By Steve Marinucci
Published April 21, 2000, San Jose (CA) Mercury News
A GUITARIST ON THE RUN
FORMER WINGS MEMBER STAYS BUSY WITH TOURING, TV, MOVIES
SEARCH for guitarist Laurence Juber's CDs in stores, and you'll find them filed in almost any rack, from ''rock'' to ''New Age.'' That gives some idea of the breadth of the English-born acoustic artist's talents and accomplishments.
The career of the 47-year-old musician, a former lead guitarist for Paul McCartney and Wings, includes working as a studio musician and scoring TV shows, as well as pursuing a solo career. His credits include TV's ''Happy Days,'' ''Home Improvement,'' ''Boy Meets World'' and ''7th Heaven'' and the movies ''Dirty Dancing,'' ''The Big Chill,'' ''Pocahontas'' and, most recently, ''Snow Day.''
Juber also has recorded with Eric Clapton, John Mayall, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Clint Black, Roger Daltrey and three of the four Beatles -- McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison.
Juber will perform at San Jose Stage on April 29 with finger-style guitarist Duck Baker in the Downtown Arts Series. He will also make several other area appearances, including a performance April 28 in Monterey and broadcasts Thursday (7 to 9 a.m.) on the Greg Kihn show on KUFX-FM (104.9) and 11 a.m. April 28 on KAZU-FM (90.3).
Some fans know Juber's work from the Wings album ''Back to the Egg'' and the singles ''Goodnight Tonight'' and ''Coming Up.''
After Wings broke up in 1981, Juber moved with his wife and two children to the Los Angeles area to concentrate on studio work and composing.
Speaking of the time he spent with McCartney, Juber says, ''I found him very easy to work with. The job description was pretty clear. I was there to play lead guitar and to be responsive to (McCartney's) creative direction, with the freedom to be able to make my own contribution.''
He describes McCartney and his late wife, Linda McCartney, who was also in Wings, as ''easygoing.'' Juber got together with McCartney late last year in Los Angeles during the former Beatle's promotional appearances for his current album, ''Run Devil Run,'' and at a benefit concert for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. ''He's a great performer,'' says Juber.
Juber's own most recent CD, ''LJ Plays the Beatles'' (Solid Air Records), features his beautifully intricate acoustic-guitar arrangements of Beatle songs, including a few not often performed, such as ''Martha My Dear'' and ''You Won't See Me.'' In June, the disc will be in stores; until then it is available only via the Internet (at www.acousticmusicresource.com and www.laurencejuber.com).
Even though the idea of recording Beatles tunes might seem a natural for Juber, he released more than a dozen other records before getting around to that one. What made him finally do it?
''People kept asking me for it,'' he says. ''And I've been playing some of these arrangements for a long time. I've always included a Beatles tune (in my show). It's my heritage.''
Juber's wife, Hope, is the daughter of ''Brady Bunch'' and ''Gilligan's Island'' creator Sherwood Schwartz. She played various roles on several episodes of ''The Brady Bunch,'' including Greg's girlfriend, Rachel. Juber makes light of this in his own autobiography, writing that he ''married Greg Brady's girlfriend.''
''It got to the point,'' he says, ''where Hope said she wasn't going to be happy until I did the (Beatles) album. And I said, 'If I'm going to do it, you're going to produce it.' She and I had worked on the previous album (''Altered Reality''). We really enjoyed working together. Once we decided to do it, we started in September and delivered it in February.''
Juber's upcoming projects include work on an Al Stewart album, set for release in September.
His appearance at San Jose Stage is co-sponsored by Fiddling Cricket Concerts and the South Bay Guitar Society. Juber also will be making a free in-store appearance at 8 p.m. Thursday at Compact Disc Land, 477 University Ave., Palo Alto. And on April 29, he will give a guitar clinic at Palo Alto's Gryphon Stringed Instruments (2 p.m., 211 Lambert Ave., 650-493-2131, $30).
Friday, April 21, 2000
Sunday, January 30, 2000
Hello ... goodbye; two ex-Beatles reunite for a day in fictional film
By Steve Marinucci
Published Jan. 30, 2000, San Jose (CA) Mercury News
HELLO . . . GOODBYE
TWO EX-BEATLES REUNITE FOR A DAY IN FICTIONAL FILM
TWO OF US
9 and 11 p.m. Tuesday, 8 p.m. Thursday, 10 p.m. Saturday, VH1
(star) (star) (1/2 star)
ROLL UP. Roll up for the radical history tour.
It's 1976. The four Beatles had broken up as a group and officially gone their separate ways six years earlier. Paul McCartney is being interviewed and is asked an often-repeated question about the chances of a Beatle reunion.
His answer: ''You never know.''
Then, on April 24, while in New York City, McCartney decides to drop in unannounced at the Dakota, where John Lennon and Yoko Ono live.
So begins VH1's ''Two of Us,'' a speculative day in the life of the two former Beatles. Aidan Quinn ('An Early Frost'') and Jared Harris, Richard's son (''Lost in Space'') star as McCartney and John Lennon. Quinn has the voice, not the look, while it is the opposite with Harris. It takes some serious squinting to accept either as Lennon or as McCartney.
Nevertheless, fans, curious over what revelations about Lennon and McCartney might be included, will likely find themselves drawn to the film, which is peppered with references to Beatle trivia. Maybe part of the reason is that the film's producer, Michael Lindsay-Hogg, also produced the Beatles' movie ''Let It Be'' and the Rolling Stones' ''Rock and Roll Circus,'' which featured Lennon and wife Yoko Ono. Fans may wonder how close, if at all, Lindsay-Hogg gets to showing us the real personalities of the two former Beatles.
When Lennon opens the door to his Dakota apartment and sees McCartney standing in the hallway, his first reaction, typically cryptic, is to call his former songwriting partner ''the ghost of Christmas past.''
After some initial wariness on both sides, the two, without either spouse in sight, recall old times with cautious affection, and at times, anger. (Lennon says his wife is off on a business trip with son Sean to buy some cows, while Linda McCartney is with the children. Neither is seen in the film.)
Their conversation reveals that Lennon, still hurt over his troubled youth, is content to be without a record contract. ''I've given up the game. I've finally gotten control of my own life and I'm not going to give that up.''
McCartney, however, loves working. ''I'm doing quite well without you,'' he says. ''Yeah, you and your silly love songs,'' retorts Lennon, referring to the McCartney song doing well in the charts.
Harris' Lennon is mostly caustic, portrayed as a househusband seemingly under the control of Ono, who has introduced him to a macrobiotic diet and numerology. Quinn's McCartney is surer of himself, and although defensive with his old mate, he seems to be longing for the friendship that used to be.
Although VH1 says a meeting never took place on the date the film is set, Lennon himself, in a Playboy magazine interview conducted just before he died, said Paul indeed visited him on the 24th, the date of a ''Saturday Night Live'' broadcast in which producer Lorne Michaels made the now-famous offer, not totally in jest, to pay the Beatles $3,000 if they would sing three songs.
''Oh, yeah. Paul and I were together watching that show,'' Lennon said. ''He was visiting us at our place in the Dakota. We were watching it and almost went down to the studio, just as a gag. We nearly got into a cab, but we were actually too tired.''
However, whatever else went down on that date in this movie is the product of writer Mark Stanfield's imagination. Most of what transpires is relatively believable -- with one glaring exception. During an improvisational piano session, the pair gets into a Western rhythm and end up singing, of all things, ''Tumbling Tumbleweeds.'' It's so completely out of character that one can only wonder if Lindsay-Hogg is giving viewers a bit of a revelation or completely putting them on.
A few things in the preview tape, labeled as a working version of the film, will certainly catch the attention of viewers should they make it to the final version. Those exterior shots that look like the Dakota, including,incredibly, the gate near where Lennon was killed in 1980, were actually filmed in Canada. There are several lines of adult dialogue, which were common from the oft-strong-tongued Lennon, but are unusual on basic cable.
The preview tape also featured two McCartney songs on the soundtrack -- ''Silly Love Songs'' and ''Here Today.'' A VH1 spokesman said the script was submitted to McCartney's organization, and those songs will be included only if approved by McCartney. But a spokesman for McCartney's MPL Productions says McCartney is not endorsing the program and that review copies sent to the press with the McCartney songs were not authorized, so don't look for them in the televised version. (No other Beatle music was included.)
In the end, even if ''Two of Us'' is mostly a fantasy, seeing the two old friends back together in the film should strike a sentimental chord with anyone who ever liked the Beatles.
It's like hearing ''Free As a Bird'' and ''Real Love'' for the first time again. Who cares if it's not a real reunion?
Just the thought is nice.
Published Jan. 30, 2000, San Jose (CA) Mercury News
HELLO . . . GOODBYE
TWO EX-BEATLES REUNITE FOR A DAY IN FICTIONAL FILM
9 and 11 p.m. Tuesday, 8 p.m. Thursday, 10 p.m. Saturday, VH1
(star) (star) (1/2 star)
ROLL UP. Roll up for the radical history tour.
It's 1976. The four Beatles had broken up as a group and officially gone their separate ways six years earlier. Paul McCartney is being interviewed and is asked an often-repeated question about the chances of a Beatle reunion.
His answer: ''You never know.''
Then, on April 24, while in New York City, McCartney decides to drop in unannounced at the Dakota, where John Lennon and Yoko Ono live.
So begins VH1's ''Two of Us,'' a speculative day in the life of the two former Beatles. Aidan Quinn ('An Early Frost'') and Jared Harris, Richard's son (''Lost in Space'') star as McCartney and John Lennon. Quinn has the voice, not the look, while it is the opposite with Harris. It takes some serious squinting to accept either as Lennon or as McCartney.
Nevertheless, fans, curious over what revelations about Lennon and McCartney might be included, will likely find themselves drawn to the film, which is peppered with references to Beatle trivia. Maybe part of the reason is that the film's producer, Michael Lindsay-Hogg, also produced the Beatles' movie ''Let It Be'' and the Rolling Stones' ''Rock and Roll Circus,'' which featured Lennon and wife Yoko Ono. Fans may wonder how close, if at all, Lindsay-Hogg gets to showing us the real personalities of the two former Beatles.
When Lennon opens the door to his Dakota apartment and sees McCartney standing in the hallway, his first reaction, typically cryptic, is to call his former songwriting partner ''the ghost of Christmas past.''
After some initial wariness on both sides, the two, without either spouse in sight, recall old times with cautious affection, and at times, anger. (Lennon says his wife is off on a business trip with son Sean to buy some cows, while Linda McCartney is with the children. Neither is seen in the film.)
Their conversation reveals that Lennon, still hurt over his troubled youth, is content to be without a record contract. ''I've given up the game. I've finally gotten control of my own life and I'm not going to give that up.''
McCartney, however, loves working. ''I'm doing quite well without you,'' he says. ''Yeah, you and your silly love songs,'' retorts Lennon, referring to the McCartney song doing well in the charts.
Harris' Lennon is mostly caustic, portrayed as a househusband seemingly under the control of Ono, who has introduced him to a macrobiotic diet and numerology. Quinn's McCartney is surer of himself, and although defensive with his old mate, he seems to be longing for the friendship that used to be.
Although VH1 says a meeting never took place on the date the film is set, Lennon himself, in a Playboy magazine interview conducted just before he died, said Paul indeed visited him on the 24th, the date of a ''Saturday Night Live'' broadcast in which producer Lorne Michaels made the now-famous offer, not totally in jest, to pay the Beatles $3,000 if they would sing three songs.
''Oh, yeah. Paul and I were together watching that show,'' Lennon said. ''He was visiting us at our place in the Dakota. We were watching it and almost went down to the studio, just as a gag. We nearly got into a cab, but we were actually too tired.''
However, whatever else went down on that date in this movie is the product of writer Mark Stanfield's imagination. Most of what transpires is relatively believable -- with one glaring exception. During an improvisational piano session, the pair gets into a Western rhythm and end up singing, of all things, ''Tumbling Tumbleweeds.'' It's so completely out of character that one can only wonder if Lindsay-Hogg is giving viewers a bit of a revelation or completely putting them on.
A few things in the preview tape, labeled as a working version of the film, will certainly catch the attention of viewers should they make it to the final version. Those exterior shots that look like the Dakota, including,incredibly, the gate near where Lennon was killed in 1980, were actually filmed in Canada. There are several lines of adult dialogue, which were common from the oft-strong-tongued Lennon, but are unusual on basic cable.
The preview tape also featured two McCartney songs on the soundtrack -- ''Silly Love Songs'' and ''Here Today.'' A VH1 spokesman said the script was submitted to McCartney's organization, and those songs will be included only if approved by McCartney. But a spokesman for McCartney's MPL Productions says McCartney is not endorsing the program and that review copies sent to the press with the McCartney songs were not authorized, so don't look for them in the televised version. (No other Beatle music was included.)
In the end, even if ''Two of Us'' is mostly a fantasy, seeing the two old friends back together in the film should strike a sentimental chord with anyone who ever liked the Beatles.
It's like hearing ''Free As a Bird'' and ''Real Love'' for the first time again. Who cares if it's not a real reunion?
Just the thought is nice.
Thursday, November 11, 1999
Imagine when the Lennons, father and son, drew so close
By Steve Marinucci
Published on November 11, 1999, San Jose Mercury News (CA)
JOHN Lennon was not considered the sweet Beatle. That role was filled by Paul McCartney.
But Lennon did have his tender side -- and one aspect of it will be on view today through Sunday in the ''Art of John Lennon'' exhibit at San Jose's Westgate Mall.
During his days as a househusband after the birth of his son Sean on John's birthday on Oct. 9, 1975 , father and son often spent time drawing pictures together and making up funny captions for them as a way of playing together. Over 35 of those drawings were gathered in a book published earlier this year, "Real Love: The Drawings for Sean" (Random House, $12.99). Twelve of those drawings will be featured in the exhibit.
By phone from New York, Yoko Ono said that the drawings show that although, as a rock star, John had "a macho side too, at home he was a very kind of sweet, gentle person."
They were done when Sean was between the ages of 2 to 4, Ono says. After Sean turned 5 on Oct. 9, 1980, Ono says, "I think John was very busy with the 'Double Fantasy' album and I don't think there was much (drawing) going on."
In the introduction to the book, Ono described the process of how the drawings were created. "John would draw something and explain to Sean what it was. 'This is a cat catnapping, Sean.' 'Oh.' Then it was Sean's turn. He would show the drawings and explain, 'This is a bus and the people who want to get on the bus, but they can't because the bus is too small … so they're crying." Titles were added to each picture, some by Sean and some by John. The drawings also were originally in black-and-white, which Ono allowed to be augmented with color for use in the book. "I usually do the coloring. I always feel that he (John) wouldn't have minded if I did it myself, being his partner and all. But this time, it was … a special coloring you do for children's books. I let the professionals do it … somebody who knew professionally what you were supposed to do for children's books."
The drawings, she says, represent a special time in the relationship of the father and son. "Whatever he did with Sean, it was such a sweet thing to do. I think there was an incredible separation from what he did for Sean and what he did as his own artwork."
Ono says, however, she hasn't discussed the book with Sean.. "One of the reason I don't particularly want to bring up these subjects with Sean is that it still hurts him," she said.
The exhibit includes more than 100 serigraphs, signed lithographs and original drawings. Twenty hand-signed song lyrics will also be on display, as will several works from the original "Bag One" portfolio first shown in 1970 included in the permanent collection from the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
As witnessed by the public uproar those Bag One drawings, which included a number of erotic sketches, received, John and Yoko's public image was often negative when Lennon was alive, but things seemed to have improved. Apple Computer Inc. recently featured a widely circulated billboard featuring John and Yoko as part of its "Think Different" campaign.
"That was marvelous," said Ono. "(It) was extremely lucky that we were chosen as well. I feel good about it. I think everything was really politically correct. They told me that they would like to give 100 computers to schools that didn't have computers instead of paying. I thought that was just right. Usually, in a case like that, I would have asked them to donate to the Spirit Foundation (a charitable works group set up by Yoko), but it's the same thing if they wanted to give the computers to kids. That was beautiful. … I think the ad was very special."
Also, Entertainment Weekly used the Nov. 5 installment of its weekly Encore feature to spotlight the 33rd anniversary of the meeting of John and Yoko, which took place on Nov. 9, 1966 at London's Indica Gallery. "We were really proud of that … the whole family," she said.
So what attracted John to her avant-garde artwork? "I think that it's the fun quality (in it). I think he was surprised there was some sense of humor. Usually when he (went) to art exhibitions, he told me (they were) … too serious or angry or something. (My exhibit) was, like, selling fresh apples for 200 (British) pounds … fun joke, in a way. Also, he had to climb up the ladder and (find a sign) that said 'yes.' There was some kind of playful quality to … my work. I think the playfulness is something that caught his eye."
Ono's own artistic contributions have received their own share of special recognition recently. One of her works is currently included in the "The American Century: Art & Culture 1900-2000" exhibit currently running at New York's Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. In addition, her song "Walking On Thin Ice," done with John just before his death, is included in the Rhino boxed set, "R-E-S-P-E-C-T," a collection of music by women. "It's something I never thought would happen, thinking those things coming back while I'm alive. It's beautiful."
As far as Lennon projects go, Billboard magazine recently reported a film taken mainly from unreleased footage of the "Imagine" recording sessions called "Gimme Some Truth" will be released to TV and video . Ono acknowledged this, saying, "We're thinking in terms of (releasing it) Valentine's Day next year." But she wouldn't comment on other Lennon and Beatle projects that may be in the works, saying "I don't usually believe in dropping hints because it's better not to say anything."
Published on November 11, 1999, San Jose Mercury News (CA)
JOHN Lennon was not considered the sweet Beatle. That role was filled by Paul McCartney.
But Lennon did have his tender side -- and one aspect of it will be on view today through Sunday in the ''Art of John Lennon'' exhibit at San Jose's Westgate Mall.
During his days as a househusband after the birth of his son Sean on John's birthday on Oct. 9, 1975 , father and son often spent time drawing pictures together and making up funny captions for them as a way of playing together. Over 35 of those drawings were gathered in a book published earlier this year, "Real Love: The Drawings for Sean" (Random House, $12.99). Twelve of those drawings will be featured in the exhibit.
By phone from New York, Yoko Ono said that the drawings show that although, as a rock star, John had "a macho side too, at home he was a very kind of sweet, gentle person."
They were done when Sean was between the ages of 2 to 4, Ono says. After Sean turned 5 on Oct. 9, 1980, Ono says, "I think John was very busy with the 'Double Fantasy' album and I don't think there was much (drawing) going on."
In the introduction to the book, Ono described the process of how the drawings were created. "John would draw something and explain to Sean what it was. 'This is a cat catnapping, Sean.' 'Oh.' Then it was Sean's turn. He would show the drawings and explain, 'This is a bus and the people who want to get on the bus, but they can't because the bus is too small … so they're crying." Titles were added to each picture, some by Sean and some by John. The drawings also were originally in black-and-white, which Ono allowed to be augmented with color for use in the book. "I usually do the coloring. I always feel that he (John) wouldn't have minded if I did it myself, being his partner and all. But this time, it was … a special coloring you do for children's books. I let the professionals do it … somebody who knew professionally what you were supposed to do for children's books."
The drawings, she says, represent a special time in the relationship of the father and son. "Whatever he did with Sean, it was such a sweet thing to do. I think there was an incredible separation from what he did for Sean and what he did as his own artwork."
Ono says, however, she hasn't discussed the book with Sean.. "One of the reason I don't particularly want to bring up these subjects with Sean is that it still hurts him," she said.
The exhibit includes more than 100 serigraphs, signed lithographs and original drawings. Twenty hand-signed song lyrics will also be on display, as will several works from the original "Bag One" portfolio first shown in 1970 included in the permanent collection from the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
As witnessed by the public uproar those Bag One drawings, which included a number of erotic sketches, received, John and Yoko's public image was often negative when Lennon was alive, but things seemed to have improved. Apple Computer Inc. recently featured a widely circulated billboard featuring John and Yoko as part of its "Think Different" campaign.
"That was marvelous," said Ono. "(It) was extremely lucky that we were chosen as well. I feel good about it. I think everything was really politically correct. They told me that they would like to give 100 computers to schools that didn't have computers instead of paying. I thought that was just right. Usually, in a case like that, I would have asked them to donate to the Spirit Foundation (a charitable works group set up by Yoko), but it's the same thing if they wanted to give the computers to kids. That was beautiful. … I think the ad was very special."
Also, Entertainment Weekly used the Nov. 5 installment of its weekly Encore feature to spotlight the 33rd anniversary of the meeting of John and Yoko, which took place on Nov. 9, 1966 at London's Indica Gallery. "We were really proud of that … the whole family," she said.
So what attracted John to her avant-garde artwork? "I think that it's the fun quality (in it). I think he was surprised there was some sense of humor. Usually when he (went) to art exhibitions, he told me (they were) … too serious or angry or something. (My exhibit) was, like, selling fresh apples for 200 (British) pounds … fun joke, in a way. Also, he had to climb up the ladder and (find a sign) that said 'yes.' There was some kind of playful quality to … my work. I think the playfulness is something that caught his eye."
Ono's own artistic contributions have received their own share of special recognition recently. One of her works is currently included in the "The American Century: Art & Culture 1900-2000" exhibit currently running at New York's Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. In addition, her song "Walking On Thin Ice," done with John just before his death, is included in the Rhino boxed set, "R-E-S-P-E-C-T," a collection of music by women. "It's something I never thought would happen, thinking those things coming back while I'm alive. It's beautiful."
As far as Lennon projects go, Billboard magazine recently reported a film taken mainly from unreleased footage of the "Imagine" recording sessions called "Gimme Some Truth" will be released to TV and video . Ono acknowledged this, saying, "We're thinking in terms of (releasing it) Valentine's Day next year." But she wouldn't comment on other Lennon and Beatle projects that may be in the works, saying "I don't usually believe in dropping hints because it's better not to say anything."
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