Kenwood: more den.

Tammy has unearthed a wider perspective version of one of the colour den shots. It's been slightly cropped, however, so I've stitched it and the old one together to give the widest perspective thus far.
Is that the Mr Kite poster on the right hand side?



Hard to tell exactly, but it could be.

Kenwood: the Den - part 2.

Another fantastic "new" shot of the piano being decorated by Simon & Marijke, courtesy of Ron de Bruijn. This is the best view so far of that corner of the den, and reveals another odd Kenwood accoutrement - the triangular object to the right, which resembles a psychedelic dart board. (And any ideas what Velvet Picturesque refers to?)
More (and more revealing) Ron material to come...so, thanks once again to him.

Kenwood: the Den.

Blog reader Ron de Bruijn has very kindly sent me some scans of Dutch periodical PEP 41, dated October 14, 1967, which has a fascinating two page spread featuring some very rare June '67 Bryce variations. (I'll be posting the highlights in due course.) So, first up we have a new variant on the piano painting session. Have a look at the wider perspective evident above: what this does, in one fell swoop, is confirm where several photos were actually taken. Focus your brain, if ye will, on the Ken Partridge plan from the other day - specifically the den area. The circled portion corresponds to the area seen in the photos of the piano being painted - and also the photo from 1965 showing Julian playing that self-same keyboard.


The clue is the radiator, which is on the wall at right angles to the piano; both walls can now be seen thanks to the new piano pic, thus confirming that these photos were taken by the entrance to the den.


It's now also clear that the following two photos were taken in this room too, at the same time as the above, on the opposite side. Note the small seat to the right of the armchair below. In the first pic, John is in the armchair, in the second he has moved on to that very seat. A sheet covers the furniture and floor because...the piano is being painted. Of course.


And the January '68 family get together was, as we've seen in posts passim, taken against the southern window wall. So, to sum up...


Well, I call it fun, anyway. The other portions of the Partridge plan have more secrets to reveal too, as do Ron de Bruijn's wonderous scans, and it's all on the way.
Many thanks to Ron for his generosity in sharing this stuff.

Kenwood: piano.

As an addendum to Marijke's comments, it is now possible to analyse the sunroom piano, a source of some fascination round these parts, in a bit more detail. It's a pity that no decent photos of it are in circulation - though, of course, at least it still actually exists. The best look at the thing currently available comes, as we have seen, from the EPK for George's final album. As Marijke makes clear, the left hand panel represents John (Justice-Libra), and the right hand panel is for Cynthia (the Hermit-Virgo). It's hard to make out Cynthia's side due to the poor quality of the only available source, namely the Kenwood home movie from mid-June, 1968. However that does seem to be a lantern-wielding figure, above two Adam and Eve like individuals. The central panel represents the four seasons - though possibly not in the order I have them here. Again, it's difficult to see exactly what's on there, but I'm guessing autumn (fall) winds (notwithstanding that they could equally well belong to winter). In any case, this piano is an artefact nonpareil from the high summer of 1967 at Kenwood. And I'd still like to know how it ended up at George's.

Kenwood: den - June, 1967.

A colour shot of Simon Posthuma and Marijke Koger working on John's piano in the den room, which occupies part of the southern ground floor at Kenwood. This particular keyboard was, seemingly, John's favourite; originally belonging to his Aunt Mimi, it was almost certainly the one he used to write I Am The Walrus, amongst other amaranthine chefs-d'ouevre. Upon completion of the Fool's paint job, the piano was moved through to the sunroom, where it can be glimpsed in several snapshots occupying the wall next to the internal entrance (again see posts passim). Simon was kind enough to respond to a recent email from me, and confirmed that, as far as he knows, the piano that now sits in Friar Park is this very one. (That may seem fairly obvious, but it was possible that George had the Fool do a copy of John's, or vice-versa.) Note 1: Kenwood's expensive black carpeting (often mentioned in Beatles books as being particularly prone to cat-shit related trauma) can be seen in the hall. Note 2: John is filming the proceedings. Does Yoko have this footage? Note 3: The other smaller keyboard visible in the Kenwood pics above is also intriguing. John took this piano with him to Tittenhurst - it can be seen in at least one photo circa 1971. Why didn't he also take the psychedelic piano? How did it end up at Friar Park? I, for one, dunno. (Note also the Ivor Novello awards on top of it).
Simon's very interesting website has now been added to the Friends & Neighbours section on the right, and if you can speak Dutch then go and buy his autobiography - A Fool Such As I. (An English language version is currently being negotiated, so fingers crossed for that.)

Sunroom: piano - latest "shizzle".

It's just possible that John had one done because George had one, or that George had one done because John had one, or even that Ringo had one done because etc etc - but I doubt it. It's more than probable that's the piano from John's sunroom behind Dhani Harrison. John must have given it to George, probably when he finally left Kenwood as he and Yoko were living out of a suitcase for a few months, and carting a psychedelic piano around was, sadly, not an option. (Is this also how the sunroom sofa ends up in the Hard Rock Cafe in Florida? John gives it to Ringo and Maureen, Maureen re-marries to Isaac Tigrett and he puts it on display? Or not?). Well done to the eagle-eyed upton blue for spotting this, and thanks to Marianne Taylor for taking the time to send the scan.

Sunroom: piano.

A minor debate I have been having, mainly with myself, is about whether there was a piano in the sunroom, and if so, where was it? It doesn't seem to be in any of the usual photos, though it gets mentioned in a couple of books. Well, there was one, as the above "proofs". These are stills taken from the home movie shot in the sunroom, which can be found elsewhere on this page. They show the wall opposite the Safe As Milk wall - and that is clearly the same piano that the Fool are painting in the photo from 1967. (Also funny how John must have taken the Pepper drum head - photos of Cavendish Avenue show Macca with the other, rejected design on his wall). Right, I'm off to inject heroin into my eyeballs after all this excitement.