Customer Reviews

Body Count

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I bought and read "Body Count" when it was originally published in the early 70s. Schwartz's "hipper-than-thou" writing style gets tedious very quickly, as do her complaints about men "using" her. (Goodness, she falls into bed with most of them within 10 minutes of meeting them - how dare they not see her as the deep, intellectual, caring individual she truly is.) Schwartz has admitted elsewhere that, according to her passport, she was only in England for a little over three months that Summer of 1968, yet to hear her tell it, she fits in somewhere between Patti Boyd and Yoko Ono in the Beatle legend. Overall, "Body Count" reads like a high-school slam book; if you're that interested in her Paul McCartney gossip, save your money and find that chapter online somewhere.

The "Body Count" of the title refers to the number of men Schwartz aimlessly "balled" in her youth, in a haphazard search for true love I suppose, though often she seems to be doing it just for the hell of it. And she wonders why she gets used! I wonder what's become of her since. So, for the most part these are the curt ramblings of a would-be hipster journalist, without much detail or interest. But then, hardcore Beatle fans will definitely want to check it out for the famous chapter on Paul McCartney - indeed, this chapter does offer fascinating insight into a side of McCartney seen nowhere else in print, perhaps even moreso than Carol Bedford's "Waiting for the Beatles" shed light on George Harrison. Yes, Paul in the summer of '68 was a tormented, unhappy man, Jane Asher having failed to give him the kind of security he so desperately craved, while John's new infatuation with Yoko (both of whom Schwartz views as benevolent friends to Paul and to herself) accidentally aggravated Paul's hidden yearnings. Seen in this light, Linda McCartney becomes both and inevitable part of the story, and even a savior of sorts, which Schwartz inherently recognizes she herself cannot be. (One wonders how Paul is bearing up now that Linda is gone.) The grand result of all these important and previously shadowy moods was "Hey Jude"; yes, it is more about Paul than about Julian. In just one chapter of an otherwise tedious book, Schwartz manages to make all of this abundantly clear, despite generally vague writing style. She is a valuable primary source for Beatle scholars, to be compared and included with other sources.

Unless you're addicted to Hard Copy or for some reason enjoy reading books by self-indulgent parasites who overstay their welcome, there's no reason to read this book. There are plenty other books out there with far more insight and much more credibility. But if you're really a Beatle scholar, you already know that. I hate having to give it even one star.

Ms. Schwartz doesn't hold back in her brutally honest account of her choices and lifestyle in BODY COUNT. While McCartney fans might not like her view of Paul, there are more chapters then the one that focuses on him.

It is a book for the "completest" Beatle collector but also a great read of a woman's ride through the 60's.

Before I read this book I had Francie Schwartz all wrong. I imagined Body Count as a tell-all book about bagging "the Western world's most eligible bachelor" in the turbulence of the 60s, BUT the hype surrounding the "Paul" chapter is most over-determined and posterity will be kind to Schwartz's work. The most interesting aspect of this book is the role that Schwartz plays in the myth-making of the Beatles. To generalize, it narrates from the point of view of the "other" side of the spectacle. Getting inside Apple and Cavendish Avenue, Schwartz traverses artificial boundaries separating the groupie from the group, challenging their very existence. Whether or not "Hey Jude" was Julian's, John's, Paul's, or Francie's song (as she claims) seems to make little difference. At this point in time those songs, which we hear in muzak in elevators, at the grocer's, in the dentist chair, feel very much to be public property (sorry Michael Jack$on). And while the Beatles canon speaks profoundly of the 60s, it is not the only narrative or soundtrack. The flip side, Francie's book, Body Count, (which reminds me a lot of Spin or Rolling Stone journalism) is a spin through the 60s from the perspective of an American woman. Let her be.

Brutally honest, engaging, and this author has a gift with descriptive phrases. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and the insights into the Beatles and Paul McCartney are invaluable. To read about someone who was right there, in the thick of things, history in the making. Women and men will both enjoy this book.

It's a darn good read on the struggles the author faced, and I understand the closing line about "a view of this woman's heaven and hell".

The chapters on her days with the Beatles (and Paul) were avidly devoured by this Beatle's fan who lived thru, and remembers, the 60's.

Francie Schwartz is infamous for her 1968 affair with Beatle Paul McCartney. The relationship came on the heels of Paul's split with his first finacee, Jane Asher.

It has been well documented that Francie acted a fool and her erratic behavior certainly did not help the relationship. Paul ended it before the summer ended and, according to sources close to both claim he set her luggage outside and suggested she go out after it. They plainly were not "just very good friends." Since they could not work it out, it was best they just say "hello, goodbye" instead of "I'll Be Back." There was no way on earth they could have ever said "two of us." And in the end, they have long since gone down their separate Long & Winding Roads and I've got a feeling, a feeling deep inside oh yeah that Paul certainly would not want to revisit that point in his life.

In 2001 I saw Francie Schwartz on a VH-1 interview and she appears to have tabled her life after her summer fling with Paul. Sad, really. She claims to have had affairs with many men, but one can't help but wonder how accurate her claims are. She calls herself a survivor, but what adversity is she claiming to have survived other than being jilted by Paul? She has become quite a disruptive presence on music discussion boards and let's just say not a welcome one. Her consistent pattern of behavior hollers trollery. Beatle fans will take issue with the book NOT because of her malicious attacks on Paul, but because of the venomous self serving tone it has. Instead of showing respect for whatever the relationship was, she uses it as a weapon against others and as an excuse to wallow in a relationship that was not going anywhere. In addition to being a sub-tabloidesque collection of salacious accounts, this is nothing more than slanderous hearsay. Be sure to have some snake bite medicine ready if you dare to read this one. Beatle Literati will take issue with this book simply because it appears to be a mean spirited excuse to grind an axe.

The author's voice is many things; elusive, straight-talking, defiant, bittersweet. Schwartz, like the story she tells, is clearly many-faceted; 'Body Count' remains with you long after the first read, thus you will return to try and puzzle out its meanings. That Schwartz loves life is abundantly clear. She is also a hard nut to crack. Anyone wanting to know of the fault-lines which began to separate the '60s generation' of America from their parents - and each other - should read this book, told by a remarkable and gifted woman who refused to slip through the cracks and who has stories to tell which the un-generous may envy.

Was there ever any Beatle hanger-on more pathetic than Francie Schwartz? She has taken a fling with of over thirty years ago with McCartney and milked it beyond what it's worth. Interesting only as a footnote in Beatle history. The rest of the book is padding.