John Lennon |
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| John Ono Lennon, MBE, born John Winston Lennon (9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English musician, singer and songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as a founder member of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Together with Paul McCartney, he formed one of the most celebrated songwriting partnerships of the 20th century.
Born and raised in Liverpool, Lennon became involved as a teenager in the skiffle craze; his first band, the Quarrymen, evolved into the Beatles in 1960. As the group disintegrated towards the end of the decade, Lennon embarked on a solo career that produced the critically acclaimed albums John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Imagine, and iconic songs such as "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine". After his marriage to Yoko Ono in 1969, he changed his name to John Ono Lennon. Lennon disengaged himself from the music business in 1975 to devote time to raising his infant son Sean, but re-emerged with Ono in 1980 with the new album Double Fantasy. He was murdered three weeks after its release. Lennon revealed a rebellious nature and acerbic wit in his music, writing, drawings, on film and in interviews. Controversial through his political and peace activism, he moved to New York City in 1971, where his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a lengthy attempt by Richard Nixon's administration to deport him, while some of his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement. As of 2012 Lennon's solo album sales in the United States exceed 14 million units, and as writer, co-writer or performer, he is responsible for 25 number-one singles on the US Hot 100 chart. In 2002 a BBC poll on the 100 Greatest Britons voted him eighth, and in 2008, Rolling Stone ranked him the fifth-greatest singer of all-time. He was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. |
June 6, 2023: Live For Live Music: John Lennon & Frank Zappa Jam At The Fillmore East, On This Day In 1971 [Watch]
On June 6th, 1971, an unlikely meeting of two musical legends occurred at the historic Fillmore East in New York, NY when Frank Zappa and John Lennon shared the stage.
On June 6th, 1971, an unlikely meeting of two musical legends occurred at the historic Fillmore East in New York, NY when Frank Zappa and John Lennon shared the stage.
May 27, 2023: Cheat Sheet: The John Lennon Beatles Song Where He Hid Subliminal Messages About His Marriage
“Good Morning, Good Morning” is about being stuck in a rut. Nothing is changing, and life is just blissful boredom. This was John Lennon’s way of expressing his boredom with his marriage, but he included something else in The Beatles’ song that embodied his desire to escape.
“Good Morning, Good Morning” is about being stuck in a rut. Nothing is changing, and life is just blissful boredom. This was John Lennon’s way of expressing his boredom with his marriage, but he included something else in The Beatles’ song that embodied his desire to escape.
Dec 5, 2022: Liverpool Echo: Each Beatles' favourite album that the band made
In their lifespan as a band, The Beatles released 12 studio albums.
Please Please Me, With The Beatles, A Hard Day’s Night, Beatles for Sale, Help!, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The White Album, Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road and Let It Be. At various different points in their lives, the Fab Four revealed their individual personal favourites of the dozen. And here is what John Lennon said:- The White Album
In their lifespan as a band, The Beatles released 12 studio albums.
Please Please Me, With The Beatles, A Hard Day’s Night, Beatles for Sale, Help!, Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The White Album, Yellow Submarine, Abbey Road and Let It Be. At various different points in their lives, the Fab Four revealed their individual personal favourites of the dozen. And here is what John Lennon said:- The White Album
Dec 1, 2022: IDiscoverMusic: ‘Happy Xmas (War Is Over)’: So This Is Christmas, With John And Yoko
John Lennon’s seventh single outside of The Beatles was written and demoed in October 1971 on acoustic guitar with Yoko Ono in their New York hotel. It had them entering into the spirit of Christmas in their own special way, with an anti-war sentiment and, as John was reported as saying, because he was fed up with “White Christmas.”
The song, of course, was “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”, recorded almost immediately at the Record Plant, co-produced by John and Yoko with Phil Spector, and released as a single in America for that 1971 holiday season, on December 1 that year.
John Lennon’s seventh single outside of The Beatles was written and demoed in October 1971 on acoustic guitar with Yoko Ono in their New York hotel. It had them entering into the spirit of Christmas in their own special way, with an anti-war sentiment and, as John was reported as saying, because he was fed up with “White Christmas.”
The song, of course, was “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”, recorded almost immediately at the Record Plant, co-produced by John and Yoko with Phil Spector, and released as a single in America for that 1971 holiday season, on December 1 that year.
Oct 9, 2022: USA Today: Remembering John Lennon on 82nd birthday: Look back at the iconic singer's life, career
Rock singer-songwriter John Lennon, born Oct. 9, 1940, became one of the leading musical figures of the 20th century through his work with British pop supergroup The Beatles and his own solo catalogue.
Rock singer-songwriter John Lennon, born Oct. 9, 1940, became one of the leading musical figures of the 20th century through his work with British pop supergroup The Beatles and his own solo catalogue.
Jun 3, 2022 #SiriusXM #SXM #Sirius
Florence + The Machine performs John Lennon's "Jealous Guy" live for The Spectrum on SiriusXM.
Nov 21, 2021: TV Insider: The Beatles Top TV Moments: 7. A Full Week With John and Yoko on ‘The Mike Douglas Show’
7. A Full Week With John and YokoThe duo cohost The Mike Douglas Show
February 14–18, 1972
The Big PictureMiddle America meets the counter-culture on a daytime talk show.
Behind the ScenesTalk about a match made in weird TV heaven. In this corner, John Lennon, who, in the two years since the Beatles’ breakup, had become a leading antiwar voice. In that corner, Mike Douglas, singing host of the most popular daytime variety show in America. Let’s just call it a shock when John and Yoko were announced as cohosts of The Mike Douglas Show for a full week, with carte blanche to pick half the guests to appear.
Yoko had said the duo wished to bridge the gap between generations. By week’s end, it felt more like a Vietnam-era cultural collision.
7. A Full Week With John and YokoThe duo cohost The Mike Douglas Show
February 14–18, 1972
The Big PictureMiddle America meets the counter-culture on a daytime talk show.
Behind the ScenesTalk about a match made in weird TV heaven. In this corner, John Lennon, who, in the two years since the Beatles’ breakup, had become a leading antiwar voice. In that corner, Mike Douglas, singing host of the most popular daytime variety show in America. Let’s just call it a shock when John and Yoko were announced as cohosts of The Mike Douglas Show for a full week, with carte blanche to pick half the guests to appear.
Yoko had said the duo wished to bridge the gap between generations. By week’s end, it felt more like a Vietnam-era cultural collision.
July 3, 2021: ABC News Au: Imagine 50 years of John Lennon's 'anti-religious, anti-nationalistic, anti-capitalistic' anthem
Imagine — arguably the greatest song of John Lennon's solo career — almost became a Beatles song.
During the January 1969 sessions for the Let It Be album, Lennon tinkered with the now-familiar chords, as Ringo Starr drummed along.
It was just one of the 400 or so songs, jams and fragments played during the infamously fractured recording sessions, but it would take another two years for Lennon to finish the song that would become an epitaph of sorts for the late singer-songwriter.
Imagine — arguably the greatest song of John Lennon's solo career — almost became a Beatles song.
During the January 1969 sessions for the Let It Be album, Lennon tinkered with the now-familiar chords, as Ringo Starr drummed along.
It was just one of the 400 or so songs, jams and fragments played during the infamously fractured recording sessions, but it would take another two years for Lennon to finish the song that would become an epitaph of sorts for the late singer-songwriter.
Mar 7, 2021: UCR: When Ray Davies Felt Bullied by John Lennon
“We’d played with the Beatles in Bournemouth, and John Lennon made a remark that we were only there to warm up for them,” the singer told Mojo in a recently posted interview. “[B]ut we got a great reaction to ‘You Really Got Me.' It was an early validation that we had something that stood up for us, like being bullied in school and having something that was bigger than the bully. It was that sort of feeling.”
“We’d played with the Beatles in Bournemouth, and John Lennon made a remark that we were only there to warm up for them,” the singer told Mojo in a recently posted interview. “[B]ut we got a great reaction to ‘You Really Got Me.' It was an early validation that we had something that stood up for us, like being bullied in school and having something that was bigger than the bully. It was that sort of feeling.”
Jan 8, 2021: The Guardian: 'David was terrified': the inside story of how Bowie met John Lennon
David Bowie and John Lennon first met in scenes more reminiscent of an awkward children’s playdate than a summit of two of rock’s greatest ever stars, according to a new interview with music producer Tony Visconti.
David Bowie and John Lennon first met in scenes more reminiscent of an awkward children’s playdate than a summit of two of rock’s greatest ever stars, according to a new interview with music producer Tony Visconti.
Oct 6, 2020: Thirteen: John Lennon after the Beatles
THIRTEEN pays tribute to singer-songwriter and Beatles member John Lennon with two films airing the week that he would have turned 80. Both films center on his post-Beatles career and life. American Masters: LENNONYC takes an intimate look at the time John Lennon, his wife Yoko Ono and their son, Sean, spent living in New York City during the 1970s. Classic Albums: John Lennon – Plastic Ono Band, airing Thursday, October 8 at 9 p.m., captures and reflects on the making of Lennon’s first post-Beatles album in 1970, widely regarded as one of his finest.
THIRTEEN pays tribute to singer-songwriter and Beatles member John Lennon with two films airing the week that he would have turned 80. Both films center on his post-Beatles career and life. American Masters: LENNONYC takes an intimate look at the time John Lennon, his wife Yoko Ono and their son, Sean, spent living in New York City during the 1970s. Classic Albums: John Lennon – Plastic Ono Band, airing Thursday, October 8 at 9 p.m., captures and reflects on the making of Lennon’s first post-Beatles album in 1970, widely regarded as one of his finest.
December 24, 2019: Express: John Lennon: The Beatles star's 'strange' first meeting with Yoko Ono - in her own words
John Lennon and Yoko Ono said they first met in November 1966 when she was exhibiting at a gallery in London. The gallery’s co-owner John Dubar invited The Beatles star, a friend of his, to view the exhibition the day before it opened and the musician somehow got the erroneous impression the show would be sexual in nature, featuring a female artist in a bag. He later told the BBC: “I thought, this is a con. What the hell is this? Nothing’s happening in bags.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono said they first met in November 1966 when she was exhibiting at a gallery in London. The gallery’s co-owner John Dubar invited The Beatles star, a friend of his, to view the exhibition the day before it opened and the musician somehow got the erroneous impression the show would be sexual in nature, featuring a female artist in a bag. He later told the BBC: “I thought, this is a con. What the hell is this? Nothing’s happening in bags.
Oct 9, 2019: GQ: John Lennon was the most stylish musician of all time. Period
The world's favourite Beatle (ooooh) would have turned 79 today, so in honour of that milestone we're remembering some of his more masterly outfits. After all, he raised the stakes in style just as much as music...
The world's favourite Beatle (ooooh) would have turned 79 today, so in honour of that milestone we're remembering some of his more masterly outfits. After all, he raised the stakes in style just as much as music...
Aug 11, 2018: NPR: A Songwriting Mystery Solved: Math Proves John Lennon Wrote 'In My Life'
Lennon-McCartney is likely one of the most famous songwriting credits in music. John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote lyrics and music for almost 200 songs and The Beatles have sold hundreds of millions of albums. The story goes that the two Beatles agreed as teenagers to the joint credit for all songs they wrote, no matter the divide in work.
Lennon-McCartney is likely one of the most famous songwriting credits in music. John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote lyrics and music for almost 200 songs and The Beatles have sold hundreds of millions of albums. The story goes that the two Beatles agreed as teenagers to the joint credit for all songs they wrote, no matter the divide in work.
Sept 15, 2015: Vice: You Don't Have to 'Imagine' John Lennon Beat Women and Children—It's Just a Fact
Yesterday marked the 44th anniversary of the release of John Lennon's goody-goody solo album Imagine, on which he softly bleats for world peace and borderless harmony. Described by Rolling Stone as Lennon's "greatest musical gift to the world," the song of the same name fantasizes about a mankind without qualities of evil and suffering, such as possessions, greed, hunger, and war. Perhaps a less ambitious dream would be of a world in which people are not as monstrous as John Lennon
Yesterday marked the 44th anniversary of the release of John Lennon's goody-goody solo album Imagine, on which he softly bleats for world peace and borderless harmony. Described by Rolling Stone as Lennon's "greatest musical gift to the world," the song of the same name fantasizes about a mankind without qualities of evil and suffering, such as possessions, greed, hunger, and war. Perhaps a less ambitious dream would be of a world in which people are not as monstrous as John Lennon
Sept 23, 2013; Billboard: 'John Lennon: The Bermuda Tapes' Interactive Album App to Launch
A new interactive album app called "John Lennon: The Bermuda Tapes" will launch Nov. 5, exclusively through the iTunes App Store.
A new interactive album app called "John Lennon: The Bermuda Tapes" will launch Nov. 5, exclusively through the iTunes App Store.
Oct 16, 2012: Ultimate Guitar: Frank Turner: 'John Lennon's 'Imagine' Is A Hallmark Card Set To Music'
Frank Turner has revealed that he hates John Lennon's 1971 single "Imagine", calling it "a Hallmark card set to music".
Frank Turner has revealed that he hates John Lennon's 1971 single "Imagine", calling it "a Hallmark card set to music".
March 9, 2012: The Examiner: Yoko Ono & May Pang: John Lennon Did Not Have Bulimia
The two women closest to John Lennon are speaking out against claims that the former Beatle suffered with bulimia.
The two women closest to John Lennon are speaking out against claims that the former Beatle suffered with bulimia.
Imagine - John Lennon - 1971
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Jan 1, 2012: The Blaze: Singer Cee Lo Green Changes ‘Imagine’ Lyrics to ‘All Religions True’ During NYE Performance, Draws Fury
R&B singer Cee Lo Green prompted a rush of anger for his New Year’s Eve performance of John Lennon’s “Imagine” in which he swapped the lyrics “no religion too” to “all religions true.” |
Sept 25, 2010: The Guardian: The legacy of John Lennon
Next month, the ex-Beatle would have been 70. Here, a writer who knew him in his prime reflects on Lennon's enduring importance and how he might have reacted to events since his death – from 9/11 to Britpop and the advent of Twitter
Next month, the ex-Beatle would have been 70. Here, a writer who knew him in his prime reflects on Lennon's enduring importance and how he might have reacted to events since his death – from 9/11 to Britpop and the advent of Twitter
You couldn't do much better than this for a single-CD anthology of the man's work. Includes Imagine; Give Peace a Chance; Instant Karma; Mind Games; (Just Like) Starting Over; Whatever Gets You Through the Night; #9 Dream and more.
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The Death of John Lennon's Mother Changed His Life Dramatically
"The fatal accident hardened, irrevocably, Lennon’s view of the Establishment, and especially the police. Coming to believe the driver who killed his mother was “a drunk off-duty cop”, his respect for authority, and especially the law, crumbled and would only ever worsen. Where most people saw law and order, John would only see rank hypocrisy. The driver, Eric Clague, was indeed an off-duty cop; he was also a learner-driver and shouldn’t have been on the road unaccompanied, and was suspended from the force because of it; but he was never charged with being drunk, and alcohol wasn’t mentioned at the inquest. Though it’s possible it was suppressed, it’s also possible this cornerstone of John’s lasting grudge against the police was set in misinformation." Excerpt from "The Beatles – All These Years" to be published by Little, Brown on Oct 10.
Julie Baird: The Private John Lennon
ISBN: 9781569756461 In this moving memoir, John Lennon's sister Julia finally reveals the full extent of the pain and difficulties -- as well as the happier times -- of life inside John Lennon's family. Julia introduces readers to the various strong, self-willed women who surrounded John as he grew up and offers an insider's look at the cruel consequences of five-year-old John being taken from his mother's custody and put in the care of his aunt Mimi. Later, the author holds nothing back as she tells how she and then 17-year-old John confronted their mother's sudden and tragic death in an auto accident. Poignant, raw and beautifully written, "The Private John Lennon" casts new light on the source of his emotional fragility and musical genius. It is also one family's extraordinary story of the love they held for each other, their struggles with fame, and the terrible series of tragedies that culminated in John's murder.
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George Carpozi Jr
John Lennon: Death of a Dream
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Memories of John Lennon by Yoko Ono
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People Magazine December 22 1980
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1969
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John Lennon In His Own Words:
"Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue with that; I'm right and I will be proved right. We're more popular than Jesus now; I don't know which will go first - rock and roll or Christianity."
"I believe in God, but not as one thing, not as an old man in the sky. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It's just that the translations have gone wrong. " "You're just left with yourself all the time, whatever you do anyway. You've got to get down to your own God in your own temple. It's all down to you, mate. " 
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"God is a concept by which we measure our pain."
"I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?" "I don't believe in killing whatever the reason! " "I don't know which will go first - rock 'n' roll or Christianity. " "Imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will be as one. " 
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October 1980
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Billboard Magazine December 1980
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Billboard Magazine 1980
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