have been the last ______ album John would have heard." His last Bowie album would have been 'Scary Monsters', his last Queen album 'The Game', his last B-52's album 'Wild Planet', and of course from his former band mates the last ones he would have heard would be 'McCartney II', 'George Harrison', and 'Bad Boy'. In 1980 I was also thirteen and had the singles for "Coming Up" (which I loved) and "Starting Over", but I was still very much a singles buyer, LP's were something I received at Christmas. After December 8 it was nearly impossible to find a copy of 'Double Fantasy' in ANY store you went into, but somehow my mum and dad got one and it was under the tree that year, that's a cherished memory. My parents were not Beatles fans, they were already in their 40's by the 1960's. After John's passing I spent nearly two years listening to NOTHING but Beatles, solo Beatles and even Yoko's albums. For me, 'Double Fantasy' was and still is such a unique concept of a married couple alternating both sides of one relationship. There is not another album like it. It may be an unpopular opinion, but I feel that Yoko's songs are just as good as John's. Even though it was released in early 1981, the last song they recorded together, "Walking On Thin Ice", is a haunting masterpiece.
Yoko's songs are strong on that album. Very original artist.
Andrew, everything you do is extremely enjoyable. I was still living in NYC at the time and remember it well. It was great that John was back in the studio and Double Fantasy came out. It didn’t compare to Imagine or POB to me but was happy he was back. What happened afterwards had me crying that Christmas, especially when they played Happy Christmas on the radio.
Future yearly post-Beatles yearbooks? PLEASE DO! I really enjoyed this video, Andrew. And I learned so much.
Really fantastic, Andrew. Really enjoyed something involving the Beatles from this time period. You and I are about the same age, so I remember the pasting both John and Paul’s records got in the USA press also. As an aside, cool to see you like so much second wave ska! I love that era, too.
Great episode Andrew. As a huge Wings fan in the 1970's, I was beginning to notice the decline in Paul's musical prowess after the huge success of the 1975/1976 world tour. After the lacklustre 'Back The Egg" album of 1979 which featured the last line up of Wings, I think Paul was beginning to move in a different direction, hence the McCartney II album of 1980.
When John Lennon's"Starting Over" single was released, I thought John would emerge as the more popular of the two musically.
I would love if you could do a series of episodes, with each one dedicated to each of the Beatles solo careers and how their records performed globally
This was a great change of pace in terms of previous videos. I really enjoyed it. The first time I heard Paul McCartney’s name was watching an ad for Beatlemania the stage show in January 1980 and my sister mentioned that Paul McCartney was arrested in Japan for pot. I had no idea who Paul was or what that had to do with the Beatlemania stage show (I was only 8 years old at the time). Five months later I saw a tv spot for McCartney II which showed the Coming Up video. My first thought was “that was the guy who was arrested in Japan”. I bought McCartney II in 1989 and while I loved Coming Up and On the Way I thought the rest was terrible and considered this the worst album in my collection. I have warmed up to this now and I appreciate his experimentation with the archive set really showing a different side of him. I bought Double Fantasy on a Geffen cassette in January 1988 and immediately liked it. I remember fast forwarding Yoko’s songs but I now like for stuff almost as much as John’s tracks. I think John’s songs from this record along with his songs off Milk and Honey make for a great 1980 album. George had his album Somewhere in England rejected by Warner Bros. In October 1980 including the artwork but I love the tracks that were removed especially Sat Singing and Flying Hour. Thanks Andrew!
Thanks Bill. Glad you enjoyed it!
This is nicely done and I like the quiet acknowledgement of events after 1 December 1980. The recently published book 'John Lennon 1980: The Last Days in the Life' covers the same period from Lennon's perspective and provides a lot of vivid detail about life in the Dakota Building. The post-breakup era is an important part of the Beatles story
Hi, in 1980 i was 18yrs old and I did buy Pauls record McCartney 2 and loved it very much I also did buy John's Double Fantasy and really liked his songs but hated all of Yoko's work! Great video!! Freetings from Spain
I love McCartney II! I always felt Paul McCartney was the most talented and love his solo work. It’s always interesting to me.
Opinions. First LP by George Harrison and his concert for Bangladesh. That was right out of the gate.
Love this. We are nearly same age. Brought back memories. I love this. I was a huge fan
Great commentary Andrew. You certainly informed me on a number of things I didn’t know or forgot from that period during 1980 and I was as a 27 year old Beatle fan at the time !
I liked some of Double Fantasy but just bought the singles as I didn’t like side two. In fact it was the only solo Beatles album I didn’t buy up until that time.
I’ll never ever forget the sadness and senseless of December 8.
A facsinating video Andrew, it is always interesting to look back in 'real time' to what the press were reporting at the time. Please consider doing more deep-dive videos of those scrap books. And John looking like a 'haunted sheep' is both accurate & hilarious 😃
Excellent work, Andrew! And yes, on the West Coast of the USA, we’d LOVE to see more like this! Please - please us! (As though you don’t already!). And if you don’t like the McCartney album mentioned here, let’s see YOU make a record with yourself as the ENTIRE BAND and singing ALL THE VOCALS, as Paul did with “Ram”.
Great video: Love the subject matter, scrapbook format of narrative and illustration, as well as your subtle editorializing…
Thanks Jeff. Glad you enjoyed it.
The NME? More like the enemy 😂
Loved this video Andrew, I think you might have a great new series on your hands!
What a great video. That is such a fascinating look back. As a 7 year old in 1980, I wasn’t aware of how the Beatles were viewed in the media then. Of course, after John’s death, you couldn’t help but be aware of the outpouring of love for John and him being held up as a saint almost, as often happens when someone dies. But ‘living John’ was seen with more cynical eyes. Goes some way to showing us how the media and public would’ve viewed him today had he still been with us.
Great video Andrew - I think this new 'Pick Of The Scraps' format definitely has legs....😎
Great title for the series, Francis.
George’s “Somewhere In England” was the first solo post Beatles album released after John’s death. do you know how the public reacted to that? aside from the hit single “All Those Years Ago” there were some other gems on there “Life Itself”, “Teardrops”, “Writings On The Wall” etc… and then after came Ringo’s “Stop & Smell The Roses” and next year 1982 the phenomenal Paul Mccartney’s “Tug Of War” which besides “Here Today” there are some other songs on that album that seems to reflect John especially the title track. i don’t remember a Paul solo or Wings song before that that reflects the yearning for peace like John’s “Imagine” the title track was like Paul’s answer to John’s “Imagine”. and the songs “Take It Away” and “Ballroom Dancing” seems to subliminaly reflect the old Hamburg days. While “Somebody Who Cares” sounds like it could’ve easily been written for Julian and Sean.
I would love to hear your views on those 3 albums.
Part 2: there were times I’d have to hideaway in the 80’s not only because of the music I was making (ska and reggae influenced and early Duran Duran Spandau Ballet, etc) but because I loved McCartney 2 and liked his beginning forays into new sounds. On the whole I thought it was a great Lp.
The same with Starting Over. I loved both sides. I’ve heard those Cheap Trick tapes and must admit, while good, much looser than how the final piece ended up.
Loved the Linda 12”.
With all the trouble and strife they had…I was a happy camper.
Great show! Can’t wait til part 2!!
(Being a tad older than you…70…yes there I said it age also has a way a mellowing out some of those reasons certain songs nagged at your brain at times🖖)
Thanks Brian! Glad you enjoyed it.
With the benefit of hindsight, Double Fantasy was inadvertently the most fitting final album John could have made. It’s still as personal as all his solo albums, but with a touching serenity.
Like the others in the trilogy, McCartney II is pure, distilled Paul, making music for enjoyment and exploration. I like that he has albums like this as part of his catalog that show a different side of his vast musical ability and taste.
Mixed emotioMixed emotions about 1980. I was 16 then.
I still have remember watching fascinated Paul's Coming up video and months later, John's (Just like) starting over one.
I really liked how you have placed the Beatles in a specific historical context. Very interesting to know how they were considered by the public opinion of the moment. I think there was a special desire to remove them from the glorious pedestal they had been on until then, perhaps as an unconscious social revenge for their separation. I like "Double fantasy" but from the point of view I have today.
there was a rumor that once paul got out of his troubles in japan,john called to scold him about that like an older brother would do and told him something like "what are you doing?" great great video¡¡¡always interesting little facts that time erased or not to many remember.im hooked to your channel👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Hi Andrew, great video and like you I was 13 in 1980, I had to smile when you looked inside your copy of Starting over for the purchase date, I have so many records from the period with the Woolworth's purchase sticker
Another great video there! I'm surprised that the scrapbook has no news from February '81, when George was found guilty of unconscious plagiarism for rewriting "He's So Fine"
I just love these historical retrospectives, and it's extra special coming from such a huge Beatles fan...I hope you continue to make videos like this! Also I wonder if you know about the RUclips channel called Yesterday's Papers, it's actually a pretty similar concept where they go through news articles from different days/months in the 60s and 70s to see what many artists (including the Beatles) think about other songs that are in the hit charts, I really think you'd love it
I love that channel
To start! Yay! On seeing a bit of your Ska collection! Brilliant. I was on the (local) road in that period playing punkpopska then.
Back to the show….
I love this mini series you got going on from a relatively new Beatles fan I love your channel Andrew
Glad you're enjoying it, Matthew! The next episode drops later today.
Fascinating to go through the clippings of 1980. Especially from the British point of view as I lived it as a 17 year old American. I lived in New York then and I regret that I could have had the chance to at least see John possibly coming or going to the Dakota in the summer then. If I only knew. I thought Fred Seaman’s book was an excellent look at John circa 1979/80. Despite how one feels about the author, who was John’s assistant then and later got into legal trouble regarding stolen diaries, I feel the book has an air of authenticity into where John was at in those days. Apparently hearing Coming Up on the radio then inspired John to get back into the studio. I like both McCartney 2 and Double Fantasy. Neither would be in my top ten solo albums but both have great songs on them. The fade out of Woman can still get my eyes a little watery. December eighth still casts a shadow for me and in some ways is a dividing point in my life. Or one of them anyway. It’s nice to go through the year and imagine that the worst of it was just some negative reviews of an album.
I bought both albums as soon as they were released. Coming Up was sort of a double-sided hit in the US with the same song, many DJs flipped it over and played the live in Glasgow version. I'll never forget the video when it was shown on Saturday Night Live. I have more of an appreciation for McCartney II now that I did then. They are definitely some good moments on that album. With Double Fantasy, like most people, I just skipped over Yoko's songs and listened to John's which were very good.
funnily enough most of the newspaper photos you showed I have in my own Beatle scrapbook from the time. The award show mentioning "pressing engagement abroad" I had on video tape for many years, Wings video for "Goodnight Tonight" was shown on it. The photo of John with a beard always reminds me of the photo of Harold Shipman the notorious Doctor who killed his patients
Great stuff...thanks for this! Thorough and quite a bit of work I'd imagine. Now then, where's our video on collecting The Beatles Monthly Books 🙂
Wow, I remember vividly Chris Tarrant on Tiswas saying they had an interview coming up with John Lennon and that it mentioned a Beatles reunion. It was part of a weird segment where they kept losing sound and vision. When it had all been restored they didn't have time for the interview (not that it ever existed, I'm sure). Great video as always Andrew
Thanks David. Good memory!
Fantastic video, Andrew. I once bought a scrapbook of US clippings from 1964, but I think what you found is a much more complete press record. It's really interesting to hear about events, projects, reactions as they happened! Would love to hear more. In 1980 I was off to a boarding school (along with Yoko's nephew) and from what little I could learn about the new records in my media blackout life there, I eagerly waited to hear what Paul and John had been up to. I seem to remember picking up Double Fantasy on a weekend school trip to town, but focus quickly shifted soon after when my friend was rushed down to NYC and we knew the whispers breaking on radio news was real. I still think Beautiful Boy and Woman are two of John's best. Years later I got to do a re-mix and film related to one of Yoko's projects, which was great fun!
Glad you enjoyed it, Jason and thanks for your comment. I will do more scrapbook videos again soon!
McCartney II is a strange record. It's also my favorite of the 3 McCartney albums, even if individual songs on McCartney I are better, as a whole I really dig II. Plus, Temporary Secretary might be his weirdest song and I love every second of it.
His weirdest song may be Morse Moose? Or 222 perhaps? In any case I love Temporary Secretary.
Excellent idea, more content like this! I was 18 in 1980 so followed many of these milestones from the Boston area in the US. Purchasing the singles and albums, reading the Newsweek article with John on the subway to college. Great memories, at least for most of that year.
I loved Double Fantasy from the day it came out until today. "Losing You" is on my essentials playlist with only 30 songs. I do not remember the reviews. I never read them. I just enjoyed a little more Lennon!
I don't comment enough but just a gentle reminder for me to say thank you for all of your videos. The details are outstanding as is the production and... Well all of it really. So in absence of me commenting on every video. A big thank you for all of them from an avid viewer and student of these teachings! Cheers!
Thanks for watching, Robert. Glad to hear you're enjoying the videos.
Very interesting! I've still got my 1980 Beatles scrapbook, including a folded double page spread of the Coming Up video pics. Nothing about the dark December days in the collection though. I did however keep a few newspapers from that sad time, boxed up somewhere... I also thought Waterfalls was a good tune, although it hasn't dated well for me. Cheers!
I was 9 years old in 1980 and living outside Philadelphia. I was really into the Beatles. I had an Uncle who worked at a electronics and record shop and McCartney ii was all over the store! There were some copies with the gold stamp on the back, still sealed. It seemed as though the store got a bunch directly from CBS like that. The gold promo stamp is very common in the states. I remember my copy having the Coming Up live single inside! I believe we got our copy special. Later when John's single came out I remember that in the store but seeing the LP in the shops, my memory is less clear. I did go with my dad after Thanksgiving some time to a record convention in Philly it must have been right after John died and one whole table was selling John's new LP, 12" single and 45"s at a huge markup. Being a kid, I asked why haha. I was mad though they were taking advantage. 1980 was a mixed bag, wasn't it. I know it was for me. School was good, music pretty good, but of course the ending was so sad.
I really enjoyed this one! I would love to see more videos like this. Regarding Double Fantasy, I like but don't love most of John's songs, but Yoko's have aged very well, sounding much better to me now than they did back then. John's songs somehow sound better mixed in with hers, so overall I love the album more than any John album except Plastic Ono Band. Which, come to think of it, excellent as it was in itself still benefitted from its close proximity to Yoko's Plastic Ono Band. I know there are many Yoko haters among Beatles fans, but does anybody here agree with me on this? I can't quite say why it's true, but I feel it is.
Yoko's Plastic Ono Band is astonishing! I'm glad they were released separately though. Trading songs, like on DF, can feel like an intrusion into each other's work. Both POB's have their own vision and are best enjoyed as separate works of art. But it's cool that they are linked too. Such a neat concept.
Fantastic, as always. I was 18 in 1980. I didn’t really understand Paul’s vision for McCartney II. I enjoyed some of it but dismissed it after that. As I got older, I appreciated it more and it has become a fave of mine. As for Double Fantasy, I loved it from the start. I thought Starting Over was great and I thought songs like Cleanup Time and I’m Losing You were great rockers. I love it to this day. I still don’t understand the love for Yoko’s songs on it. I like Yoko’s music, but disagree with all the accolades for the DF songs.
Thanks for a truly brilliant video - these scrap books are pure gold. I have some of the same clips including Daily Mail front page of Macca being “busted” that my father saved for me.
Some more of these would be great. Thank you.
I bought all of the U.K. music papers in November 1980 and all of them were dismissive about DF, but Charles Shaar Murray writing for the NME said John still had a wonderful voice, Charles did a bit of a backtrack a few years later and gave a more positive review.
I purchased this album about 2-3 weeks before John's untimely death. I saw it at the time, as "half an album." Over the years I see Yoko's presence is more in tune with the times. John on the other hand continued to mine the sounds of his teenage years. The domestic bliss he afforded his listeners was exactly what he railed against Paul. Always a great job from you Andrew!!!
Thanks Michael. Glad you enjoyed it!
I thought Yoko's songs were way better than Lennon's. And as you say, not mired in the past.
Love your videos Andrew! I look forward to each one every week. I was 20 in 1980 and on Dec. 8, I bought both Double Fantasy and the (Just Like) Starting Over 45 at the record shop while on my way to work at the local supermarket. That night, I got hit on the head unloading a roll of shrink wrap and went to the hospital with a concussion. I got home from the hospital and my dad told me about what happened to John. I didn't believe him until the next morning, as I was still dazed. I have never opened that copy of Double Fantasy or played the 45. I bought new copies later. Definitely a day to forget.
This was an extremely unique and interesting video. I liked it a lot and can't wait to see what else you do with the scrapbooks!
I'd gone off Lennon early in the '70s and little use for anything after 'Mind Games' (the track). Hearing 'Starting Over' for the first time did nothing to change that, so I didn't have any interest in 'Double Fantasy' when it came out. I remember reading one review that dismissed the album as being if little interest to anyone who didn't happen to be married to Yoko Ono, or something along those lines. With the tragic loss of Lennon in early December '80 (and I can still remember exactly where I was at the time and how I learned of the event) I did what many did and lined up to buy the album. I didn't expect much, but I was mostly pleasantly surprised. What I particularly liked was how well Lennon and Ono's songs complemented and sat next to each other in the track sequence. Of course with the B52s and Lene Lovitch all over the radio at the time it really did feel like part of the music world had caught up to Yoko Ono. Lennon's contributions were less adventurous, but did include 'I'm Losing You' and 'Watching The Wheels' - two of his best tracks since the early '70s - and the pleasant melodies of 'Beautiful Boy' and 'Woman'.
Excellent video. Thank you for the fond memories. I was truly hoping for a reunion at the time.
Glad you enjoyed it, Mark.
This was so interesting! Now I want to see a video of every year lol
This was fantastic, would love more scrapbook videos like this
Good video. I enjoyed the original unboxing video of the scrapbooks, so it was cool to see you build a video around some of their contents. I look forward to more similar videos in the future.
Thanks James. Look out for 1981 this weekend!
I was only 9 when it came out, but I have loved Double Fantasy since its original release. I didn't get to hear McCartney II until quite awhile later. It has grown on me. Waterfalls is killer and Temporary Secretary is one of my fave's for what it is.
They had me at All My Loving! Been a fan ever since. Both as the Beatles and individually great music from all
Paul's was viewed as much more adventurous, John like Barry Manilow lite-FM. It was only after he was shot that it went to the top out of public grieving and John was canonized as the peace and love icon and not the complacent artist he really by then was.
Enjoyed watching that, really brought back memories of the general vibe of those days. I wasn't really the mad Beatles fan until a couple of years later but I remember Paul's hits of the time and Starting Over. I was well aware of The Beatles as my mum had many of their albums which I'd heard her play. Certainly a different era back then when you had to scour the papers for any news (or Beatles Monthly when I started buying it in 1982!) instead of the internet!
A great video, packed with fascinating stuff for us Macca / Beatles fans. It's got me thinking about digging up my own 1980s memorabilia and press cuttings from that time. Thanks!
As I recall, sales of music papers had rapidly declined and Disc had gone out of business altogether, although they used the euphemism, merged with Record Mirror. I suppose anything that wasn't outrageous wouldn't sell papers, so why not trash Lennon, he was an easy target. I loved John's songs on Double Fantasy, especially the singles, Starting Over, Woman and Watching The Wheels. I was less inclined to Yoko's efforts but at least it wasn't completely unlistenable. I still don't know how she got away with not being called out for the track I'm Your Angel, as it is virtually note for note the same as Making Whoopee.
The late, legendary studio and Jazz musician, Howard Johnson, told an interviewer that he was one of the last people, if not the last person, to speak with John.
Apparently, John had wanted to add horns to a particular track, but either wasn't sure what he wanted, or wasn't happy with what he had (I don't remember if it had been on a recording done on December 8th, or another day.)
Howard thought he had a solution, and called John at the studio on that fateful evening to tell him so.
He had made a quick cassette of himself playing whatever it was, and offered to bring it to the studio right then, if John was going to be there for a bit longer.
John thought for a moment, but said he didn't want to trouble Howard that late in the day.
Howard said he didn't mind, but John added that he was tired from a long evening of mixing.
"I think I'm going to go home. Would you mind bringing it by tomorrow?"
Not long after the interview was published, I got to meet Howard Johnson at a function at our Local 802 union hall, and the story came up in conversation.
"Gotta tell you," he said, "that call still haunts me today."
I've enjoyed this different type of video! And don't forget Robert Plant was in the Kampuchea Rockestra, playing Paul's Hofner and harmonizing with Linda at the keyboard during "Let It Be."
I was 20 in 1980 and in college in Ohio. I had both albums since I was a huge Beatles fan. McCartney II was just ok. While I enjoyed the Lennon songs on Double Fantasy, the Ono songs were hard to get used to. Still Double Fantasy holds up better today. On 12.8.80, I bought the Playboy issue with the Lennon and Ono interview. I had Double Fantasy on the turntable that night. Went to bed and woke up the next morning and, well you know.
That was actually quite interesting. I hope you DO do more from those scrapbooks.
This video was fascinating. Happy for more like this as long as we still get vinyl content from you. I remember that in 1980 I was hungry to buy anything Beatles but there was hardly anything available other than vinyl records. What happened to all that memorabilia??! Thought I..years later eBay came along and I was blown away. Cheers Andrew
Cheers Steve! Glad you enjoyed it.
Thank you for helping me remember how it was common in the 1970s for the younger music fan to read the latest chart listing, the singles at least, in the pop column of the red top daily paper that their parents bought...
I'm 65 years old. I remember all this. Thanks 👌
No mention of the The McCartney Interview LP? I've always found it an interesting piece taking on McCartney II and The Beatles among other topics.
Please do more of these history videos, thanks
As always such an excellent video. This one really brought back some memories. 1980 wow. So much pain that year at the end. But I just forgot about some of these other things that happened that year. Would love another one these ‘history’ lessons ;) thanks for this one!
Fantastic video. Amazing collection of press clippings and everything else. And fascinating to hear the various reviews in real time as it happened. I was 11 on December 1980. I love making music Playlists dedicated to artists or a particular theme. I did a solo Beatles 1970-79. I also have made playlists of the Billboard Top 100 from the years 1974-79, 1984 and 1985. I too struggled with 1980, but Billboard stops their count after October. So then it was all good. I have made a playlist of 1981 and after 2 months I still haven't listened to it. I do remember much of what was described in the video too. Interesting how quiet George was. Thank you for this trip back into time. And again, stopping after November is something I totally get.
I remember buying McCartney 2 and was very disappointed but I also
bought Breakfast in America - Supertramp and still play it ....
I bought double fantasy when it came out , I appreciated more when John passed....