One of my favorite items in my Beatles collection are the Beatles scrapbooks that I own. I love the fact that some fan spent hours collecting articles and photos of the Beatles and taping them into a scrapbook and writing dates and notes. I was looking through some of my scrapbooks from the solo years and I can across this article about John Lennon's security guard from 1980. I know that I have posted his photo on this blog in the past, but here is a little more about him.
I found this article, which was written in 1981 to be sad. I hope this man hasn't spent the rest of his life thinking "if only I...." when it comes to John's death. Really I doubt there would have been anything he could have done if he was with John. Please note that in respect of the wishes of Yoko Ono, Paul McCartney and my fellow John Lennon fans I have removed the name of John's killer from the article and have just referred to him as "the killer." I have maintained not to post his name on this blog or post his photograph, however if someone chooses to do so in the comments section, I will not stop their freedom of speech to do so. Thank you for understanding.
Lennon’s Memory shines on
By Bill Carlton
The Daily News December 22, 1981
John Lennon inspired a lot of people with his music, but he
inspired the Rev. James McClain with his life as well and gave him the extra strength
he needed to make his own music.
In the last few months before Lennon’s death, McClain was
his personal bodyguard at the Hit Factory recording studio on W. 48th
St. McClain worked as a security guard
there and was assigned to protect Lennon and Yoko while they were making the “Double
Fantasy” album.
Lennon refused McClain’s offer to travel with him and guard
him around the clock. So the former
Beatle, who never carried a weapon, was defenseless against the gunman when he
arrived home at the Dakota just over a year ago.
“If only I had been there, maybe I could have helped” are words
that have haunted McClain ever since.
The big, burly, 41 year old minister is an ex-convict who
once served a three year stretch for bank robbery. He became a born-again believer in Lewisburg
Prison and on his released in 1974, was ordained a Pentecostal minister in
Harlem.
After meeting John Lennon, however, McClain says he was
inspired and encouraged to record an album of his own gospel music and thereby
fulfill a life-long ambition.
“He didn’t know how much he helped me,” McClain says. “He left a big impact on me as far as
songwriting is concerned. He found out I
was a musician and I sang him a few bars of gospel.” “Wow, James!” John said, “You have a nice
voice. I want to hear your record. You got some stuff I can hear? “ So I gave him a tape of 13 songs and he liked
them so much he carried the cassette around.
He told me to make sure he got a copy of the single I was working on, ‘Somebody
Somewhere need the Lord’. But he died a
month before it was finished.”
In mid-summer of 19890, when the recording session began for
“Double Fantasy,” McClain’s job was to meet John, Yoko and often their son,
Sean, when their limo arrived at the Hit Factory near Ninth Avenue, usually
late in the afternoon. He made sure they
got safely through the crowd of fans, into the building and up to the sixth
floor suite prepared for them. He
escorted them back into the limo when the session ended, often at 3 or 4a.m.
“Security came first,” says McClain, an imposing man who
doesn’t carry a gun. “There were always
crowds of people outside the building but we never had any problems. I check out everybody who was waiting and if
they looked suspicious I would immediately question them. ‘Who are you?
Why are you waiting so long? Let’s
see some ID.’ I encountered quite a few
suspicious people. When I saw the
pictures of the killer, I had the feeling I’d seen him before, outside the Hit
Factory. But I wasn’t sure.”
Sometimes a mob of 50 or more people would be waiting when
the limo pulled up. “the young girls would
cry and go to pieces,” McClain remembers.
“John would kiss them on the
cheek and pose for pictures, always with Yoko.
Once he came and nobody was there.
He was shocked. He lived for the
fans. He didn’t always want to be
bothered, thought. One day he ran down
the hallway to escape them and get in quick.
He was very fast on his feet. If he
could have gotten a few steps on his killer, I’m sure he’d be alive today.”
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