Days That I'll Remember: Spending Time With John Lennon and Yoko Ono

by Jonathan Cott Narrated by George Newbern

Overview

Jonathan Cott met John Lennon in 1968 and remained friends with him and Yoko Ono until John's death in 1980. He has kept in touch with Yoko since that time, and is one of the few writers who understands her profoundly positive influence on Lennon. This deeply personal book recounts the course of these friendships over the decades and provides an intimate look at two of the most astonishing cultural figures of our time. And what Jonathan Cott has to say will be found nowhere else.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

A contributing editor to Rolling Stone since its inception, Jonathan Cott (Conversations with Glenn Gould, Dylan, Forever Young, etc.) met myriad musicians, but few—if any—made as deep an impression on him as John Lennon. An unabashed lover of the Beatles, Cott, in September 1968, not only got a private audience with Lennon, he tagged along to one of the recording sessions for what would become the Beatles' White Album. Cott recounts his many conversations, both on and off the record, with Lennon. Cott's many discussions and interviews (including one conducted just three days before Lennon's assassination, reproduced here in its entirety) reveal the two rhapsodically rapping about the meaning of "Strawberry Fields," dealing with fame, Yoko's alleged role in the breakup of the Beatles ("I think that each of the Beatles was too strong and tough an individual to have been influenced by me in any way" is her response), and the impact of psychologist Arthur Janov's primal therapy treatment on the duo's relationship and work together. What emerges is a picture of a warm, considerate artist who was generous with both his time and talents, who continued to gravitate toward work that resonated with him and his partner, rather than his bank account or even the public at large. Cott does a solid job of creating intimacy between Lennon and the reader, something fans of the much-missed musician will likely relish. Agent, Steve Wasserman. (Feb.)

From the Publisher

"Cott keeps the proceedings fluid and conversational . . . provides rare, raw and insightful comments from two colorful art personalities. Lennon and Ono as open and naked as on the cover of Two Virgins." ---Kirkus

Kirkus Reviews

Rangy and revealing interview/conversations between Rolling Stone journalist Cott (Bob Dylan: The Essential Interviews, 2006, etc.) and John Lennon and Yoko Ono. This is the story of Cott's long association with Lennon and Ono, starting in 1968, told mostly through fully rambling interviews. The pleasure is in hearing their voices, for it seems that the material is verbatim from recordings. It starts during that fraught period when the Beatles were breaking up but still producing game-changing music, and Lennon and Ono were coming in for much more than their share of grief: for their naïve and ludic ways, the experimental nature of their music, the dissolution of the band and the passing of a brilliant cultural moment. Cott engages with Ono's art, which could be challenging, and embraces its spirit of mindfulness and mirth while exploring how she managed to turn the vitriol spewed her way into a positive energy. But it is Lennon who commands the stage here, holding forth on the music he and Ono were making, bridling at the disservice of the press, explaining the bed-ins, the nude album cover, the deportation battles, the struggles with writing songs ("I always think there's nothing there, it's shit, it's not good, it's not coming out, it's garbage…") and the troubles of fame ("Do they want me and Yoko to kill ourselves onstage? What would make the little turds happy?"). Cott keeps the proceedings fluid and conversational, sometimes with a bit too much detail--"John got up and went over to a closet, took out a blue denim jacket, put it on, and then the three of us walked to the front door"--and sometimes a bit sycophantish ("an undeservedly blessed fan like myself"). Overall, though, he provides rare, raw and insightful comments from two colorful art personalities. Lennon and Ono as open and naked as on the cover of Two Virgins.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170951284
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	02/12/2013
Edition description:	Unabridged

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