John Lennon (Pt. 2): “The phony must die, said the catcher in the rye.”

DISGRACELAND

Jake Brennan

True Crime, Music, Society & Culture

4.6 • 13.1K Ratings

🗓️ 13 December 2025

⏱️ 27 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

John Lennon was a walking contradiction: a violent pacifist and a creative genius marred by creative inconsistency. Just as he was getting his groove back he was gunned down by Mark David Chapman, a self-loathing narcissist obsessed with his contradictory hero, as well as Lennon’s musical rival, Todd Rundgren and J.D. Salinger’s angsty Holden Caulfield from The Catcher In The Rye. Hear how all of these factors and more contributed to the musical icon’s senseless murder in the second chapter of a two part Disgraceland episode. To see the full list of contributors, see the show notes at ⁠www.disgracelandpod.com⁠. This episode was originally published on July 10, 2018. To listen to Disgraceland ad free and get access to weekly bonus content and more, become a Disgraceland All Access member at ⁠disgracelandpod.com/membership⁠. Sign up for our newsletter and get the inside dirt on events, merch and other awesomeness - ⁠GET THE NEWSLETTER⁠ Follow Jake and DISGRACELAND: ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠YouTube⁠ ⁠X⁠ (formerly Twitter) ⁠Facebook Fan Group⁠ ⁠TikTok To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Double Elvis.
0:06.8	Hey Harry. Hello mate.
0:08.6	Got any tips for the football?
0:09.9	Your best bet is to head over to bet Victor.
0:12.0	They'll give a new customer as a terrific welcome offer.
0:14.8	If you bet a minimum of £10, they'll give you £30 in three bets.
0:18.7	Fool, that's a steel of a deal.
0:20.4	It's a good darn deal that'll make you squirrel for real. Neil? My name's not Neil. I know, but it rhymed. Listen to Harry and make your best bet on the football at BetVictor. 18 plus opt in and bet on any football marketing at odds of evens or greater no, cash out seven-day expiry terms and conditions apply.gamblerware.org.
1:03.7	Disgraceland is a production of Double Elvis. John Lennon, his state of mind in the 1970s, and the circumstances surrounding his death,
1:08.3	are so complex that two episodes are needed to properly tell this story.
1:10.9	If you're just getting hip to this now,
1:15.0	I suggest you hit pause and go back to Disgraceland episode 13,
1:17.6	or part one of the John Lennon's story,
1:20.8	where we discuss the voices in Mark David Chapman's head,
1:24.4	his obsession with Lennon's rival, the musician Todd Rundgren,
1:27.4	John and Yoko's drug bust, and May Pang.
1:32.5	In this episode, we finally get around to some great solo John Lennon music,
1:35.0	unlike the music played at the top of the show.
1:36.7	That wasn't great music.
1:43.4	That was a preset loop from my Melotron called Bolero Clarinets Low, MK1.
1:49.0	I played you that loop because I can't afford the rights to Midnight Train to Georgia by Gladys Night and the Pips.
1:51.4	And why would I play you that specific slice of leaving train cheese could I afford it?
	...

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