John Lennon Imagined : Cultural History of a Rock Star

Acknowledgments vii Introduction 1(25) A Short Diversion on the Origins of Study 1(4) The Greatest Story of Popular Music?: Challenges of Writing the History 5(10) Star History, Star Theories and Popular Music 15(11) The Genesis of the Beatles' Breakthrough 26(24) British Pop Music Stardom before the Beatles 26(10) Northern Stars: From Local Heroes to National Obsession 36(14) To Be a Beatle: John Lennon as a Star during Beatlemania, 1963--1966 50(38) ``Great New Comedy Team'': Humor and Popular Music 50(13) One of the Boys: Pop Stardom and Masculinity 63(14) ``From You to Us'': The Dialogue between Fans and Stars 77(11) Changing Popular Music Stardom of the 1960s 88(20) From Art School Experience to Swinging London 88(7) Authenticity, Folk Ideology and Cultural Interaction 95(13) Signs of John Lennon's Rock Stardom 108(34) The Case of the Granny Glasses 108(12) Psychedelic Rolls-Royce 120(9) The Spirit of Sgt. Pepper 129(13) John Lennon, Rock Culture and the Imperative of Activism in the Late 1960s 142(31) Unfinished Participation: Avant-garde and Rock Music 142(9) Conflicting Expectations: Forms of Messianic Intensities 151(14) Fool of the Year 1969 165(8) Relocating a Star Identity in the 1970s 173(34) Street Politics: Lennon, New York and Radicalism 173(11) ``You Don't Get Me Twice'': The Ethos of Survival 184(12) Present Father, Absent Star 196(11) Stardom and Death 207(29) Death of a Hero 207(11) The Posthumous Debate on John Lennon 218(18) Conclusion: Imagine a Rock Star 236(9) Notes 245(18) References 263(24) Index 287