R.I.P.: John Lennon 10/09/40 – 12/8/80

 

John Winston Lennon was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Along with fellow Beatle Paul McCartney, he formed one of the most successful 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 his infant son Sean, but re-emerged in 1980 with a new album, Double Fantasy. He was murdered three weeks after its release.

Lennon revealed a rebellious nature and acerbic wit in his music, his writing, his drawings, on film, and in interviews, becoming 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 his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement.

As of 2010, 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.

10  Facts you may not know about John Lennon

Paul McCartney Rousted Lennon from “Retirement” in 1980

Although he feigned disdain for his former songwriting partner’s post-Beatles work, Lennon kept close tabs on McCartney’s musical activities. After hearing McCartney’s one-man-band solo hit, “Coming Up,” in 1980, Lennon reportedly said, “Oh, [expletive], I’ve got to get back.” He later professed to love the song.
His All-Time Favorite Album was by… The B-52s

It’s commonly known that when Lennon first heard The B-52s’ “Rock Lobster” in a Bermuda disco in 1979, he instantly recognized that singer Cindy Wilson’s song-ending “scream” was an homage to Yoko Ono. Ono has since said she and Lennon listened to the The B-52s incessantly while recording tracks for their Double Fantasy album. What’s lesser-known is that, just prior to his death, Lennon proclaimed The B-52s’ debut disc his favorite album ever.

He Served as Best Man at Young Frankenstein Actor Peter Boyle’s Wedding
Peter Boyle met his wife, Loraine Alterman, when Alterman visited the set of Young Frankenstein as a reporter for Rolling Stone. Alterman was a friend of Yoko Ono, and subsequently the two couples became close friends, as well as neighbors in the Dakota apartment building. In the aftermath of Lennon’s death, Boyle swore he would never participate in a movie that glorified violence.
He was a Guest on Monday Night Football Six Years Before the Sportscast Announced His Death to the World

On December 9, 1974, Lennon was a guest on Monday Night Football along with, of all people, then-California-governor Ronald Reagan. Reports later surfaced that, off-camera, Reagan cheerfully explained the rules of American football to Lennon as the game progressed. When it fell to Howard Cosell to tell the world, during a MNF telecast on December 8, 1980, that Lennon had been killed, the legendary broadcaster called the news “an unspeakable tragedy.”

He Collected Beatles Memorabilia!
Lennon was an enthusiastic supporter of the Beatlefest conventions that began springing up in the mid-’70s, often sending assistants to the events to procure interesting artifacts. May Pang attended the very first Beatlefest, where she ran into Jurgen Vollmer, an old friend of Lennon’s who had taken striking photographs of The Beatles during their Hamburg days. Lennon used one of the photos for the cover of his 1975 album, Rock ‘n’ Roll. Another of Lennon’s prized possessions was a set of Beatles dolls given to him by Elton John.

He Performed Just Three Beatles Songs in Concert After the Fab Four Split Up

Lennon’s famous 1972 Madison Square Garden show featured just one Beatles song: “Come Together.” In 1975, making good on a pact with his good friend Elton John, Lennon took the Garden stage again, performing duet versions of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” and “I Saw Her Standing There.” Lennon announced the latter song as “a number by an old estranged fiancé of mine called Paul.” Lennon did perform The Beatles’ “Yer Blues” and “Give Peace a Chance” with The Plastic Ono Band, but at the time of that performance The Beatles were still officially united.

He was a Huge Bing Crosby Fan

The Beatles’ first big hit, “Please Please Me,” was partly inspired by a line from a Bing Crosby song that read, “Please lend a little ear to my pleas.” In 1978, Yoko Ono gave Lennon a vintage ’50s “bubbletop” Wurlitzer jukebox for his birthday. Lennon loaded the machine with as many Bing Crosby 78-rpm records as he could find.
He was the First Beatle to Perform Solo
Lennon was always indignant that Paul McCartney had announced his departure from The Beatles, when in fact Lennon himself had been the first Beatle to break away. However, Lennon could always console himself with the fact that it was he who first performed without his Fab Four mates. His first non-Beatles appearance was with The Rolling Stones’ Rock and Roll Circus, in December 1968. In September of the following year, he and The Plastic Ono Band performed their Live Peace in Toronto show.
The Location of his Cremated Remains is Unknown
The location of Lennon’s ashes has never been disclosed to the public. The assumption is that they remain in the possession of Yoko Ono, although there’s speculation that some may have been scattered at the Strawberry Fields Memorial in New York’s Central Park. More importantly, regarding Lennon’s death, both Yoko Ono and Paul McCartney once made a simple request: Never repeat the name of Lennon’s murderer. Doing so only helps to fulfill a deranged person’s desire for notoriety.
He was the Only Beatle Who Never Attended a Paul McCartney Wings or Solo Performance

Ringo Starr was in the audience during a Wings show in 1974; likewise, George Harrison attended a McCartney performance in 1993. Both, however, declined to appear with their former Fab Four partner on stage. Lennon never attended a McCartney show, but he did consider visiting McCartney in New Orleans during the latter’s Venus and Mars sessions. Whether or not he would have appeared on the album is anyone’s guess.

Famous John Lennon Quotes:

“A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.”

“If someone thinks that love and peace is a cliche that must have been left behind in the Sixties, that’s his problem. Love and peace are eternal.”

“Love is the answer, and you know that for sure; Love is a flower, you’ve got to let it grow.”

“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?”

“You don’t need anybody to tell you who you are or what you are. You are what you are!”

“Jesus was all right, but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It’s them twisting it that ruins it for me.”

Now, listen to one of the most truly beautiful songs ever written…