Scathing 1971 letter from John Lennon to Paul McCartney up for auction

A scathing letter from John Lennon to Sir Paul McCartney is going up for auction and is expected to fetch up to $30,000.

The late Beatles legend sent furious a typewritten letter to his bandmate, 80, in response to an interview Paul did in the now-defunct music magazine Melody Maker in November 1971, in which he complained about the financial matters regarding the band’s split. 

And the letter gives a stark insight into the pair’s deteriorating relationship following the Beatles’ break-up over a year previously, with John – who was shot dead aged 40 in 1980 – ranting that Paul ‘s***t all over us in public’, reports TMZ.

The three-page letter, which John urged Melody Maker editor Richard Williams to publish, is to be sold by Gotta Have Rock and Roll and is anticipated to make five figures.

The note sees the Imagine hitmaker lash out at Paul and accuse him of being ungrateful for the money he earned from The Beatles, while also accusing the singer of threatening Ringo Starr and his wife Maureen.

An excerpt from the letter reads: ‘It’s all very well playing ‘simple, honest old’ human Paul in the Melody Maker, but you know damn well we can’t just sign a piece of paper.

‘You say ‘John won’t do it.’ I will if you’ll indemnify us against the tax-man!’…

Row: The late Beatles legend sent furious a typewritten letter to his bandmate, 80, in response to an interview Paul did in the now-defunct music magazine Melody Maker in November 1971, in which he complained about the financial matters regarding the band’s split

‘As I/we’ve said many times – we’ll meet you whenever you like. JUST MAKE UP YOUR MIND…

‘You said under no condition would you sell to us, and if we didn’t do what you wanted, you’d sue us again and that ‘Ringo and George are going to break you John’, etc., etc.

‘Now I was quite straight with you that day, and you tried to shoot me down with your emotional ‘logic’.

Feud: The letter gives a stark insight into the pair’s deteriorating relationship following the Beatles’ break-up over a year previously, with John – who was shot dead aged 40 in 1980 – ranting that Paul ‘s***t all over us in public’, reports TMZ 

For sale: The three-page letter, which John urged Melody Maker editor Richard Williams to publish, is to be sold by Gotta Have Rock and Roll and is anticipated to make five figures

‘If you’re not the aggressor (as you claim), who the hell took us to court and s***t all over us in public?…

‘Who’s the guy threatening to ‘finish’ Ringo and Maureen, who was warning me on the phone two weeks ago? Who said he’d ‘get us’ whatever the cost? As I’ve said before – have you ever thought you might possibly be wrong about something?’

Lennon and McCartney are one of the most successful songwriting duos of all time, having penned Beatles tracks including Let It Be and Hey Jude.  

Shocking: The note sees the Imagine hitmaker lash out at Paul and accuse him of being ungrateful for the money he earned from The Beatles

Scathing: An excerpt from the letter reads: ‘It’s all very well playing ‘simple, honest old’ human Paul in the Melody Maker, but you know damn well we can’t just sign a piece of paper’

Lashing out: John concluded with a postscript in which he called out Paul for mentioning leaving out their wives Linda McCartney and Yoko Ono from the feud

The letter also saw him urge his former bandmate to meet with him in person while he took umbrage over Paul’s criticism of his solo hit Imagine and also hit out at him over his indecision over the Beatles’ split. 

John concluded with a postscript in which he called out Paul for mentioning leaving out their wives Linda McCartney and Yoko Ono from the feud. 

He penned: ‘The bit that really puzzled us was asking to meet WITHOUT LINDA AND YOKO. I know you’re camp! But let’s not go too far! I thought you’d have understood by no that I’m JOHNANDYOKO.’

Moved on: Although the two men fell out poisonously during the break-up of the Beatles, they had rebuilt their friendship by the time of John’s shocking death, which left Paul grief-stricken (pictured in 1964)

Although the two men fell out poisonously during the break-up of the Beatles, they had rebuilt their friendship by the time of John’s shocking death, which left Paul grief-stricken.

The Lennon and McCartney families are on very friendly terms these days, with Julian and Sean Lennon — John’s sons by wives Cynthia and Yoko — joining Stella McCartney for a party after the premiere of the documentary series Get Back last year.

Meanwhile, in November, Paul revealed during an on-stage on-stage interview at London’s Southbank Centre that he ‘never got round’ to telling John Lennon that he loved him.

Love: Meanwhile, in November, Paul revealed during an on-stage on-stage interview at London’s Southbank Centre that he ‘never got round’ to telling John Lennon that he loved him 

The Beatles legend said of the pair’s childhood friendship: ‘As 16-year-old, 17-year-old Liverpool kids, you could never say that.

‘It just wasn’t done. So I never did… just say, ‘John, love you man’. I never got round to it. Now it’s great just to realise how much I love this man.’

Describing his youth with Lennon as ‘like walking up a staircase… side by side’, he said: ‘I just remember how great it was to work with him and how great he was… because you are not messing around here, you are not just singing with Joe Bloggs. You are singing with John Lennon.’

Memory: The Beatles legend said of the pair’s childhood friendship: ‘As 16-year-old, 17-year-old Liverpool kids, you could never say that. ‘It just wasn’t done. So I never did… just say, ‘John, love you man’