The long aftertaste of a spectacular documentary. In 2021, a technical diligence by the New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson was released via the Disney + streaming platform. There was more than six hours of previously unreleased footage showing the Beatles in the studio recording the 1970s album Let It Be.
“Get Back” in the review:
The eldest of John Lennon’s sons, born in April 1963, has now revealed that he had “a lot to process” while watching the documentary. But in the end, the sometimes quite intimate look back helped him “appreciate” his father again.
“It really reminded me of what Dad used to be like,” Julian Lenon told Yahoo Music. “When I was with him as a kid he was funny, goofy, sarcastic, talented, moody, brooding – but always funny. He was all of that to me when we lived together. And that’s how I fell in love with him again. A beautiful moment. I could suddenly appreciate him again. For me a flashback to how it was before things went wrong between us.”
Julian and his famous father had a rather strained relationship. Julian’s mother, Cynthia, was John’s first wife. The couple divorced in 1968 after John had an affair with Yoko Ono, whom he later married in 1969.
Over the years, John had no contact with Julian, but in the mid-seventies the Beatle tried to get closer .
“We tried hugs; as a prelude to getting to know each other again before he died,” said Julian. “A pleasant experience. It’s great. I longed to spend more time with him. After all, ‘Get Back’ was just a tool to remind him of his human side. It inspired me, I really enjoyed it.”
The reason for this introspection of his soul is Julian’s new album – his first since 2011 – called “Jude”, a reference to the famous Beatles song that Paul McCartney wrote for him. “It just felt like the right title and the right thing,” he explains. “It’s all about overcoming all the fears and anxieties that I associate with the Beatles, Dad and stuff like that.”