John
Lennon
John Winston Lennon was born on the evening of
9 October 1940 during the height of Germany's Blitz
on Britain. Both of his parents had musical background
and experience, though neither pursued it seriously.
Lennon lived with his parents in Liverpool until his
father Fred Lennon, a merchant seaman, walked out on
the family. His mother, Julia, then decided that she
was unable to care for John and so gave him to her sister
Mimi. Lennon lived with Mimi at Mendips throughout his
childhood and adolescence.
Around adolescence, Lennon developed severe myopia
and was obliged to wear glasses in order to see clearly.
During his early Beatle career, Lennon wore contacts
or prescription sunglasses, but later donned his trademark,
round "granny-glasses" in late 1966. Although
John lived apart from his mother he still kept in contact
with her through regular visits, and during this time
Julia was responsible for introducing her son to a lifelong
interest in music by teaching him how to play the banjo.
Soon after his 16th birthday, his mother was killed
after she was struck by a car driven by a drunken off-duty
police officer. This event influenced many of his later
songs, and was also one of the factors that cemented
his friendship with Paul McCartney, who had lost his
own mother to breast cancer at the age of 14. Later,
in 1968, Lennon wrote a song entitled "Julia"
in honour of his mother.
His Aunt Mimi was able to get him accepted into the
Liverpool College of Art by showing them some of his
drawings, and it was there that he met his future wife,
Cynthia Powell. However, John steadily grew to hate
the conformity of art school and, like many young men
of his age, became increasingly interested in Rock 'n'
Roll music and American singers like Elvis Presley and
Buddy Holly. Eventually, in the late 1950s, Lennon formed
his own skiffle group called The Quarry Men, which later
became The Silver Beetles (a tribute to Buddy Holly's
Crickets) and soon afterwards was shortened to The Beatles.
He married Cynthia in 1962 after she became pregnant
with his child, Julian.
On the morning of December 8, 1980, in New York City,
deranged fan Mark David Chapman met Lennon as he left
for the recording studio and got his copy of Double
Fantasy autographed. Chapman remained in the vicinity
of The Dakota for most of the day as a fireworks demonstration
in nearby Central Park distracted the doorman and passers-by.
Later that evening, Lennon and Ono returned to the
apartment from recording Ono's single "Walking
On Thin Ice" for their next album. Chapman was
hiding in the carriage vestibule as Lennon and Ono approached
the building. As Lennon walked past him, Chapman called
out to him and assumed what witnesses called a "combat
stance", firing five shots as Lennon turned around.
Some believe that John Lennon was assinated, read
more here.
Lennon's Solo Career
Of the four former Beatles, Lennon had perhaps the
most varied recording career, often reflecting the vicissitudes
of his personality. While he was still a Beatle, Lennon
and Ono recorded three albums of experimental and difficult
electronic music, Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins,
Unfinished Music No. 2: Life With The Lions, and Wedding
Album. His first 'solo' album of popular music was Live
Peace In Toronto, recorded in 1969 (prior to the breakup
of the Beatles) at the Rock 'n' Roll Festival in Toronto
with a Plastic Ono Band including Eric Clapton and Klaus
Voormann. He also recorded three singles in his initial
solo phase, the anti-war anthem "Give Peace a Chance",
"Cold Turkey" (about his struggles with heroin)
and "Instant Karma!".
Following the Beatles' split in 1970, he released the
Plastic Ono Band album, a raw, honest record, heavily
influenced by Arthur Janov's Primal therapy, which Lennon
had undergone previously. It remains to this day one
of the most brutally personal musical works ever made
by anybody. The centerpiece is "God", in which
he lists all the things he does not believe in, ending
with "Beatles". Lennon continued this effort
to demythologise the Beatles with a long, confrontational
interview published in Rolling Stone magazine.
This was followed in 1971 by Imagine, his most successful
solo album, which alternates in tone between dreaminess
and anger. The title track is a lovely song which has
become an anthem for world harmony, and was matched
in image by Lennon's "white period" (white
clothes, white piano, white room ...).
Perhaps in reaction, his next album, Some Time In New
York City, was loud, raucous, and explicitly political,
with songs about prison riots, racial and sexual relations,
the British role in the sectarian troubles in Northern
Ireland, and his own problems in obtaining a United
States Green Card. This record is generally seen as
the nadir of Lennon's career, full of heavy-handed and
simplistic messaging unredeemed by much artistic value.
On 30 August 1972 Lennon and his backing Elephant's
Memory Band staged two benefit concerts at Madison Square
Garden in New York; it was to be his last full-length
concert appearance. Lennon and Ono also did a week-long
guest co-host stint on the Mike Douglas Show, in an
appearance that showed Lennon's wit and humour still
intact.
Lennon rebounded somewhat in 1973 with Mind Games,
which featured a strong title tune and some vague mumblings
about a concept called "Nutopia". His most
striking song of that year was the wry "I'm the
Greatest", which he wrote for Ringo Starr's very
successful Ringo album.
During 1974 Lennon's personal life fell into disrepair
— a temporary move to Los Angeles, some drunken
public escapades, and a fourteen-month split from Ono
during which he had an extramarital affair with Ono's
former secretary May Pang. It was also during his time
in New York that Lennon purportedly engaged in sexual
relationships with men, according to biographers Albert
Goldman (The Lives of John Lennon) and Geoffrey Giuliano
(Lennon in New York). Lennon's estate, however, has
denied charges that he was bisexual. It should be noted
that both Goldman and Giuliano have been heavily criticized
for their work.
Despite the chaos, Lennon managed to put together a
reasonably well-received album, Walls And Bridges, which
featured a collaboration with Elton John on the up-tempo
number one hit "Whatever Gets You Through the Night".
Another top ten hit from the album was the Beatlesque
reverie "#9 Dream". Lennon capped the year
by making a surprise guest appearance at an Elton John
concert in Madison Square Garden where they performed
"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", "Whatever
Gets You Through the Night", and "I Saw Her
Standing There" together. It was to be his last
ever concert appearance.
The following year Lennon released the Rock 'n' Roll
album of cover versions of old rock and roll songs of
his youth. This project was complicated by Phil Spector's
involvement as producer and several legal battles; the
result received generally negative reviews, though it
yielded a lauded cover of "Stand By Me". At
this point Lennon retired to concentrate on his family
life. This was made easier in 1976 when his U.S. immigration
status was finally resolved favourably, after a years-long
battle started by the Nixon administration that included
a politically-motivated FBI investigation.
Lennon's retirement lasted until 1980, when he and
Ono produced Double Fantasy, a concept album dealing
with their relationship. "(Just Like) Starting
Over" began climbing the singles charts.... He
also commenced work on Milk and Honey which he left
unfinished. It was some time before Ono could bring
herself to complete it.
Lennon's son with Cynthia, Julian Lennon, enjoys a
notable recording career of his own, as does his son
with Yoko, Sean Lennon.
Throughout his solo career, Lennon appeared on his
own albums (as well as those of other artists like Elton
John) under such pseudonyms as Dr. Winston O'Boogie,
Mel Torrment, and The Reverend Fred Gherkin.
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