Living is easy (with eyes closed)

[selenak]

Title:Living is easy (with eyes closed)

Rating: PG 13

Pairing: implied John/Paul

Warnings: Non-linear narrative.

Summary: Five events in Beatle history, from five different perspectives. (Maureen Starkey, George Martin, Ringo Starr, Brian Epstein, George Harrison.)

Disclaimer: Nothing is real. Nothing is owned, and everything is fictional

Comments

[larainefan]

I love these vignettes, each told from voices we often don't hear much from!

I saw on another comment you mentioned George's memory, even down to the types of spaghetti tins they ate from, George did have a phenomenal memory. In those early touring days, reporters who'd interviewed the group a few times in rotation mentioned George always remembered their names, the names of their partners, their children, and whatever topic they'd last discussed.

I'm glad Cyn and Maureen did eventually make up, it was awful how the Beatles camp treated Cyn. You mentioned, in the other comments, how Ringo maybe still had residual feelings that he could be as easily replaced as Pete Best if he went against John. George, though he had sought successfully to get Ringo into the band, also wondered at the time if he himself could be just as easily replaced as Pete, it's something which never left him, perhaps, especially after Hamburg. When he was deported, he fell into a depression and a mindset that maybe they'd just replace him and carry on. It doesn't excuse they banishment of Cyn by all of them, though. They were wealthy and powerful enough to go anywhere else in the world they wanted, why not to Cyn's?

That's nice that Paul fed George at school.

I like how, in your story, Ringo patted George on the back when they were all in fear of the plane crashing.

Nice to read an encounter between Brian and George M. I adore both of them, this, despite George M admitting he wasn't always as nice as he could have been to George Harrison.

The ending story, of Paul and George hitchhiking, was the perfect one to end with, so sweet!

So you liked the Chris O'Dell book? I thought she shed way more light on many incidents, and introduced never-before-heard anecdotes as well. She really had a front-row-seat on many events. I see you mentioned Ken Mansfield; he too, has a book in which he says very nice, warm things about all four Beatles, and the times he spent with them.

[selenak]

I hoped you'd like it. :) Thanks for reviewing!

Chris O'Dell's book: I agree with your assessment and this review, though I will write my own in time. (There are a few aspects I'd like to address as well, such as the very human way Chris sometimes projects her own feelings on the people she describes (we all do it), and the subjectivity of memory as evidenced here.)

Ken Mansfield: I haven't read his book yet, but I've seen several interviews with him in documentaries.

ETA: just in case you haven't seen them yet: people took pictures of the photos of George Paul shows at his concerts (taken by Linda), which aren't published anywhere, so check them out if you haven't already.

[larainefan]

Thanks for those links, I'll look forward to reading your review of the O'Dell book. Maybe I should re-read it so I can join in on the discussion. I do remember the scene where she was in the room with John and Maureen, and now both of them are no longer here, it sort of shrouded the incident with melancholy. Interesting she remembers all 4 Beatles at the party, though that is very unlikely. Much more likely would have been if John could have joined for Eric and Pattie's later wedding party, then all 4 could have jammed together. I see that in her book, Keith came off way better than Mick, it was always a gut feeling of mine that Keith was probably pretty decent, though I really don't know much about the Stones.

I love that scene of Chris and Pattie being on tour with Eric, and they're sitting around talking about how much they miss George!! So they call him and they're all having a nice discussion until Eric comes in and goes ballistic. And he and George were supposed to be such great friends. Eric again comes across as a very despicable character. The only kind thing I can say about Eric (other than his obvious talent) is that in his own book, at least he didn't try to portray himself in a better light, he was honest and owned up to how much of a bastard he was.

Chris' book was the most complete account to date of Maureen that I've come across, she really fleshed her out as a real person; in the past Maureen was such a shadowy character she was little more than a name to me, and Chris made her real to readers.

I love where she mentioned that when Ringo and Maureen's marriage was still going well, that every woman wanted a marriage like their's, how Ringo would light Maureen's cigarettes after years of marriage, such a gentleman, etc.

I remember one of my favorite parts was George in LA, waiting for Chris (the inspiration behind Ms O'Dell), how she was doing so many drugs, didn't want to make the long drive, didn't want to deal with George's intensity. She thought he had plenty of hangers-on anyway for company, but he hadn't, he'd been very lonely waiting for her to show up and provide some company. Purely platonic company, I might add. Once she made sure he knew she was off-limits, he didn't just discard her and move on, he really did genuinely like her as a person and a friend. It probably would have been good for all the Beatles to be told no more often, lol, it would have kept them grounded and human. I really like the way she wrote of George in her book---she didn't flinch from describing some of his more unsavoury qualities, but also wrote positively, quite glowingly, of him when warranted as well. It was very observant how she wrote he was at least 3 different people, and these sides of him could change minute to minute. I felt she understood him more than Pattie did, actually. Carol Bedford's portrayal of George in her book is very telling as well, very in-depth perceptions.

I think this was from the Chris O'Dell book too, how George purchased Friar Park and Pattie was imagining all the parties and balls she could give there, and George was already thinking of it more as a religious retreat or something. It was kind of sad how Chris wrote when he was deep into meditation, the rest of the household missed his presence, they felt the loss of him.

[larainefan]

Oh, and thanks for sharing the pics of George and Paul from Paul's concert too, I appreciate that! :)

[selenak]

I absolutely agree that this is the first book to give you a genuine sense of Maureen as a person, which will be a big point in my review!

It probably would have been good for all the Beatles to be told no more often, lol, it would have kept them grounded and human.

Indeed.

Re: George - I think Chris (and her co-author) brings him better to life than Pattie (and her co-author - let's not forget that in in either case, given how these kind of books work, it's actually the co-author doing the writing, based on extensive interviews with the memoirist in question), but then I think it probably helped that Chris didn't have sex with him. (I couldn't help but notice that Ringo doesn't come across as nearly in depth or detailed as George though he's certainly described in a sympathetic fashion.) I very much doubt that if Chris had been the one cheated upon she'd have been able to treat the whole George and Mo affair as objectively, for example. And I think she's sometimes projecting her own feelings on George, when it comes to Allen Klein, for example, but I'll get into that in my review. What makes the book unique (so far) for me in Beatles literature is that Chris really gives as much space to her relationships with Pattie and Maureen as she does with the various boys in the band(s), and this I appreciate very much.

[selenak]

I got around to posting my review of Chris' book (together with another review):

http://selenak.livejournal.com/713620.html

[larainefan]

Thanks for letting me know! I'm still re-reading parts of the book myself, I'll join in the discussion probably tomorrow! Looking forward to it!