DM's Beatles forums
Solo forums => John Lennon => Topic started by: JimmyMcCullochFan on October 29, 2009, 09:51:53 PM
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This past Sunday I visited Strawberry Fields in Central Park. It was neat but I honestly was a bit disappointed because I expected there to be more to it. All it is, is just a small Imagine circle and that's it. I don't think that it's nearly as great as everybody makes it out to be.
Has anybody else been there? I'd love to hear your opinions :)
(http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs046.snc3/13338_1165351851997_1173900006_30433261_3738881_n.jpg)
(http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs046.snc3/13338_1165351891998_1173900006_30433262_6691638_n.jpg)
(http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs110.snc3/15736_320809745079_900700079_9558231_1262986_n.jpg)
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Paul, Strawberry Fields is a 2 1/2 acre portion of Central Park. The mosaic you photographed is at the entrance.
(http://z.about.com/d/gonyc/1/0/1/C/strawberry_fields01.jpg)
(http://www.ashidome.com/knitathon/images/cpk1.gif)
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Jimmy, your one post was asking if the MPL offices in new york were open on the weekend and this one says the john lennon memorial was not expansive enough for you
it seems like you only like new york for whatever beatle connections it might have
lol - is that true ?
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No don't get me wrong I loved New York. I figured that since this is a Beatle forum, I'd make posts about the Beatle connections in the city :P
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Well listen, we didn't see you on the front page out here about "JimmyMacullochFan tears down the whole of New York City" . . . . so you obviously didn't try hard enough ! :P
ha2ha ha2ha ha2ha ha2ha
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Paul, Strawberry Fields is indeed understated and peaceful. As such, I feel it makes a powerful statement about John Lennon.
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I must say, I loved it there. Lets be honest, I cried, I thought it was very powerful and amazing.
(http://i36.tinypic.com/17s50g.jpg) my friends and I by the Strawberry Fields sign in 2006
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b367/figure_skater18/ImagineMosaic2.jpg)
when I was there, people were putting pennies on the mosaic, and making a wish. It wasn't just pennies though, people were putting down quite a few dollars and every night it was donated to local homeless shelters.
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well, yoko ono gave a million dollars towards the costs when the bill for strawberry fields was passed by ed koch and henry stern of the parks commission or whoever - so that was good . . . and the mosaic was donated . . .
but regardless, when that john lennon memorial plan enacted . . . . or when donald trump donated to improve the park just in front of his real estate . . . or when they installed those stupid orange flags by christo - whatever that was . .
these are private monies but they get matched up with public funds that at that time i would have rather seen spent improving other parts of central park such as above 100th street. let the city kids have the park. invest in the youth, not the rich or the dead.
at the day's end central park comes down to alot of rich people, real estate, politics and press
(^ that's just my opinion though)
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^^that's really cool HeyJude! I love the idea of giving the money to the homeless at the end of the day. It's a really generous idea that fits well with John. :)
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(http://i357.photobucket.com/albums/oo16/stevie49/img004.jpg)
I posted this when i joined this site but I may as well put it up again. It's one of my favorite pics. We went to NY in 1997.
Oh, and I'm the one on the right...teehee.
All my pics back then were on a normal camera( no digitals then) I have some top ones from Liverpool, of the Beatle homes etc. I'll have to get them scanned onto a disc.
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Paul, Strawberry Fields is indeed understated and peaceful. As such, I feel it makes a powerful statement about John Lennon.
I agree! I was there and was also surprised to find that it is rather small and not imposing at all. But that`s how it is meant to be. And that`s cool!
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these videos show john in central park
guy in park : when are the beatles gettin back together?
john: tomorrow
guy in park : you're FULL of it when are you gettin back together, i love your album, i like your blue album ha2ha
John Lennon Signs An Autograph In Central Park (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhS5_IpoFTw#normal)
and this one is very good, but you have to click to youtube to see :D :
Mind Games - John Lennon (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dHUfy_YBps#noexternalembed-normal)
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^You left out the best part when the guy goes, "I can't believe I met you!" I love that part. New Yorkers are great.
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I shudder when I watch that video. John made himself very accessible to the public. This proved to be tragic.
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I shudder when I watch that video. John made himself very accessible to the public. This proved to be tragic.
Yes Hello Goodbye! Very sad...
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I don't know, George was in his fortress, and somehow, someone managed to get to him. How would you rather live? You just can't predict these things. Especially at that time. Who had heard of such a thing!?! Anyway, I think it had way more to do with the obsession people have with the Beatles, mental illness, and crap gun control. John was happy in NYC and part of the reason he loved it so much was the fact that he could walk around as a normal human being.
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I'd love to visit New York and see Strawberry Fields, but I am happy theres a John Lennon Bench up in town which I'm sure John would be proud as according to his cousin Edinburgh was John's fav city ;D. I walk past the bench everytime I'm up town. It's a year this month when I found it
(http://lennontribute1.zoomshare.com/files/6173_118404133928_760578928_2213140_327058_n.jpg)
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I envy you, Euan!
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these videos show john in central park
guy in park : when are the beatles gettin back together?
john: tomorrow
guy in park : you're FULL of it when are you gettin back together, i love your album, i like your blue album ha2ha
John Lennon Signs An Autograph In Central Park ([url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhS5_IpoFTw#normal[/url])
Funny when one of that guys friends says 'Hey who's that guy?'
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Funny when one of that guys friends says 'Hey who's that guy?'
I never noticed the guy asking who John was! That's f-ing hysterical!!! HA! What was wrong with him??
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I never noticed the guy asking who John was! That's f-ing hysterical!!! HA! What was wrong with him??
You'll hear as John moves on
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I went to Strawberry Fields my freshman year of high school (about 5 years ago) and I thought it was beautiful. :)
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Timely thread...!
Just found out i am going to head down to NYC this Summer, and one of the spots i would like to visit is Central Park. SF's is certainly of interest....so i am glad i found this thread.
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I've been many times since I live in New York I love it there its very nice
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its one of the places i really really want to visit when im older and have the money.
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:) Hello, before I moved to Florida in 1998 I use to visit Strawberry Fields and the Dakota all the time. I went back in 2005 when I visited my family in New Jersey. My cousin has never been and we went. I placed a card and flowers on the Imagine sign.
It's a very lovely tribute to a great man. Yoko designed this so despite everyone hating her, she did this and we should thank her.
I am sure on the 30th anniversary this Dec. there will be a great crowd both at Strawberry Fields and in front of the Dakota.
I was 15 and in High School when I heard the horrible news about John. Been a fan since 1975. Collected Beatles stuff now for 35 years.
PetSitterDeb
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I envy you PSD! I`ve been to Strawberry Fields only once and would like to go there again and especially in December.
I don`t know why but today I suddenly wanted to watch John. And so I`ve been watching his videos and films all day. Johnny was great, his songs are fantastic and very up-to-date. In his short solo work he did develop his own unique style. Listening to his songs is like living them, they are very emotional - overwhelming and delicate, absorbing and touching at the same time. I also enjoy the way he was fooling around and making faces... :)
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I liked it. I'm gonna go back in December, probably bring a candle while I'm at it. I'm sure it will be beautiful, since John has very many loyal fans. ;D
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Hi :)
Yeah, I envy you also PSD !! I was 3 days in New York in 1999 and passed with the bus near Strawberry fields. Of course, we had the opportunity to get off the bus, but my boyfriend (unfortunately he's not a Beatles fan) was not interested to see it and so I missed it :(. I must admit that I regret that deeply since then and first I even felt angry >:(. Maybe I should have said from the beginning of the trip that I absolutely wanted to see Strawberry fields, but I was a bit uncertain if seeing it would make me sad even more as I'm a very emotional person :-\. On the other side, it would have been nice to meet other John Lennon-fans. Yeah, Jane: These days I've been watching a lot of John's videos and interviews too, he was sooo funny :D. I could listen to his songs (with the Beatles and solo) for hours and I'm soo in love with his voice :P. He will be forever my absolute favourite artist und hero.
;yes Snoopy
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I could listen to his songs (with the Beatles and solo) for hours and I'm soo in love with his voice :P. He will be forever my absolute favourite artist und hero.
;yes Snoopy
Yes, Snoopy66! There won`t be another artist like John. :)
Sometimes I think, well, there are very many other very good artists. But... when I listen to John again or watch his personality on the video, I realize that he was special...
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Hi Jane !
Yes, you're right :D. Although I listen to other artists, there is no comparison to John. I enjoy listening for instance to Robbie Williams, but his personality, oh dear... 4ac. I know for sure that no-one will ever have this impact on me like John had and I'm happy about that :).
Snoopy
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Paul, Strawberry Fields is indeed understated and peaceful. As such, I feel it makes a powerful statement about John Lennon.
It makes sense to me that SF would be understated. I haven't been there (yet) but it seems like a great place to visit. Just a quiet little spot to clear your mind and to think about life and John's memory. Anything grandiose would just be distracting and probably beside the point.
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Just returned from a wonderful visit to NYC...and my first visit to SF's and the Dakota.
Pretty speechless..the experience. I was with friends, in town for a get together, and in some respects i wish i was alone to just sit and soak in the quiet contemplative atmosphere. I will definately be revisiting NYC again soon..and plan on spending more time there exploring the grounds, and ALL of Central Park. I loved it there...right up my alley. This trip it was more of a a short stopover to check out the scene...not a long time to linger and enjoy the grounds in full.
Seeing the Dakota live in person, right across the street from my veiwing eyes was impressive and left me with a dose of honest to goodness awe. I never conidered myself a huge 'Beatles Fan' in any respect, or even a huge Lennon fan...but seeing that building and being aware of what happened their to end someone's life is moving no matter what your tastes. I was very glad to have experienced this.
One item i feel need to comment on.....that chap who claims to be the 'caretaker of Strawberry Feilds'. I have read about him previously, and i beleive it was him that was there the day a visited the 'Imagine' mosaic. He places the flowers around the design in the shape of a peace sign...and has a small display of photos and a box for donations. The day i visited, he also had a large boombox ..and was playing non-related music which i found detracted from the experience a LOT. I was aware of radios and other means of amplified music being banned from the Park, but this guy was playing short segments of classic rock selections...totally un-related to John in every way! If one is going to bother breaking the rules and play music there, at least play something related...but it was better with NO music.
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Thank you for the post!
But I have never heard of a guy... Is it all true? maybe it was just a passer-by...
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Not sure where i read it..perhaps this Forum? I don't visit a lot of Beatles - related forums....but somewhere i read about it.
I beleive there is even a YouTube video of this supposed 'care taker' of Stawberry Fields. If i remember correctly, he is a homeless man who daily visits the mosaic and decorates it with flowers that are donated to him daily for the purpose. He always lays them out to form some sort of abstract 'peace' symbol...perhaps his trademark ...
When i visited, a walking tour came through and the woman who was leading it came over to him and asked him to speak to the group. She obviously knew who he was, and knew he could speak accurately about John's history, and the history surrounding the area they were now standing in ( which he did by the way...very accurately). He spent about 10 minutes talking about John's tale of coming to NYC after his battle to become a US citizen, his home at The Dakota, John's tragic passing, and the creation of the garden and mosiac. He also touched on Yoko's yearly visit on the eve of his passing.
I have some photos from the day....when i have some time to devote to uploading them i will share them here.
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Thank you very much! :)
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Here are the two best photos taken during my visit to the sight...on Father's Day. Nice day to be there.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v641/deacy1/Photos%20on%20Forums%20Album/cdb8bd6e.jpg)
Close up view of how the mosaic was decorated by the 'caretaker'. The small statue and various apples were a nice touch, as well as the very varied assortment of flowers on display.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v641/deacy1/Photos%20on%20Forums%20Album/7914a892.jpg)
The Dakota as everyone here probably already knows...but i have to say this photo does NOT capture the real beauty of this building. One really needs to see it with their own eyes. I was amazed how impressive it was in the flesh...and i did not get any closer then what you see in this pic. Frozen in my tracks in awe...one could say...and this is coming from someone who never really saw themself as a big 'Lennon fan'. Being in that space, however, makes one stop and think some things over...namely, what he fought for and what he ended up giving up to live there.
Moving..yes....it was. Looking forward to visiting again someday.
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Splendid pictures! Enjoyed reading your post too! :)
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I'm not sure what the thread starter expected?
John Lennon rides?
Blue meanings in costume selling Lennon dolls?
I don't get it.
Strawberry Fields is great for several reasons. John used to walk around that area a lot, and it was his favorite part of the park.
You can feel his spirit, and energy there. It's close to the Dakota. It's just a nice spot for Beatles fans, and the casual observer to
come and think about Lennon. It's not supposed to be anything other than that. Just a memorial. Since he doesn't have a grace, this is a great place to come pay tribute. I love central park in general. SF is just a wonderful piece of the park for John fans.