In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works: John Lennon

Funny, isn’t it.  One of the many, many ways in which the Beatles changed the world is that they divided the entire population of the world into four different groups, depending on who is their favourite.  There are those who are spiritual, and those who root for the underdog.  There are those who are imaginative and avant-garde, and those who prefer conventional music and lyrics.

And if I tell you that my favourite Beatle is Paul, then not only will you draw your own conclusions about who I am, and what I like, but you will also guess that I’m not really much into John.  And you’d be right.  The Lennon songs that I do really like, such as ‘A Hard Day’s Night,’ I like because they are less obviously Lennon: they tend to be from his early career, before he really became himself.

And you know, that’s ok.  I can admire someone and appreciate their art without having to fall in love with everything they do. John’s got enough fans, and he’s not going to be spinning in his grave that I don’t use this post to express my undying adoration.

Essentially, if you think that ‘I am the Walrus’ is the greatest Beatles song ever, then read In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works.  All the things that make that song a classic are here: cliche-smashing subversion, mixed-up mayhem, sly wit and humour.  The conscious cleverness leaves me a bit cold.  But that’s what you’d expect from me.  I like ‘Hey Jude.’

Thank you, Vintage, for my review copy and I’m sorry I can’t be more gushing!  I guess I should have put a Paul disclaimer in my request for the book.