I listened to the Nothing Is Real podcast and WOW. He is really, REALLY openly salty about Apple in Part 2. He may be right to feel that way, I guess, although his insistence that the Beatles should be GRATEFUL to him (??!?!?) and TRUST him because he's not "just some bloke" is a bit...? Like, bro, EVERYONE outside the inner circle is "just some bloke" to the Beatles. You are not special to them!!!!
Idk, it comes off weirdly entitled to me. Repeatedly insisting your work should be acknowledged as the ultimate of compliments... whatever. I think it's up to the recipient to determine whether something is a compliment or not. Also, your relationships with Neil and Derek are... totally irrelevant? to how the Beatles themselves should feel about you? When those advocates were gone, apparently it turned out that the Beatles and heirs themselves... don't like you too much, actually. Or trust you. Or feel "fortunate" to receive your "compliments." I understand that is disappointing and probably legit hurt your feelings, but people get to distrust whomever they want for whatever reason. And they are THEIR archives, which I assume they don’t just throw open to other authors either. So, what you’re complaining about is not getting special treatment (anymore). Not a great look.
Anyway, clearly this constitutes a significant conflict of interest. Common sense says it does, and certainly the official guidelines for professional historians says so too (as thoroughly illustrated in this post by mythserene.)
Whatever. I don't know. Maybe Mark Lewisohn is totally unswayed by his own personal feelings. Maybe it's totally normal and professional for historians to call their subjects "you bastards" on the airwaves? (He called them bastards in another interview too; don’t remember which one.) But still, this is a MAJOR issue that needs to be kept in mind. This is all very very personal to him. By his own admission! We don't have to dismiss or condemn him for this, of course, but EVERYONE should keep it in mind.
Here are the bits of the NIR podcast I found most blatant, between minute 24 and 32. My own transcript of that portion is below cut. (Bolding for emphasis is mine. Italics reflect speakers' tone of voice.)
"I think they are fortunate to have anyone write their biography in this way."
"It's the ultimate in flattery for the Beatles... if only they knew it."
"I'm trying to write the book that matches that Truth, in every sense, as the ultimate of compliments to them."
"So it's the ultimate compliment to them, and it grieves me that this is not recognized by them."
"Anyone who reads [the trilogy] will understand the Beatles in a way that they couldn't get that understanding in any other form."
"Now people [at Apple] have agendas and I'm someone's agenda."
"My biggest beef with Apple these days is the cowardice of how they've operated with me."
"George took against me---which was just ludicrous, cuz you know, he charged me with offenses I'd never done."
"You bastards. I'm trying to write your book here."
"I thought, 'Mm! Right, now I know who I'm dealing with here.' But it's so unnecessary, it's so ridiculous. I'm trying to write their story and they're stopping me. And I'm someone that they can trust and did trust. I'm not just some bloke they don't know."
Transcript starting from minute 24 below cut:
