Kenwood: summer, 1967.

These have been on here before, in sub-standard quality. Here they are again, much bigger unt better...

Thanks to Joe Baiardi.

Kenwood: '80s exterior.

John Paul Zuni has sent another small piece of the puzzle (if puzzle it be). The sunroom circa late '80s. Clearly the same structure that John built, minus the awning, and with a bit of black paint:


I'd now say the early '90s one is also definitely John's original structure, but with a brick roof and proper fireplace added:


More (but other) late '80s awning "action":


Many thanks to John Paul (winner of Most Appropriate Contributor Name 2012.)(Unless John Paul George Ringo should submit some shizzle before the new year.)
And whither the latter internal pics which must exist, somewhere?

Kenwood: sunroom, August 1967.

More (above) of these (below) have just come to light, via Tracks:


Pity about the watermarks, and the piano end remains fuzzy (though elucidation of a sort coming soon)...but these are fantastic. Shurely no more?

Kenwood: summer, 1967.

I said there would be more of these:


... and so there are. Speaking of the sunroom, which I wasn't, the virtual one is almost complete. I've had a preview, and, to use the parlance, it blew my (admittedly ravaged) mind. Check out the Beatles In 3D blog (link under Friends & Neighbours) for some updates, and watch this space.

Kenwood: sales particulars - January 8, 1969.

The sales particulars for Sunny Heights have already been on here (hence two important properties for sale); now comes the corresponding ad for Kenwood, from the pages of Queen magazine, January, 1969. I'd say the pictures were probably taken in the summer of 1968, at roughly the same time as Cathy's photos (see posts passim).
They don't show anything particularly new, but Kenwood pics of whatever hue are always welcome round these parts. Again, these likely date from the period when Cynthia, Julian, and Lil were occupying the house, whilst John and Yoko were living in Montagu Square. Note the blue attic window to the right; more on this to follow:


Another good shot of the sunroom end, taken from one corner of the swimming pool area:


And the pool itself, Eye in place:


There was an owner between John and Bill Martin, though details are sketchy. Bill bought the house in around 1970, and owned it into the 1980s.
Many thanks to our old buddy Mark Lewisohn for digging this one out of the archive.

Kenwood: then & thens.

Some new perspectives on '80s-model Kenwood. (Plus, with stultifying predictability, some "thens" from 1967.)
The above shows the view down to the pool, from the steps beside the sunroom, just before the Eye was removed in the mid-1980s. At that point, Kenwood (and this view in particular) was still remarkably similar to you know when (with the exception of a bit more "bush").
Below, a bit closer. Note both that the pool has been emptied to allow the removal of the Eye, and the difference that viewing it through water makes (as in the '67 shot).
Very clever, that. (Possibly.)


Next up, John's fabled "perch", where he spent much of 1967, staring into space. Sitting in an English garden, waiting for blah blah etc etc. By the mid-'80s, this view had hardly changed at all:


Finally, the garage "end" - John built this (not literally), and it is all gone now. But back then, the only real difference was the sunroom. It's a moot point whether that is a completely new structure, or simply John's one modified. I reckon the latter, for what it's worth:


The more or less eagle-eyed amongst you will have spotted that the '80s pics aren't photographs at all, but screencaps, taken from video footage.
Watch this space.
(Or not.)

Kenwood: summer, 1968 - part 9.

Another colour shot of the sunroom. For the hell of it, here's the same view by Leslie Bryce:


...and by Joe Baiardi, from a couple of years back:


The final three of Cathy's photos, all showing the west end of the house:


Yet again, a bit of new detail. Note the attic window to the right, which looked on to the "living room" up there:


Clearly different from the other one, this right hand window was blue in colour. (It's probably a safe bet that John was responsible for installing it.) The blue-hued one survived up till the mid-1980s, when it was replaced by a normal pane of glass.


And so there we have it. Huge thanks again go to Cathy Kelleher Sarver for having the chutzpah to get into Kenwood, the foresight to take a camera, and the generosity to let us see all these very evocative photos, all these years later. (And not forgetting Lizzie Bravo, without whom...)

Kenwood: sunroom exterior.

Back round to the back; the sharpest photo of the Lennon-era sunroom's exterior thus far, and cause enough for a vat or two of wine round these parts. It's remarkable how much new Kenwood material continues to appear, month in, month out, month back in again, and out, and in, and out and in and on and on and on. This is yet another one by Sue Baker. (Several cheers for her.)
Suffice to say, a fair amount of new detail is to be gleaned from this, all of which will be put to good use in the virtual Kenwood "pwoject".

Kenwood: sunroom, spring 1968.

After all this sunroom "discourse", a ghostly fan photo offers a partial view ca. Two Virgins, as far as I can gather. What that thing at the foot of the sunroom steps is, I'm not sure.

Kenwood: recollections.

As part of the current 09/09/09 frenzy, there have been some more or less interesting programmes on tv and radio here recently. One such, concerning the "Jesus" furore, featured recollections of Kenwood from Cynthia Lennon and journalist Maureen Cleave. (Thanks to Joe Baiardi for the great new shots of the sunroom/dining room and west sides, and to Sara for the Julian pic).

CL: The house was at the top of the hill, and John was thrilled to bits that it was at the top of a hill so we would have a little bit of protection, because at that point the fans were going mad & camping out etc etc. Actually we lived in the top flat - the servants' quarters, as it were, for one year virtually when we moved in while the rest of the place was being totally gutted & changed & redesigned & everything else. We couldn't believe it - we'd sit and look at everything: I mean, it was dead posh, in our terms. Once the builders had gone, and the great gates had been put up, the electric gates, then we had some peace & tranquility.


MC: (St George's Hill) is very woody, and inhabited by rich stockbrokers & the Beatles - a very odd place for them to end up, really. They used to call in on each other all the time, at any hour of the day or night, & they would listen to music, or play tapes & then they'd go off again. And then at about 2.30 in the morning they might decide to go to a nightclub in London, & they'd all get in the car & off they'd go. They were having quite a nice time. They had swimming pools & that kind of thing. And then John bought this gorilla suit, and he was really keen that they should all have gorilla suits and travel round behind the steering wheels of these various cars & visit each other. If you rang him up, he'd always ask what day of the week it was - he was genuinely interested to know...if you're completely marooned in Weybridge, it's quite nice to to have a bit of news of the outside world.



MC(cont.): His sitting room had yellow, tartan wallpaper. It had been done over by somebody, & it was panelled & very mock absolutely everything you can think of, & filled with the most extraordinary objects, like there was a suit of armour called Sydney, there were little boxes of flashing lights, and there was a huge compendium of games from Asprey's that John could open but not shut, & endless recording equipment & lots of books in costly leather covers. The possessions had sort of got the better of him. You just felt somehow that he was being smothered in all these purchases that he couldn't really understand the point of himself.

CL: When he was home (after a big tour) it usually took him about 2 or 3 days to actually come down to earth. It was very hard for all of us, really, because I was on one wavelength and he was on another. I was running a home, taking Julian to school and bringing him home and feeding him - I was doing the normal motherly things, let's put it that way.


(Julian leaving Heath House Infant's School in Weybridge ca. 1967).

CL(cont.): I know that (John) was feeling trapped after the Jesus Christ comments, & he needed to find space in his own mind & imagination. After having LSD put in our coffee when we went out for dinner, John tried it & found it fascinating, so he started taking it virtually daily. It's like living with an alcoholic - when they're sober they're great, but when they're drunk it's very hard to communicate with them.

Kenwood: August, 1967.

Only a few photos from this day have surfaced, which is possibly a little odd as there were many taken. I have attempted to track down Frank Lawson who is in possession of quite a number, being one of those allowed in to meet "himself" (in Frank's case twice - see Keith Badman's excellent Beatles Off The Record for details) - but so far no banana. And then there is the bedspread photo, presumably taken to illustrate a sale on ebay, from which the above are drawn; below par but the best I could do, given my limited...ability. Only last night someone was saying on television here in Blighty that the Beatles did not give two shits for their fans (I paraphrase) - which is clearly nonsense. Mr Lawson's account of that day in early August 1967, in which fans were let in in small groups to have "items" autographed, and exchange a few words with le Grand Fromage, perched as he was outside the sunroom working on a Christmas card design for "charidee", is only one of at least several examples of the Fabs being much nicer than they needed to be. They paid for it - let them wreck it if they like. Or words to that effect.

Kenwood: December 1968 (& August 1967).

It is hard to say exactly where a lot of the December '68 shots were taken, beyond "somewhere in the grounds". However this photo, one of a number of similar variants, is pin-downable (if that is even a word); namely, directly outside the sunroom, looking towards the dining room. You can see those distinctive stripes (and the dining room window), also evident in the August '67 shots. (I wouldn't bet on it, of course, but that bit of Kenwood seems to have survived intact from 1913 to the present day, too).

Kenwood: sunroom end.

A rather splendid Joe Baiardi comped image of Kenwood - click on it for the big picture. It's also worth comparing this image with the 1967 shot HERE - the best illustration thus far of the amount of renovation which that portion of the house has undergone. What's also rather splendid is that John's "perch" sits there still, unchanged all these years later, as if awaiting a certain eccentrically attired nabob. Those who knew John at Kenwood, particularly latterly, all said that they felt he was drifting away from them during this period. He often went days without speaking, but if the weather was at all mild, the sunroom doors would open and out he'd come to ensconce himself on the spot shown in these photos, looking down the hill over his magnificent patch...sitting in an English garden waiting for the sun, indeed. Goo goo g'joob, moreover. And letting one's knickers down goes without saying.

Kenwood: summer, 1967.

Two more comped views (hence the blurring and asymmetrical edges) of the sunroom and west sides of Kenwood, dating from the summer of 1967. The sunroom side pic gives a tantalising glimpse into that large room on the north-west corner, overlooking the swimming pool. In 2006 it was being used as a games room, but it had been ripped apart once again by 2008 as Joe Baiardi's video shows. In fact, the whole of this end of the house has now been completely renovated and reconstructed. What was it used for during John's time? That, I'm afraid, is another one for the ever-growing list of as yet unanswered questions. (UPDATE FROM THE FUTURE - it was actually the garage, as seen in those photos of John, Julian and psychedelic Roller. John, as it turns out, had that whole end built in 1965, probably utilising Ringo's firm Brickey Builders; it didn't exist pre-Nasty.)

Kenwood: north-west end.

This part of Kenwood has been totally renovated - and possibly re-built. In 2006 it was being used as a games room. Where John is sitting is now the swimming pool.

Kenwood: 1967 & 2008.

John's "perch" (for want of a better word) is still there, but the sunroom, of course, long gone. I suppose whoever demolished the sunroom did so, at least partly, to add "value" to the property - and the new room may do that. But I wonder how much value is now lying on a scrap heap somewhere? Given that someone was willing to pay over half a million dollars for the talisman necklace (which is insanity, I grant ye), how much would the fixtures and fittings from the sunroom alone have made? A tidy sum. I reckon, though, that if the whole cult of the Beatles continues the way it is going (and I do realise this blog is a small product of such nonsense), then at some point in the future a billionaire Beatles loony will buy Kenwood as the ultimate bit of memorabilia, and probably restore it to how it was. It maybe won't happen for decades, but one day, you mark my words, I'll...errr...have the money. Guess who provided the 2008 pic? (Mr Baiardi again - thank you to him).