Kenneth Womack is one of the world’s foremost writers and thinkers about the Beatles. In addition to such titles as Long and Winding Roads: The Evolving Artistry of the Beatles (2007), the Cambridge Companion to the Beatles (2009), and The Beatles Encyclopedia: Everything Fab Four (2014), he is the author of a two-volume biography devoted to the life and work of Beatles producer George Martin, including Maximum Volume (2017) and Sound Pictures (2018). His book, Solid State: The Story of Abbey Road and the End of the Beatles (2019), was feted as the go-to book by the Los Angeles Times for readers interested in learning about the band’s swan song. His most recent book, entitled John Lennon 1980: The Last Days in the Life John, was published in September 2020. He is also the author of four novels, including John Doe No. 2 and the Dreamland Motel (2010), The Restaurant at the End of the World (2012), Playing the Angel (2013), and I Am Lemonade Lucy! (2019).

Womack serves as the Music Culture critic for Salon, as well as a regular contributor to a host of print and web outlets, including Slate, Billboard, Time, Variety, The Guardian, USA Today, The Independent, NBC News, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. Womack also serves as the Founding Editor of Interdisciplinary Literary Studies: A Journal of Criticism and Theory, published by Penn State University Press, and as Co-Editor of the English Association’s Year’s Work in English Studies, published by Oxford University Press. Over the years, he has shared his work with public libraries and community organizations across the nation, as well as with audiences at Princeton University, Harvard University, the Smithsonian Institution, the Grammy Museum Experience, and the 92nd Street Y. He has also served as an expert commentator for ABC’s 20/20 and NBC’s Access Hollywood.

Education

Ph.D., Northern Illinois University

B.A./M.A., Texas A&M University

Research Interests

Womack’s areas of professional interest include the Beatles, 20th-century British literature, and creative writing. He serves as editor of Interdisciplinary Literary Studies: A Journal of Criticism and Theory, published by Penn State University Press, and co-editor of the English Association’s Year’s Work in English Studies, published by Oxford University Press.

Popular Articles

“Prof. Womack Interview Peter Frampton,” Monmouth Now, October 25, 2022. https://www.monmouth.edu/news/prof-womack-interviews-peter-frampton/.

“Grammy Museum exhibit ‘Ladies and Gentlemen …The Beatles,’ to hit Newark in November,” Daily News, October 17, 2022.
https://www.nydailynews.com/snyde/ny-beatles-grammy-museum-exhibit-20221017-p2fqgj6cgjflvo5gyfgm2sub7q-story.html.

“Author and Historian Kenneth Womack To Discuss The Beatles at 92NY.” Broadway World, September 26, 2022.
https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Author-And-Historian-Kenneth-Womack-To-Discuss-The-Beatles-at-92NY-20220926.

Featured Writer, Visiting Writers Series, September 21, 2022. https://www.monmouth.edu/mca/event/ken-womack/.

“Prof. Womack Interviews Celebrated Filmmaker Ken Burns,” Monmouth Now, September 13, 2022. https://www.monmouth.edu/news/womack-interviews-celebrated-filmmaker-ken-burns/.

“Prof. Womack Reviews New McCartney Box Set,” Salon.com, August 5, 2022. https://www.salon.com/2022/08/05/beguiling-paul-mccartney-box-set-of-eponymous-solo-albums-showcases-the-former-beatles-deep-range/

Multimedia

Invited by the Library of Congress to pen an essay on John Lennon’s “Imagine” to accompany its installation in the National Registry. https://www.loc.gov/static/programs/national-recording-preservation-board/documents/imagine.pdf. https://www.monmouth.edu/news/prof-womack-pens-essay-on-lennons-imagine-for-library-of-congress/

Presentations/Invited Talks

Keynote address, “For the first time anywhere…The Mal Evans’ Beatles Archive and the Truth about His Untimely Death,” Popular Culture Association’s Annual Conference, San Antonio, TX. April 2023. https://pcaaca.org/

Keynote Address, “Celebrating Please Please Me at 60: An International Beatles Symposium, Liverpool Hope University, March 2023. https://www.iaspm.org.uk/celebrating-please-please-me-at-60-an-international-beatles-symposium/

Roundtable participant, “Ladies and Gentlemen, the Beatles!”, 92nd Street Y, October 7, 2022.