"Strange Noises on the Phone... Someone Follows When I Drive": John Lennon's Interview from 50 Years Ago Released

Unreleased 1975 Radio Interview Discovered
Claims "I Think the U.S. Government Is Wiretapping Me"

A recording of an interview with John Lennon, a member of the legendary British band The Beatles, conducted in 1975, has been discovered and released after 50 years.

According to the British daily The Guardian on October 7 (local time), the interviewer at the time was Nicky Horne, a DJ for London's Capital Radio. Horne, who was a young DJ of 24 at the time, was invited to Lennon's apartment in the Dakota Building in New York in 1975, where they had a wide-ranging conversation. While parts of the interview were broadcast immediately, the original reel tape was forgotten for 50 years. Recently, Horne found the original tape in a dusty box in his basement at home. Horne expressed his amazement, saying, "This is like gold dust."

John Lennon, a member of the legendary British band The Beatles. Photo by Pixabay

The most notable aspect of the interview is that Lennon expressed his fear of being surveilled by the U.S. government. In the interview, Lennon said, "I know something is different when I pick up the phone," and added, "It's usually quiet, but these days, every time I pick up the receiver, I hear strange noises." At the time, Lennon had filed a lawsuit against the Nixon administration over illegal wiretapping and surveillance, and he believed that he was continuously monitored by the U.S. government while he was engaged in antiwar activism.

Lennon stated, "The [U.S. government] tried to get me and harassed me in every way," and continued, "When I opened the door, there were people standing across the street, and when I got in a car, another car followed me. They didn't even try to hide it." Lennon added, "At the time, I couldn't find evidence of wiretapping, but there were a lot of suspicious repair works in the (building's) basement." He also mentioned that not only himself, but other British musicians such as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards experienced similar issues.

Five Years Before His Death: "I Will Sing for Another 60 Years"

Lennon also shared behind-the-scenes stories about his fourth solo album, "Walls and Bridges." The album was so popular in the United States that it received gold certification, but Lennon admitted he did not like the album during its production. Lennon said, "At first, I just wanted to throw the album away. I really hated listening to the studio tapes," and added, "But when my friends said, 'It's not bad,' I listened again and realized it was actually pretty good. I liked some of it enough to decide, 'Okay, let's release it.'" He added that the album was created during an 18-month separation from his wife, Yoko Ono.

Lennon described his daily life at the time as "basically bedroom, studio, TV, occasional outings, and then back home," and said, "Unless God plays a trick on me, I will sing for another 60 years. I will make music until I die." Lennon, who was 35 years old at the time of the interview, died at age 40 in 1980 after being shot by Mark David Chapman.