The Dream is Over - A Book Review

 

If you are a John Lennon fan, you will be familiar with Dan Richter.   He lived with John and Yoko at Tittenhurst in the early 1970s and worked for them.  He photographed the Plastic Ono Band albums and the Imagine album.   And besides that -- I didn't know much more about him. 

I read his book The Dream is Over London in the 60s, Heroin, and John and Yoko on the Kindle app this last week, and I really enjoyed it.   Dan is a very interesting man.  He was a mime in New York City for a long time until he quit and decided to travel the world, learning about the various theaters.   In Japan in the early 1960s, he met and befriended Yoko Ono.   

Eventually, Dan and Yoko are in London at the same time and are hanging out together.  Then Yoko gets together with John and introduces her new boyfriend to her friend.    Dan, his wife, and his child move into Tittenhurst to help remodel the home.   During this time, Dan was fully into heroin addiction, and he supplied the drug to John and Yoko.    When they quit doing it, they confronted Dan and told him to keep living there, he needs to be off herion because they don't want it around them.  They really helped him get on the path to being clean, and while Dan went back to drugs on different occasions, he really credits John and Yoko for helping him.  

Dan was part of  the Lennon's life during some very important time, including the whole Kyoko kidnapping and custody issues.   

Dan's depiction of Yoko was probably the most realistic depiction of her that I have ever read.  He points out her faults without making her seem evil while also praising her good side without making her look like a saint.   Since he knew her before she met John, his observations were very insightful.   However, I do think she did him wrong by promising to financially back the movie he wanted to make and then pulling the funds when John and Yoko decided to end Joko Films.   Dan was literally in the middle of filming it with the actors.   Yoko knew how important this project was to him and it just seemed mean to pull the assistance that she promised her friend.  

This book is basically impossible to find in physical form.   But it is available to read on Kindle for a reasonable price.  If you are a John Lennon and/or Yoko Ono fan, it is one worth reading. 

The link below is the affiliate link to purchase the ebook directly from Amazon.com   I make a very small percentage of money from any sales using this link.  All money made from the affiliate link on Amazon goes towards keeping this site running. 

https://amzn.to/4bqG4zm

Editing

 February 5, 1969

The "Let it Be" concert

 

January 31, 1969

I know it isn't really a concert, but in my mind, the songs the Beatles played on January 31, 1969 at the Apple Studios was a like a concert.   They could not play songs such as Let it Be on the rooftop, so they performed the rest of the songs in the studio.    And what a performance they gave!! 

The coolest tourists in Egypt

 Late January 1979 

Egypt Station circa 1979

 Late January 1979 -  John and Yoko in Egypt - visiting the pyramids 

An anvil and more

 January 25, 1969

Getting down to work

 January 24, 1969

Looking so hip

 

Sure looks like a fun session

 January 23, 1969

Get Back to where you once belong

 January 22, 1969 

Waiting for the wife

 

An important day in Beatles history

 January 19, 1994 -  Paul coming to induct John into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 was a moment when history was made.   Not only did Paul give a very emotional speech in the form of a letter to John, but of course, this was the night when Paul and Yoko hugged and mended their relationship, and Yoko handed over the tapes for "Free as a Bird,"  "Real Love," "Now and Then," and "Grow Old with Me."    At least that is the cannon for the story -- I think this was in the works before the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but still, at the time, I remember seeing the photos of Paul and Yoko hugging and couldn't believe that day had come!