John Lennon on live 8

Playboy ^ | September, 1980 | David Sheff

[concrete is my business]

Lennon on Live 8

A timely excerpt from David Sheff's September 1980 Playboy interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

Sheff: Just to finish your favorite subject [the Beatles], what about the suggestion that the four of you put aside your personal feelings and regroup to give a mammoth concert for charity, some sort of giant benefit?

Lennon: I don't want to have anything to do with benefits. I have been benefited to death.

Sheff: Why?

Lennon: Because they're always rip-offs. I haven't performed for personal gain since 1966, when the Beatles last performed. Every concert since then, Yoko and I did for specific charities, except for a Toronto thing that was a rock-'n'-roll revival. Every one of them was a mess or a rip-off. So now we give money to who we want. You've heard of tithing?

Sheff: That's when you give away a fixed percentage of your income.

Lennon: Right. I am just going to do it privately. I am not going to get locked into that business of saving the world on stage. The show is always a mess and the artist always comes off badly.

Sheff: What about the Bangladesh concert, in which George and other people such as Dylan performed?

Lennon: Bangladesh was caca.

Sheff: You mean because of all the questions that were raised about where the money went?

Lennon: Yeah, right. I can't even talk about it, because it's still a problem. You'll have to check with Mother [Yoko], because she knows the ins and outs of it, I don't. But it's all a rip-off. So forget about it. All of you who are reading this, don't bother sending me all that garbage about, "Just come and save the Indians, come and save the blacks, come and save the war veterans," Anybody I want to save will be helped through our tithing, which is ten percent of whatever we earn.

Sheff: But that doesn't compare with what one promoter, Sid Bernstein, said you could raise by giving a world-wide televised concert - playing separately, as individuals, or together, as the Beatles. He estimated you could raise over $200,000,000 in one day.

Lennon: That was a commercial for Sid Bernstein written with Jewish schmaltz and showbiz and tears, dropping on one knee. It was Al Jolson. OK. So I don't buy that. OK.

Sheff: But the fact is, $200,000,000 to a poverty-stricken country in South America...

Lennon: Where do people get off saying the Beatles should give $200,000,000 to South America? You know, America has poured billions into places like that. It doesn't mean a damn thing. After they've eaten that meal, then what? It lasts for only a day. After the $200,000,000 is gone, then what? It goes round and round in circles. You can pour money in forever. After Peru, then Harlem, then Britain. There is no one concert. We would have to dedicate the rest of our lives to one world concert tour, and I'm not ready for it. Not in this lifetime, anyway.

[KevinDavis]

To me Yoko Ono would be good for the War on Drugs... Why? Just showing a picture and say if your on drugs you could end up marrying Yoko!!!!

[sandbar]

>>>To me Yoko Ono would be good for the War on Drugs... Why? Just showing a picture and say if your on drugs you could end up marrying Yoko!!!!>>>

This is your wife...

This is your wife on drugs.

[xp38]

Some stuff transcends time and that one from 1981 while certainly having time specific allusions does. There have been threads here on FR about it too.

[rogue yam]

...I just wished he had picked a more likeable one.

I would have been happy with one who either could sing, or else didn't sing.

[ArcadeQuarters]

Wow. I never knew John Lennon had a rational thought. Live 8 should be renamed to "Mugabe Marathon."

[daler]

Ummm..."The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" gets my vote.

"Hey There Lonely Girl" a close second.

[lOKKI]

John Lennon was never much of a pushover for pseudo-social causes. Here are the lyrics from the Beatles song Revolution

(Hey, you didn't really think Paul McCartney wrote this did you?)

You say you want a revolution

Well you know

We all want to change the world

You tell me that it's evolution

Well you know

We all want to change the world

But when you talk about destruction now

Don't you know you can count me out

Don't you know it's gonna be alright

Alright, alright

You say you got a real solution

Well you know

We don't love to see the plan

You ask me for a contribution

Well you know

We're doing what we can

But if you want money for people with minds that hate

All I can tell you is brother you have to wait

Don't you know it's gonna be alright

Alright, alright, al...

You say you'll change the constitution

Well you know

We all want to change your head

You tell me it's the institution

Well you know

You better free your mind instead

But if you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao

You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow

Don't you know know it's gonna be alright

Alright, alright

Alright, alright

Alright, alright

Alright, alright

Alright, alright

[daler]

"(Hey, you didn't really think Paul McCartney wrote this did you?)"

No, but I have to admit to liking McCartney's music much more than I do/did Lennon's.

In fact, I have a couple insanely expensive tickets to see Sir Paul during his tour this fall.

[filbert]

One correction to your Revolution lyrics (in bold). This line makes much more sense than "We don't love to see the plan." It appears that we've got a Net-Inaccuracy propogating through the various lyrics web sites...it took a while to find one with the "correct" lyrics.

You say you want a revolution
Well you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it's evolution
Well you know
We all want to change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don't you know you can count me out

Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright Alright

You say you got a real solution
Well you know
We'd all love to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well you know
We're doing what we can
But when you want money for people with minds that hate
All I can tell you is brother you have to wait

Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright Alright

You say you'll change the constitution
Well you know
We all want to change your head
You tell me it's the institution
Well you know
You better free your mind instead
But if you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao
You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow

Don't you know know it's gonna be alright
Alright Alright

[Heyworth]

The only thing I didn't like about this interview is that he refers to Yoko as "Mother." Ugh.

My grandparents always called each other "Mom" and "Dad".

[numberonepal]

Correct me if I am wrong but I've been under the impression that the US spent more in foreign aid than any other country.

Partially correct. The US spends more on foreign aid than all other countries in the world combined.

[somerville]

When I was a kid, I got a Plastic Ono band for Christmas. There was one song in which Yoko emits a high pitched shriek throughout the song. It used to drive our Beagle nuts. Every time she would hear that song, she would race over to the stereo and start shaking.

[BradyLS]

And THAT used to be a liberal... my goodness, he sounds like a conservative in the interview, perhaps a liberterian...

The liberalest! I agree with you. Today's liberals would villify him. Too bad a "fan" took him out.

[RockinRight]

Holy sh*t!

Lennon supported Reagan???!?!?!?!? The lib hippies will never tell you that!

[KevinDavis]

I think that Yoko had him killed. I have heard rumours that he was ready to dump her..

[dfwgator]

As Dennis Leary put it, "We live in a country where John Lennon takes six bullets in the chest, and Yoko Ono was standing right next to him and not one f'ing bullet...explain that to me."

[my_pointy_head_is_sharp]

I am not going to get locked into that business of saving the world on stage.

The latest Bob Geldof/Live-8 concert was so ineffectual that they didn't even bother trying to raise money -- they just tried to raise "awareness"! That was the concert that was on practically every channel on TV for hours. All it really raised was awareness of the musical acts - a chance for bands to play together and sell CDs - shameless self-promotion, nothing more. I'm surprised that all the networks went along with it.

[uncitizen]

you’re joking, but i was serious when i said here on FR several years ago that i thought that Lennon was assassinated because his political views had swung to the right and he had too much influence over so many people and had to be done away with.

Mark Chapman might’ve pulled the trigger but i don’t think he was the only one involved in the plot to assassinate Lennon.

I got flamed then and expect to now as well, but it’s a waste for anyone to bother to disagree since i won’t be caring nor persuaded.