My Missing Years (1966)

 My Missing Years

By Maureen O'Grady

Rave Magazine

February 1966

    Freddie Lennon looks a very happy man, but don't be deceived. Hidden deep down are things that have happened in his past that he cannot forget, things he will never forget. As I realized, as we sat and talked in the offices of Pye Records, where a few weeks earlier, he had recorded his record "That's my Life."

     "The two saddest things about my life were losing my son and my wife." The breakup with his wife-- he said she was leaving him and starting to move furniture out of the house, he helped her, thinking she was joking and would come back, but she didn't. She meant it. And John, his son, who, on the death of his mother, lived with his Aunt Mimi. Things can never be the same between them again, not a proper father/ son relationship. He knows this. How could it be when the last but one time he saw John was when he was six, and then the last time when John was 24? For nothing can replace those missing 18 years.

     The last meeting happened a year or so ago in Brian Epstein's office. It was a strange experience for both of them. All the years in between, while Freddie had been away at sea, he had thought of John. "It's only natural," he said warmly, "after all, he is my son. And the funny thing was, I always knew, had a feeling that one day I would see him again.

     "The first two or three minutes were very awkward. I mean, it wasn't a situation where we would run into one another's arms. But after a while, we talked about things, laughed, and joked. John would have stayed longer, but he had to rush off to the BBC. His life is so busy now.

     "And then we said goodbye in typical Liverpool fashion, 'see you then'. Just friends." What does he think of John's well-known sarcastic nature?  "Well, the boy's obviously got a chip on his shoulder, that's all. But I'm partly to blame for that, I know."

     Freddie himself didn't grow up in a happy family atmosphere. He was raised in an orphanage, Blue Coat Hospital, in Liverpool. He remembers that John's first teacher, a Mr. James Bond, who still recalls John, went to the same orphanage. He remembers loads of little things like that, as though it were only yesterday. It's strange to think that during those missing years in between, Freddie didn't realize that his son was one of the world-famous Beatles. 

    "People kept saying to me, when the Beatles were in the papers nearly every day, 'For sure, that's your son, Fred. ' And eventually I discovered it was. You know, I wouldn't have come forward as I did. I was going to leave things as they were, but I couldn't.

     "Things were being written about me, lies. Everything was getting twisted. I came forward to tell my side of the story -- not for money, but so everyone could know the truth." He's heard that people think he's just cashing in on his son's name. "I know a lot of people think so, but it's not true. I have no reason to change my name, have I? It's no gimmick. The words of my song came naturally and sincerely, and that proves it."

     His last job, working at a ship hotel in Shepperton, is where he met his managers, Tony Cartwright and Tom Jones. Tom and Tony would tell Freddie that his voice was still as good as ever. He has been singing for years now on his own right, organizing ship concerts, and has sung in places like New York and Montreal. "Why don't you make a record?" They continually asked, and he followed their advice.

     Freddie laughed. "I told John that I was the first one to take the Liverpool sound to America. He seemed very pleased and amused when he heard that. John said he would buy a copy of his record. I was hoping he'd buy 20,000 copies, then I'd be able to knock the Beatles off the top of the Hit Parade. That would be a laugh."

     In fact, every mention of John seemed to light him up. What would he do if he earned a lot of money? "I want to get a little business with a house attached. I have no home at present. I wouldn't marry again. A new mother for John would just about be the last straw with him. I know I wouldn't do that."

     He says his son's feelings still matter to him. He doesn't want to embarrass or annoy him, for there's been too much of that in the past. He's fond of John and wants to stay friends. Losing a son is something that happened, but he's trying to make it a little bit better, even if it just means they stay friends.