John delivers. He’s written the anthem of the season, soon to be known as the Summer of Love, declaring—against the backdrop of the conflict raging in Vietnam and the aftermath of the Six-Day War smoldering in the Middle East—“All You Need Is Love.”

“Well, it’s certainly repetitive,” George complains to Paul in rehearsal of the multiple choruses replicating the title of the song.

On June 25, 1967, John perches on a high stool, and with a little help from his friends in an all-star chorus, including the Rolling Stones, Marianne Faithfull, and Eric Clapton, begins to sing to four hundred million watchers and is anointed a pop-cultural prophet for peace.

One person who isn’t witnessing it in person: Brian Epstein. That same evening, he is descending further into the depths of alcohol and amphetamine addiction. Though Epstein was recently treated and released from a clinic—where John sent an extravagant bouquet with a card reading You know I love you…I really mean that—the Beatles’ management contract with him is set for renewal in a few months’ time, on September 30, 1967. The band’s drastic change in focus from touring to studio is certain to change the financial terms, and not in Brian’s favor.

And it’s not a good omen that the man who ushered the Beatles to stardom is currently too addled to attend the live broadcast of “All You Need Is Love.”

Chapter 34

Chapter 34

What’s so funny ’bout peace love and understanding?

—“(What’s So Funny ’Bout) Peace,
Love, and Understanding”

On August 24, 1967, John joins Paul, George, and Ringo near the front of the ballroom of the London Hilton. A diminutive guru named Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, surrounded by flowers and security guards, is getting ready to speak about Transcendental Meditation.

George has pushed the band to attend, and Paul reminds the others that their original pledge still holds. “George wants it. What one of us wants, the others go along with.”

Their minds are blown.

“It’s fantastic stuff, Cyn,” John tells his wife. “The meditation’s so simple, and it’s life-changing.”

The maharishi invites the Beatles and their wives and girlfriends (Paul is still dating Jane Asher) to join him for a ten-day conference in Bangor, Wales. Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithfull decide to go along, and Brian Epstein plans to follow in a couple of days.

London’s Euston train station is packed with screaming fans, reporters, and camera crews.

Every bloody move we make causes pandemonium, John thinks as he jumps out of the car. He runs for the platform, leaving Cyn behind to manage their luggage.

She gets swallowed by the crowd, and a police officer, convinced that she’s just another groupie, pushes her away from the platform.

“Tell him to let you on!” he yells to his wife. “Tell him you’re with us.”

The train begins to pull away.