Those words belong to none other than the legendary John Lennon while recording the final track on their Revolver album “Tomorrow Never Knows”. On my drive home from class, I smiled as I imagined Lennon and his nasally voice saying this. Well, it really wasn’t all that difficult to imagine considering I was listening to the whole event being read to me through an audio book.
A few days ago, as I turned the key to start up my car, I made my ritualistic decision of what to listen to. The six CDs in the magazine were nice but I was in the mood for something new and I’ve lost all interest in the radio years ago. I thought for a second…aha! I looked in the trunk of the car and sure enough, there it was, sitting there still in the plastic wrapping, the three familiar faces on the cover looking jolly. It was an audio book. And not just any audio book but Geoff Emerick’s “Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles“. I excitedly ripped off the plastic and sat back in the car, popped the CD in and drove off.
Since then, I’ve spent every moment in my car transported to EMI’s studio 2 at Abbey Road or learning about the fascinating life of Mr. Geoff Emerick himself. It’s been such an awesome experience, I don’t know why I didn’t get into audio books sooner. Emerick’s style of writing is absolutely phenomenal, it’s told in the style of an autobiography and to my surprise the descriptions of his personal life are just as, if not even more interesting than his stories about spending time with the four Beatles themselves. To top it all off, Martin Jarvis’ narration is awe-inspiring. If you love the Beatles, or if you love music in general, I highly recommend you read this book (and I’m giving this recommendation without even being close to halfway finished listening to the book, so it must be REALLY good).
Going back to the beginning of this post, I quoted John Lennon and mentioned that he said that as they were recording their “Tomorrow Never Knows” track. Therefore, it is only fitting that I end on that sweet note. This song is dedicated to SuperForester Susan, or SuZEN as I like to call her.
“Tomorrow Never Knows”
Turn off your mind, relax and float down stream,
It is not dying, it is not dying
Lay down all thought, surrender to the void,
Is it shining? Is it shining?
That you may see the meaning of within
It is being, it is being
Love is all and love is everyone
It is knowing, It is knowing
That ignorance and hate may mourn the dead
It is believing, it is believing
But listen to the colour of your dreams
Is it not living, is it not living
Or play the game “Existence” to the end
Of the beginning, of the beginning
Mmmm! That song always illuminates my day. Hope it did the same to yours.
Love always,
C
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