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John Winston Lennon, later John Ono Lennon,
(October 9, 1940 – December 8, 1980), was
best known as a singer, songwriter, and guitarist
for The Beatles. His creative career also included
the roles of solo musician, activism|political
activist, drawing|artist, actor and writer|author.
As half of the legendary Lennon-McCartney
songwriting team, he heavily influenced the
development of Rock and roll|rock music, leading
it towards more serious and political messages. 

He is recognised as one of the musical icons of
the 20th century; and his songs, such as "Imagine
(song)|Imagine" and "Strawberry Fields Forever",
are often ranked among the best songs of that
century. In 2002, the BBC conducted a vote to
discover the 100 Greatest Britons of all time, and
the British public voted Lennon into 8th place.

==Early years==
Lennon was born in Liverpool on the evening of
October 9, 1940 during a period of much turmoil as
the United Kingdom|UK was heavily engaged in World
War II. Both of his parents had musical
backgrounds and experience, though neither pursued
them seriously. Lennon lived with his parents in
Liverpool until his father Fred, a merchant
seaman, walked out on the family when John was
five years old. His mother, Julia, then decided
that she was unable to care for her son, and so
gave him to her sister Mimi. Lennon lived with
Aunt Mimi and her husband George at 251 Menlove
Avenue|Mendips, 251 Menlove Avenue, Liverpool
throughout the rest of his childhood and
adolescence. Like much of the population of
Liverpool, Lennon had some Irish ethnicity|Irish
heritage; his grandfather, James Lennon, having
been born in Dublin in 1858.

Lennon developed severe myopia as he grew up, and
was obliged to wear glasses in order to see
clearly. During his early Beatle career, Lennon
wore contacts or prescription sunglasses (or
simply "toughed it out" without them), 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. On July 15, 1958 - when Lennon was 17 - his
mother was killed after she was struck by a car
driven by a drunken off-duty police officer, and
he had to go to the morgue to identify her body.
Julia's death was one of the factors that cemented
his friendship with Paul McCartney, who had lost
his own mother to breast cancer in 1956, when Paul
was 14.  Years later, Lennon wrote the songs
"Julia (song)|Julia", "Mother" and "My Mummy's
Dead" regarding his mother, as well as naming his
firstborn son, Julian_Lennon|Julian, after her.

Though failing in grammar school, Lennon was
accepted into the Liverpool College of Art with
help from his school's headmaster and Aunt Mimi,
and it was there that he met his future wife,
Cynthia Powell. However, Lennon steadily grew to
hate the conformity of art school, which proved to
be little different from his earlier school
experience, and ultimately dropped out. He instead
devoted himself to music, inspired by American
Rock 'n' Roll and singers like Elvis Presley,
Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly. He'd started a
skiffle band in grammar school called the Quarry
Men (after his alma mater, Quarry Bank Grammar
School|Quarry Bank). With the addition of Paul
McCartney and George Harrison, the band changed to
playing rock 'n' roll, taking the name "Johnny and
the Moondogs", followed by "The Silver Beetles" (a
tribute to Buddy Holly's The Crickets|Crickets),
which was later shortened to The Beatles. He
married Powell in 1962, after she became pregnant
with Julian.

==Role in the Beatles==

Lennon had a profound influence on rock and roll
and in expanding the genre's boundaries during the
1960s. He is widely considered, along with
songwriting partner Paul McCartney, as one of the
most influential singer-songwriter-musicians of
the 20th century.  Many of the songs written by
Lennon, however, are more introspective —
often in the first person — and personal
than McCartney's. His most surreal pieces of
songwriting, "Strawberry Fields Forever" and "I Am
the Walrus", are fine examples of his unique
style. Lennon's partnership in songwriting with
McCartney many times involved him in complementing
and counterbalancing McCartney's upbeat, positive
outlook with the other side of the coin, as one of
their songs, "Getting Better" demonstrates:

: McCartney: I have to admit it's getting better,
a little better all the time.

: Lennon: It can't get much worse!

Lennon often spoke his mind freely and the press
was used to querying him on a wide range of
subjects. On March 4, 1966 in an interview for the
Evening Standard|London Evening Standard with
Maureen Cleave, who was a friend of his, Lennon
made an off the cuff remark regarding religion.
The article was printed and nothing came of it,
until five months later when a Teen magazine
reprinted the words "I don't know what will go
first—Rock and Roll or Christianity. We're
more popular than Jesus now," right on the front
cover. 

A firestorm of protest swelled from the southern
Bible Belt area, as conservative groups publicly
burned Beatles records and memorabilia. Radio
stations banned Beatles music and concert venues
cancelled performances. Even The Vatican got
involved with a public denouncement of Lennon's
comments. On August 11, 1966, the Beatles held a
press conference in Chicago, Illinois, in order to
address the growing furore.

:Lennon: "I suppose if I had said television was
more popular than Jesus, I would have gotten away
with it, but I just happened to be talking to a
friend and I used the words "Beatles" as a remote
thing, not as what I think - as Beatles, as those
other Beatles like other people see us. I just
said "they" are having more influence on kids and
things than anything else, including Jesus. But I
said it in that way which is the wrong way."

:Reporter: "Some teenagers have repeated your
statements - "I like the Beatles more than Jesus
Christ." What do you think about that?"

:Lennon: "Well, originally I pointed out that fact
in reference to England. That we meant more to
kids than Jesus did, or religion at that time. I
wasn't knocking it or putting it down. I was just
saying it as a fact and it's true more for England
than here. I'm not saying that we're better or
greater, or comparing us with Jesus Christ as a
person or God as a thing or whatever it is. I just
said what I said and it was wrong. Or it was taken
wrong. And now it's all this."

:Reporter: "But are you prepared to apologise?"

:Lennon: "I wasn't saying whatever they're saying
I was saying. I'm sorry I said it really. I never
meant it to be a lousy anti-religious thing. I
apologise if that will make you happy. I still
don't know quite what I've done. I've tried to
tell you what I did do but if you want me to
apologise, if that will make you happy, then OK,
I'm sorry."

The governing members of the Vatican accepted his
apology and the furor eventually died down, but
constant Beatlemania, mobs, crazed teenagers, and
now a press ready to tear them to pieces over any
quote was too much to handle. The Beatles soon
decided to stop touring, and indeed, never
performed a scheduled concert again. From this
point onward the Beatles were a studio band
(perhaps the first ever). Freed from the problem
of having to compose music they could recreate
live on stage, they could explore the
technological limits of music and create unique
and original sounds. 

On November 9, 1966, after their final tour ended
and right after he had wrapped up filming a minor
role in the film How I Won the War, Lennon visited
an art exhibit of Yoko Ono's at the Indica art
gallery in London.  Lennon began his love affair
with Ono in 1968 after returning from India and
leaving his estranged wife Cynthia, who filed for
divorce later that year. Lennon and Ono were from
then on inseparable in public and private, as well
as during Beatles recording sessions. The press
was extremely unkind to Ono, posting a series of
unflattering articles about her, one even going so
far as to call her "ugly." This infuriated Lennon,
who rallied around his new partner and said
publicly that there was no John and Yoko, but that
they were one person, JohnAndYoko. These
developments led to friction with the other
members of the group, and heightened the tension
during the 1968 The Beatles (album)|White Album
sessions. 

Some Beatles fans blame Ono for the Beatles'
breakup, but the band had been growing apart
almost immediately after the death of their
manager Brian Epstein in 1967. Lennon in
particular cited Epstein as the glue which had
held them all together; in his absence (together
with the influence of drugs, a desire to do more
work independently, outside friends, alternate
collaborating partners, and
marriages/relationships), the Beatles'
interpersonal relationships simply disintegrated. 

At the end of 1968, Lennon and Ono performed as
Dirty Mac on Rock and Roll Circus|The Rolling
Stones Rock and Roll Circus.

During his last two years as a member of The
Beatles, Lennon spent much of his time with Ono on
public displays protesting the Vietnam War. He
sent back the MBE (Member of the Order of the
British Empire) he received from Elizabeth II of
the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II during the
height of Beatlemania "in protest against
Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing
and support of America in Vietnam," adding as a
joke, "as well as "Cold Turkey" slipping down the
charts." On March 20 1969, Lennon and Ono were
married in Gibraltar, and spent their honeymoon in
Amsterdam in a "Bed-In" for peace. They followed
up their honeymoon with another "Bed-In" for peace
this time held in Montreal.  During the second
"Bed-In" the couple recorded "Give Peace a Chance"
which would go on to become an international
anthem for the peace movement. They were mainly
patronised as a couple of eccentrics by the media,
yet they did a great deal for the peace movement,
as well as for other pet causes, such as women's
liberation and racial harmony. As with the
"Bed-In" campaign, Lennon and Ono usually
advocated their causes with whimsical
demonstrations, such as Bagism, first introduced
during a Vienna press conference. Shortly after,
Lennon changed his middle name from Winston to Ono
to show his "oneness" with his new wife. Lennon
wrote "The Ballad of John and Yoko" about his
marriage and the subsequent press it generated.

The failed Get Back/Let It Be recording/filming
sessions did nothing to improve relations within
the band.  After both Lennon and Ono were injured
in the summer of 1969 in a car accident in
Scotland, Lennon arranged for Ono to be constantly
with him in the studio (including having a
full-sized bed rolled in) as he worked on The
Beatles' last album, Abbey Road (album)|Abbey
Road.  While the group managed to hang together to
produce one last superior musical work, soon
thereafter business issues related to Apple
Records|Apple Corps came between them. 

Lennon decided to quit the Beatles but was talked
out of saying anything publicly.  Phil Spector's
involvement in trying to revive the Let It Be
material then drove a further wedge between Lennon
(who supported Spector) and McCartney (who opposed
him).  Though the split would only become legal
some time later, Lennon and McCartney's
partnership had come to a bitter end. McCartney
soon made a press announcement, declaring he had
quit the Beatles, and promoting his new solo
record.

==Solo career==

Of the four former Beatles, Lennon had perhaps the
most varied recording career.  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 1969, recorded in 1969
(prior to the breakup of the Beatles) at the Rock
'n' Roll Festival in Toronto with The Plastic Ono
Band, which included 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 addiction) and "Instant
Karma!".

Following the Beatles' split in 1970, he released
the John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album, a raw,
brutally personal record, heavily influenced by
Arthur Janov's Primal Scream therapy, which Lennon
had undergone previously. The influence of the
therapy, which consists literally of screaming out
one's emotional pain, is most obvious on the songs
"Mother" ("Mama don't go!/Daddy come home!") and
"Well Well Well." The centrepiece is "God," in
which he lists all the things he does not believe
in, ending with "Beatles". Many consider "Plastic
Ono Band" to be a major influence on later hard
rock and punk music. Lennon continued this effort
to demythologise his old band with a long,
confrontational interview published in Rolling
Stone magazine.

This was followed in 1971 by Imagine
(album)|Imagine, his most successful solo album,
which alternates in tone between dreaminess and
anger.  The Imagine (song)|title track has become
an anthem for anti-war movements, 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|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 band
Elephant's Memory staged two benefit concerts at
Madison Square Garden in New York City|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|Mike
Douglas Show, in an appearance that showed
Lennon's wit and humour still intact. 

In 1972, Lennon released an anti-sexism|sexist
song, "Woman Is The Nigger Of The World", implying
that as black people were discriminated against in
some countries so were women globally. Radio
refused to broadcast the song, and it was banned
nearly everywhere.

Lennon rebounded in 1973 with Mind Games, which
featured a strong title tune and some vague
mumblings about a "conceptual country" called
"Nutopia", which satirized his ongoing immigration
case. 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)|Ringo album.

In 1973, Lennon's personal life fell into
disrepair when Yoko kicked John out of the house.
Yoko approached May Pang, the attractive Asian
woman who was their personal assistant, at the
time with a unique proposal.  Yoko, who thought
May Pang to be an "ideal companion" for John,
asked her to "be with John and to help him out and
see to it that he gets whatever he wanted." John
and May soon moved to Los Angeles which had been
dubbed the "lost weekend" though it lasted until
the beginning of 1975.  During their time
together, May encouraged John to spend time with
his son, Julian Lennon, and became friends with
Cynthia Lennon. Though John's public drunkenness
had been the subject of gossip during 1974, Pang
wrote that John was usually sober in his private
life and created a large body of work.  	

Despite alleged episodes of drunkenness, Lennon
put together the well-received album, Walls And
Bridges, which featured a collaboration with Elton
John on the up-tempo number one hit "Whatever Gets
You Thru 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 Thru the
Night" and "I Saw Her Standing There" together. It
was to be his last-ever concert appearance.		

In 1975, Lennon released the Rock 'n' Roll (John
Lennon album)|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 by several legal
battles; the result received generally negative
reviews, though it yielded a powerful, lauded
cover of "Stand By Me (song)|Stand By Me". 

At this point Yoko was pregnant with what would be
their first child, and Lennon — saddened by
the fact that due to Beatlemania he had never
gotten to experience fatherhood with his first son
Julian — retired from music and dedicated
himself to family life. This was made easier in
1976 when his Immigration and Naturalization
Service|U.S. immigration status was finally
resolved favourably, after a years-long battle
with the Richard Nixon|Nixon administration that
included a FBI investigation involving
surveillance, wiretaps, and agents literally
following Lennon around as he travelled. Lennon
claimed the investigation was politically
motivated.

Also in 1975, David Bowie achieved his first US
number one hit with "Fame (David Bowie
song)|Fame", co-written by Bowie, Lennon (who also
contributed backing vocals) and Carlos Alomar.

Lennon's retirement, which he began following the
birth of his second son, Sean Lennon|Sean in 1975,
lasted until 1980 when Lennon, for the first time
in five years, picked up his guitar again. At
first only curious to see if he could still write
music, he felt refreshed and full of ideas,
completely reinvigorated by the experiences of
fatherhood and the long break from the business.
He wrote an impressive amount of material during a
Caribbean vacation and began thinking about a new
album. For this comeback, he and Ono produced
Double Fantasy, a concept album dealing with their
relationship. The name came from a flower Lennon
saw at an exposition; he liked the name, and
thought it was a perfect description of his
marriage to Yoko. "(Just Like) Starting Over"
began climbing the singles charts, and Lennon
started thinking about a brand new world tour.
Lennon also commenced work on Milk And Honey which
he would, unfortunately, leave unfinished. It was
some time before Ono could bring herself to
complete it.

==Murder==


In the late afternoon 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;  it was
the last autograph Lennon ever gave.  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
their apartment from recording Ono's single
"Walking On Thin Ice (song)|Walking On Thin Ice"
for their next album. At 10.50pm, their limousine
pulled up to the entrance of the Dakota. Ono got
out of the car first, followed by Lennon. Beyond
the main entrance was a door which would be opened
and a small set of stairs leading into the
apartment complex. As Ono went in, Lennon got out
of the car and glanced at Chapman, proceeding on
through the entrance to the Dakota. 

As Lennon walked past him, Chapman called out "Mr.
Lennon."  As Lennon turned, Chapman crouched into
what witnesses called a "combat" stance and fired
five hollowpoint bullets into John's back and
shoulder.  One of the bullets fatally pierced his
aorta. Still, Lennon managed to stagger up six
steps into the concierge booth where he collapsed,
gasping "I'm shot, I'm shot." 

Chapman dropped his .38 Charter Arms revolver,
which was kicked away by Jose Perdomo who then
asked "Do you know what you have done?", to which
Chapman replied "I just shot John Lennon." Chapman
then calmly took his coat off placed it at his
feet, took out a book and started reading.

Police arrived within minutes, to find Chapman
still waiting quietly outside, reading a copy of
J.D. Salinger's novel, The Catcher in the Rye. 

The two officers transported Lennon to the
hospital in the back of their squad car as they
thought John was too badly hurt to take the risk
of waiting for an ambulance. One of the officers
asked Lennon if he knew who he was. Lennon's reply
is reported to have been "Yeah" or simply a nod of
the head before he passed out. Despite extensive
resuscitative efforts in the hospital, Lennon had
lost over 80% of his blood volume and died of
shock at the age of 40. Millions would receive the
news that night from Howard Cosell, commentator
for American_Broadcasting_Company |ABC's Monday
Night Football.

==Memorial==
A crowd gathered outside the Dakota the night of
Lennon's death. Ono sent word that their singing
kept her awake and asked that they re-convene in
Central Park the following Sunday, for ten minutes
of silent prayer
(http://www.johnlennon.it/english.htm see also the
1980 Central Park Vigil - Tribute to John Lennon).
Her request for a silent gathering was honoured
all over the world. 

A special commemorative issue of Rolling Stone 
magazine released shortly after the murder
featured as its cover a photo taken the morning of
the shooting by Annie Leibovitz showing a nude
Lennon in an embryonic pose kissing a fully
clothed Ono.

The Strawberry Fields Memorial was constructed in
Central Park across the street from the Dakota, in
memory of Lennon. When George Harrison died in
2001, people congregated on the "Imagine" mosaic
circle in Strawberry Fields.

In 1988, Warner Bros. produced a documentary film,
Imagine: John Lennon (sanctioned in part by Yoko
Ono.)  The movie was a biography of the former
Beatle, featuring interviews, rarely seen musical
material, and narration by Lennon himself (formed
from interviews and tapes recorded by Lennon).  It
also introduced "Real Love", one of the last songs
composed by Lennon, in an early demo (a later Demo
(music)|demo would form the basis for the version
rehashed by The Beatles for The Beatles
Anthology).  The 1989|following year, at an
auction of Beatles memorabilia, John Lennon's
jukebox|Lennon's jukebox was sold at Christie's
for 2,500 pounds.  The Mellotron that Lennon used
to record, amongst other songs, "Strawberry Fields
Forever", is currently owned by Trent Reznor of
the band Nine Inch Nails.

Specially selected radio stations aired a
syndicated series called The Lost Lennon Tapes in
1990.  Hosted by Lennon publicist Elliot Mintz,
the show spotlighted raw sessions from throughout
Lennon's career with and without The Beatles,
including rare material never released to the
public.  During the America: A Tribute to Heroes
concert on September 21, 2001, Neil Young (an
avowed devotee of Lennon) sang "Imagine." 

In October 2000 John Lennon Museum was opened in
Ono's hometown Saitama, Saitama|Saitama, Japan, to
preserve knowledge of his works and career. 
In March, 2002, his native city, Liverpool,
honoured his memory by renaming their airport
"Liverpool John Lennon Airport," and adopting as
its motto a line from his song "Imagine
(song)|Imagine": "Above us only sky".  In the same
year, Lennon was voted 8th by the British public
in the "100 Greatest Britons" poll run by the BBC.
BBC History Magazine commented that his
"generational influence is immense."

On October 31, 1994,  Phish, a jam band, paid
tribute to Lennon and the Beatles by covering The
Beatles (album)|The Beatles album (also known as
the White Album).

In 2004 Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna paid tribute
to Lennon by singing a cover of "Imagine
(song)|Imagine" during her anti-war themed
"Re-Invention World Tour."

In 2005, a musical titled Lennon was shown for the
first time in San Francisco. It received a very
lacklustre response from theatre critics and
Beatles fans alike.

In 2005, Cowboy Junkies covered "I Don't Want To
Be A Soldier" on their anti-war album, "Early 21st
Century Blues".

John Lennon Park was built in Cuba as a memorial
to the musician.

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.

A biographical Broadway musical titled Lennon will
premiere at New York City’s Broadhurst Theater
on August 14, 2005.  Written and directed by Don
Scardino from Lennon's own words in interviews and
songs, Lennon features nine diverse actors and
actresses portraying the singer-songwriter at
various stages in his life backed by an onstage
10-piece band.  The play was produced with the
endorsement of Yoko Ono, who gave permission for
the production to use two unpublished Lennon
songs, India, India and I Don't Want to Lose You,
and who attended preview performances of the show
at New York City's Broadhurst Theater on August 5
& 6, 2005.

==Discography==

For a detailed discography, see: John Lennon
discography

==Biographies and books ==
Numerous biographies of John Lennon have been
published. Notable among these are The Lives of
John Lennon by Albert Goldman (which many consider
to be more fiction than fact) and Lennon: The
Definitive Biography by Ray Coleman.

John Lennon wrote three books himself: John
Lennon: In His Own Write, A Spaniard in the Works,
and Skywriting by Word of Mouth (the last
published posthumously). A personal sketchbook
with Lennon's familiar cartoons illustrating
definitions of Japanese words, Ai: Japan Through
John Lennon's Eyes, was published posthumously.

*Jack Jones, Let Me Take You Down: Inside the mind
of Mark David Chapman, 1992, Virgin , ISBN
0863696899

==Trivia==
* Some people believe that Lennon's murder was
actually a political assassination, although this
idea is often dismissed as a conspiracy theory
**
http://www.john-lennon.com/theassassinationofjl.ht
m The Assassination of John Lennon
** http://www.mackwhite.com/lennon.html Dead
Silence in the Brain
**
http://www.jfkmontreal.com/john_lennon/lennon_repo
rt.htm Rethinking John Lennon's Assassination -- A
new book by Salvador Astucia that looks at a
different angle of the murder.
* Heavy metal music|Heavy metal musician Dimebag
Darrell was murdered in 2004 on the anniversary of
Lennon's death in an unrelated shooting spree.
* Though Lennon was usually a vocal campaigner for
peace, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/649397.stm he
may have supported the IRA.  Records leaked from
MI5 and the FBI in 2000 reportedly showed a
£175,000 donation to the IRA during the early
1970s. He is known to have identified with and
spoken in favour of the Ireland|Irish civil rights
movement, especially during his Some Time In New
York City-era fling with radical-militant
politics.
* Lennon's friend, musician Klaus Voorman, did the
artwork for Beatles|The Beatles Revolver
(album)|Revolver album cover.  In addition to
performing with Lennon's Plastic Ono Band, Voorman
also performed with George Harrison and Manfred
Mann.
* He had an apartment set aside for his collection
of fur coats.
* On Lennon's posthumous compilation album
Acoustic (John Lennon album)|Acoustic, a demo
recording of the song "God" contains the lines "I
just believe in me/And that's reality". This lyric
was changed to "I just believe in me/Yoko and
me/And that's reality" when the song was included
on the Plastic Ono Band album. It has been
suggested that the change of the song's lyrics was
due to Ono's persuasion of Lennon.
* On July 28, 2005 Lennon's handwritten lyrics
sheet for the classic "All You Need is Love" sold
for £600,000 at an auction in London.

==See also==
*List of best-selling music artists

==External links==

commons|John Lennon

* imdb name|id=0006168|name=John Lennon
* http://www.thrasherswheat.org/jammin/lennon.htm
Imagine was covered on America: A Tribute to
Heroes by Neil Young.
* http://www.bagism.com/ John Lennon fan site
* http://www.lennon.net/ The Liverpool Lennons
website
*
http://www.peacemakersguide.org/peace/Peacemakers/
John-Lennon.htm Bruderhof Peacemakers Guide
profile on John Lennon
* http://www.johnlennon.it/ John Lennon Dreamsite
— Celebrates Lennon's ideals of peace, love
and freedom. Offers pictures from the Imagine Your
Are exhibit at Galleria Nazionale d’Arte
Moderna in Rome by Fiorella Dorotea Gentile
* http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/lennon.htm FBI
file on John Lennon
*
http://www.words4ever.net/authors/1304/john-lennon
-quotations-sayings.htm Famous quotations by John
Lennon
* http://johnlennon.lyrics.info/ John Lennon
lyrics — A complete collection of lyrics
from http://lyrics.info/ lyrics.info
* http://beatles.ncf.ca/lennon_inquiry.html John
Lennon's private testimony to the Le Dain
Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of
Drugs, 1969-12-22, in Montreal, Quebec.
* http://www.thebeatles.com.hk/john/ The Beatles
Studio: John Lennon A Hong Kong based fansite with
lyrics, discography and many John Lennon
information.


The Beatles

	Web Quotableonline.com Frasescelebres.org Greatbookscollection.org

John Winston Lennon, later John Ono Lennon,
(October 9, 1940 – December 8, 1980), was
best known as a singer, songwriter, and guitarist
for The Beatles. His creative career also included
the roles of solo musician, activism|political
activist, drawing|artist, actor and writer|author.
As half of the legendary Lennon-McCartney
songwriting team, he heavily influenced the
development of Rock and roll|rock music, leading
it towards more serious and political messages. 

He is recognised as one of the musical icons of
the 20th century; and his songs, such as "Imagine
(song)|Imagine" and "Strawberry Fields Forever",
are often ranked among the best songs of that
century. In 2002, the BBC conducted a vote to
discover the 100 Greatest Britons of all time, and
the British public voted Lennon into 8th place.

==Early years==
Lennon was born in Liverpool on the evening of
October 9, 1940 during a period of much turmoil as
the United Kingdom|UK was heavily engaged in World
War II. Both of his parents had musical
backgrounds and experience, though neither pursued
them seriously. Lennon lived with his parents in
Liverpool until his father Fred, a merchant
seaman, walked out on the family when John was
five years old. His mother, Julia, then decided
that she was unable to care for her son, and so
gave him to her sister Mimi. Lennon lived with
Aunt Mimi and her husband George at 251 Menlove
Avenue|Mendips, 251 Menlove Avenue, Liverpool
throughout the rest of his childhood and
adolescence. Like much of the population of
Liverpool, Lennon had some Irish ethnicity|Irish
heritage; his grandfather, James Lennon, having
been born in Dublin in 1858.

Lennon developed severe myopia as he grew up, and
was obliged to wear glasses in order to see
clearly. During his early Beatle career, Lennon
wore contacts or prescription sunglasses (or
simply "toughed it out" without them), 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. On July 15, 1958 - when Lennon was 17 - his
mother was killed after she was struck by a car
driven by a drunken off-duty police officer, and
he had to go to the morgue to identify her body.
Julia's death was one of the factors that cemented
his friendship with Paul McCartney, who had lost
his own mother to breast cancer in 1956, when Paul
was 14.  Years later, Lennon wrote the songs
"Julia (song)|Julia", "Mother" and "My Mummy's
Dead" regarding his mother, as well as naming his
firstborn son, Julian_Lennon|Julian, after her.

Though failing in grammar school, Lennon was
accepted into the Liverpool College of Art with
help from his school's headmaster and Aunt Mimi,
and it was there that he met his future wife,
Cynthia Powell. However, Lennon steadily grew to
hate the conformity of art school, which proved to
be little different from his earlier school
experience, and ultimately dropped out. He instead
devoted himself to music, inspired by American
Rock 'n' Roll and singers like Elvis Presley,
Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly. He'd started a
skiffle band in grammar school called the Quarry
Men (after his alma mater, Quarry Bank Grammar
School|Quarry Bank). With the addition of Paul
McCartney and George Harrison, the band changed to
playing rock 'n' roll, taking the name "Johnny and
the Moondogs", followed by "The Silver Beetles" (a
tribute to Buddy Holly's The Crickets|Crickets),
which was later shortened to The Beatles. He
married Powell in 1962, after she became pregnant
with Julian.

==Role in the Beatles==

Lennon had a profound influence on rock and roll
and in expanding the genre's boundaries during the
1960s. He is widely considered, along with
songwriting partner Paul McCartney, as one of the
most influential singer-songwriter-musicians of
the 20th century.  Many of the songs written by
Lennon, however, are more introspective —
often in the first person — and personal
than McCartney's. His most surreal pieces of
songwriting, "Strawberry Fields Forever" and "I Am
the Walrus", are fine examples of his unique
style. Lennon's partnership in songwriting with
McCartney many times involved him in complementing
and counterbalancing McCartney's upbeat, positive
outlook with the other side of the coin, as one of
their songs, "Getting Better" demonstrates:

: McCartney: I have to admit it's getting better,
a little better all the time.

: Lennon: It can't get much worse!

Lennon often spoke his mind freely and the press
was used to querying him on a wide range of
subjects. On March 4, 1966 in an interview for the
Evening Standard|London Evening Standard with
Maureen Cleave, who was a friend of his, Lennon
made an off the cuff remark regarding religion.
The article was printed and nothing came of it,
until five months later when a Teen magazine
reprinted the words "I don't know what will go
first—Rock and Roll or Christianity. We're
more popular than Jesus now," right on the front
cover. 

A firestorm of protest swelled from the southern
Bible Belt area, as conservative groups publicly
burned Beatles records and memorabilia. Radio
stations banned Beatles music and concert venues
cancelled performances. Even The Vatican got
involved with a public denouncement of Lennon's
comments. On August 11, 1966, the Beatles held a
press conference in Chicago, Illinois, in order to
address the growing furore.

:Lennon: "I suppose if I had said television was
more popular than Jesus, I would have gotten away
with it, but I just happened to be talking to a
friend and I used the words "Beatles" as a remote
thing, not as what I think - as Beatles, as those
other Beatles like other people see us. I just
said "they" are having more influence on kids and
things than anything else, including Jesus. But I
said it in that way which is the wrong way."

:Reporter: "Some teenagers have repeated your
statements - "I like the Beatles more than Jesus
Christ." What do you think about that?"

:Lennon: "Well, originally I pointed out that fact
in reference to England. That we meant more to
kids than Jesus did, or religion at that time. I
wasn't knocking it or putting it down. I was just
saying it as a fact and it's true more for England
than here. I'm not saying that we're better or
greater, or comparing us with Jesus Christ as a
person or God as a thing or whatever it is. I just
said what I said and it was wrong. Or it was taken
wrong. And now it's all this."

:Reporter: "But are you prepared to apologise?"

:Lennon: "I wasn't saying whatever they're saying
I was saying. I'm sorry I said it really. I never
meant it to be a lousy anti-religious thing. I
apologise if that will make you happy. I still
don't know quite what I've done. I've tried to
tell you what I did do but if you want me to
apologise, if that will make you happy, then OK,
I'm sorry."

The governing members of the Vatican accepted his
apology and the furor eventually died down, but
constant Beatlemania, mobs, crazed teenagers, and
now a press ready to tear them to pieces over any
quote was too much to handle. The Beatles soon
decided to stop touring, and indeed, never
performed a scheduled concert again. From this
point onward the Beatles were a studio band
(perhaps the first ever). Freed from the problem
of having to compose music they could recreate
live on stage, they could explore the
technological limits of music and create unique
and original sounds. 

On November 9, 1966, after their final tour ended
and right after he had wrapped up filming a minor
role in the film How I Won the War, Lennon visited
an art exhibit of Yoko Ono's at the Indica art
gallery in London.  Lennon began his love affair
with Ono in 1968 after returning from India and
leaving his estranged wife Cynthia, who filed for
divorce later that year. Lennon and Ono were from
then on inseparable in public and private, as well
as during Beatles recording sessions. The press
was extremely unkind to Ono, posting a series of
unflattering articles about her, one even going so
far as to call her "ugly." This infuriated Lennon,
who rallied around his new partner and said
publicly that there was no John and Yoko, but that
they were one person, JohnAndYoko. These
developments led to friction with the other
members of the group, and heightened the tension
during the 1968 The Beatles (album)|White Album
sessions. 

Some Beatles fans blame Ono for the Beatles'
breakup, but the band had been growing apart
almost immediately after the death of their
manager Brian Epstein in 1967. Lennon in
particular cited Epstein as the glue which had
held them all together; in his absence (together
with the influence of drugs, a desire to do more
work independently, outside friends, alternate
collaborating partners, and
marriages/relationships), the Beatles'
interpersonal relationships simply disintegrated. 

At the end of 1968, Lennon and Ono performed as
Dirty Mac on Rock and Roll Circus|The Rolling
Stones Rock and Roll Circus.

During his last two years as a member of The
Beatles, Lennon spent much of his time with Ono on
public displays protesting the Vietnam War. He
sent back the MBE (Member of the Order of the
British Empire) he received from Elizabeth II of
the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II during the
height of Beatlemania "in protest against
Britain's involvement in the Nigeria-Biafra thing
and support of America in Vietnam," adding as a
joke, "as well as "Cold Turkey" slipping down the
charts." On March 20 1969, Lennon and Ono were
married in Gibraltar, and spent their honeymoon in
Amsterdam in a "Bed-In" for peace. They followed
up their honeymoon with another "Bed-In" for peace
this time held in Montreal.  During the second
"Bed-In" the couple recorded "Give Peace a Chance"
which would go on to become an international
anthem for the peace movement. They were mainly
patronised as a couple of eccentrics by the media,
yet they did a great deal for the peace movement,
as well as for other pet causes, such as women's
liberation and racial harmony. As with the
"Bed-In" campaign, Lennon and Ono usually
advocated their causes with whimsical
demonstrations, such as Bagism, first introduced
during a Vienna press conference. Shortly after,
Lennon changed his middle name from Winston to Ono
to show his "oneness" with his new wife. Lennon
wrote "The Ballad of John and Yoko" about his
marriage and the subsequent press it generated.

The failed Get Back/Let It Be recording/filming
sessions did nothing to improve relations within
the band.  After both Lennon and Ono were injured
in the summer of 1969 in a car accident in
Scotland, Lennon arranged for Ono to be constantly
with him in the studio (including having a
full-sized bed rolled in) as he worked on The
Beatles' last album, Abbey Road (album)|Abbey
Road.  While the group managed to hang together to
produce one last superior musical work, soon
thereafter business issues related to Apple
Records|Apple Corps came between them. 

Lennon decided to quit the Beatles but was talked
out of saying anything publicly.  Phil Spector's
involvement in trying to revive the Let It Be
material then drove a further wedge between Lennon
(who supported Spector) and McCartney (who opposed
him).  Though the split would only become legal
some time later, Lennon and McCartney's
partnership had come to a bitter end. McCartney
soon made a press announcement, declaring he had
quit the Beatles, and promoting his new solo
record.

==Solo career==

Of the four former Beatles, Lennon had perhaps the
most varied recording career.  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 1969, recorded in 1969
(prior to the breakup of the Beatles) at the Rock
'n' Roll Festival in Toronto with The Plastic Ono
Band, which included 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 addiction) and "Instant
Karma!".

Following the Beatles' split in 1970, he released
the John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band album, a raw,
brutally personal record, heavily influenced by
Arthur Janov's Primal Scream therapy, which Lennon
had undergone previously. The influence of the
therapy, which consists literally of screaming out
one's emotional pain, is most obvious on the songs
"Mother" ("Mama don't go!/Daddy come home!") and
"Well Well Well." The centrepiece is "God," in
which he lists all the things he does not believe
in, ending with "Beatles". Many consider "Plastic
Ono Band" to be a major influence on later hard
rock and punk music. Lennon continued this effort
to demythologise his old band with a long,
confrontational interview published in Rolling
Stone magazine.

This was followed in 1971 by Imagine
(album)|Imagine, his most successful solo album,
which alternates in tone between dreaminess and
anger.  The Imagine (song)|title track has become
an anthem for anti-war movements, 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|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 band
Elephant's Memory staged two benefit concerts at
Madison Square Garden in New York City|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|Mike
Douglas Show, in an appearance that showed
Lennon's wit and humour still intact. 

In 1972, Lennon released an anti-sexism|sexist
song, "Woman Is The Nigger Of The World", implying
that as black people were discriminated against in
some countries so were women globally. Radio
refused to broadcast the song, and it was banned
nearly everywhere.

Lennon rebounded in 1973 with Mind Games, which
featured a strong title tune and some vague
mumblings about a "conceptual country" called
"Nutopia", which satirized his ongoing immigration
case. 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)|Ringo album.

In 1973, Lennon's personal life fell into
disrepair when Yoko kicked John out of the house.
Yoko approached May Pang, the attractive Asian
woman who was their personal assistant, at the
time with a unique proposal.  Yoko, who thought
May Pang to be an "ideal companion" for John,
asked her to "be with John and to help him out and
see to it that he gets whatever he wanted." John
and May soon moved to Los Angeles which had been
dubbed the "lost weekend" though it lasted until
the beginning of 1975.  During their time
together, May encouraged John to spend time with
his son, Julian Lennon, and became friends with
Cynthia Lennon. Though John's public drunkenness
had been the subject of gossip during 1974, Pang
wrote that John was usually sober in his private
life and created a large body of work.  	

Despite alleged episodes of drunkenness, Lennon
put together the well-received album, Walls And
Bridges, which featured a collaboration with Elton
John on the up-tempo number one hit "Whatever Gets
You Thru 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 Thru the
Night" and "I Saw Her Standing There" together. It
was to be his last-ever concert appearance.		

In 1975, Lennon released the Rock 'n' Roll (John
Lennon album)|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 by several legal
battles; the result received generally negative
reviews, though it yielded a powerful, lauded
cover of "Stand By Me (song)|Stand By Me". 

At this point Yoko was pregnant with what would be
their first child, and Lennon — saddened by
the fact that due to Beatlemania he had never
gotten to experience fatherhood with his first son
Julian — retired from music and dedicated
himself to family life. This was made easier in
1976 when his Immigration and Naturalization
Service|U.S. immigration status was finally
resolved favourably, after a years-long battle
with the Richard Nixon|Nixon administration that
included a FBI investigation involving
surveillance, wiretaps, and agents literally
following Lennon around as he travelled. Lennon
claimed the investigation was politically
motivated.

Also in 1975, David Bowie achieved his first US
number one hit with "Fame (David Bowie
song)|Fame", co-written by Bowie, Lennon (who also
contributed backing vocals) and Carlos Alomar.

Lennon's retirement, which he began following the
birth of his second son, Sean Lennon|Sean in 1975,
lasted until 1980 when Lennon, for the first time
in five years, picked up his guitar again. At
first only curious to see if he could still write
music, he felt refreshed and full of ideas,
completely reinvigorated by the experiences of
fatherhood and the long break from the business.
He wrote an impressive amount of material during a
Caribbean vacation and began thinking about a new
album. For this comeback, he and Ono produced
Double Fantasy, a concept album dealing with their
relationship. The name came from a flower Lennon
saw at an exposition; he liked the name, and
thought it was a perfect description of his
marriage to Yoko. "(Just Like) Starting Over"
began climbing the singles charts, and Lennon
started thinking about a brand new world tour.
Lennon also commenced work on Milk And Honey which
he would, unfortunately, leave unfinished. It was
some time before Ono could bring herself to
complete it.

==Murder==


In the late afternoon 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;  it was
the last autograph Lennon ever gave.  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
their apartment from recording Ono's single
"Walking On Thin Ice (song)|Walking On Thin Ice"
for their next album. At 10.50pm, their limousine
pulled up to the entrance of the Dakota. Ono got
out of the car first, followed by Lennon. Beyond
the main entrance was a door which would be opened
and a small set of stairs leading into the
apartment complex. As Ono went in, Lennon got out
of the car and glanced at Chapman, proceeding on
through the entrance to the Dakota. 

As Lennon walked past him, Chapman called out "Mr.
Lennon."  As Lennon turned, Chapman crouched into
what witnesses called a "combat" stance and fired
five hollowpoint bullets into John's back and
shoulder.  One of the bullets fatally pierced his
aorta. Still, Lennon managed to stagger up six
steps into the concierge booth where he collapsed,
gasping "I'm shot, I'm shot." 

Chapman dropped his .38 Charter Arms revolver,
which was kicked away by Jose Perdomo who then
asked "Do you know what you have done?", to which
Chapman replied "I just shot John Lennon." Chapman
then calmly took his coat off placed it at his
feet, took out a book and started reading.

Police arrived within minutes, to find Chapman
still waiting quietly outside, reading a copy of
J.D. Salinger's novel, The Catcher in the Rye. 

The two officers transported Lennon to the
hospital in the back of their squad car as they
thought John was too badly hurt to take the risk
of waiting for an ambulance. One of the officers
asked Lennon if he knew who he was. Lennon's reply
is reported to have been "Yeah" or simply a nod of
the head before he passed out. Despite extensive
resuscitative efforts in the hospital, Lennon had
lost over 80% of his blood volume and died of
shock at the age of 40. Millions would receive the
news that night from Howard Cosell, commentator
for American_Broadcasting_Company |ABC's Monday
Night Football.

==Memorial==
A crowd gathered outside the Dakota the night of
Lennon's death. Ono sent word that their singing
kept her awake and asked that they re-convene in
Central Park the following Sunday, for ten minutes
of silent prayer
(http://www.johnlennon.it/english.htm see also the
1980 Central Park Vigil - Tribute to John Lennon).
Her request for a silent gathering was honoured
all over the world. 

A special commemorative issue of Rolling Stone 
magazine released shortly after the murder
featured as its cover a photo taken the morning of
the shooting by Annie Leibovitz showing a nude
Lennon in an embryonic pose kissing a fully
clothed Ono.

The Strawberry Fields Memorial was constructed in
Central Park across the street from the Dakota, in
memory of Lennon. When George Harrison died in
2001, people congregated on the "Imagine" mosaic
circle in Strawberry Fields.

In 1988, Warner Bros. produced a documentary film,
Imagine: John Lennon (sanctioned in part by Yoko
Ono.)  The movie was a biography of the former
Beatle, featuring interviews, rarely seen musical
material, and narration by Lennon himself (formed
from interviews and tapes recorded by Lennon).  It
also introduced "Real Love", one of the last songs
composed by Lennon, in an early demo (a later Demo
(music)|demo would form the basis for the version
rehashed by The Beatles for The Beatles
Anthology).  The 1989|following year, at an
auction of Beatles memorabilia, John Lennon's
jukebox|Lennon's jukebox was sold at Christie's
for 2,500 pounds.  The Mellotron that Lennon used
to record, amongst other songs, "Strawberry Fields
Forever", is currently owned by Trent Reznor of
the band Nine Inch Nails.

Specially selected radio stations aired a
syndicated series called The Lost Lennon Tapes in
1990.  Hosted by Lennon publicist Elliot Mintz,
the show spotlighted raw sessions from throughout
Lennon's career with and without The Beatles,
including rare material never released to the
public.  During the America: A Tribute to Heroes
concert on September 21, 2001, Neil Young (an
avowed devotee of Lennon) sang "Imagine." 

In October 2000 John Lennon Museum was opened in
Ono's hometown Saitama, Saitama|Saitama, Japan, to
preserve knowledge of his works and career. 
In March, 2002, his native city, Liverpool,
honoured his memory by renaming their airport
"Liverpool John Lennon Airport," and adopting as
its motto a line from his song "Imagine
(song)|Imagine": "Above us only sky".  In the same
year, Lennon was voted 8th by the British public
in the "100 Greatest Britons" poll run by the BBC.
BBC History Magazine commented that his
"generational influence is immense."

On October 31, 1994,  Phish, a jam band, paid
tribute to Lennon and the Beatles by covering The
Beatles (album)|The Beatles album (also known as
the White Album).

In 2004 Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna paid tribute
to Lennon by singing a cover of "Imagine
(song)|Imagine" during her anti-war themed
"Re-Invention World Tour."

In 2005, a musical titled Lennon was shown for the
first time in San Francisco. It received a very
lacklustre response from theatre critics and
Beatles fans alike.

In 2005, Cowboy Junkies covered "I Don't Want To
Be A Soldier" on their anti-war album, "Early 21st
Century Blues".

John Lennon Park was built in Cuba as a memorial
to the musician.

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.

A biographical Broadway musical titled Lennon will
premiere at New York City’s Broadhurst Theater
on August 14, 2005.  Written and directed by Don
Scardino from Lennon's own words in interviews and
songs, Lennon features nine diverse actors and
actresses portraying the singer-songwriter at
various stages in his life backed by an onstage
10-piece band.  The play was produced with the
endorsement of Yoko Ono, who gave permission for
the production to use two unpublished Lennon
songs, India, India and I Don't Want to Lose You,
and who attended preview performances of the show
at New York City's Broadhurst Theater on August 5
& 6, 2005.

==Discography==

For a detailed discography, see: John Lennon
discography

==Biographies and books ==
Numerous biographies of John Lennon have been
published. Notable among these are The Lives of
John Lennon by Albert Goldman (which many consider
to be more fiction than fact) and Lennon: The
Definitive Biography by Ray Coleman.

John Lennon wrote three books himself: John
Lennon: In His Own Write, A Spaniard in the Works,
and Skywriting by Word of Mouth (the last
published posthumously). A personal sketchbook
with Lennon's familiar cartoons illustrating
definitions of Japanese words, Ai: Japan Through
John Lennon's Eyes, was published posthumously.

*Jack Jones, Let Me Take You Down: Inside the mind
of Mark David Chapman, 1992, Virgin , ISBN
0863696899

==Trivia==
* Some people believe that Lennon's murder was
actually a political assassination, although this
idea is often dismissed as a conspiracy theory
**
http://www.john-lennon.com/theassassinationofjl.ht
m The Assassination of John Lennon
** http://www.mackwhite.com/lennon.html Dead
Silence in the Brain
**
http://www.jfkmontreal.com/john_lennon/lennon_repo
rt.htm Rethinking John Lennon's Assassination -- A
new book by Salvador Astucia that looks at a
different angle of the murder.
* Heavy metal music|Heavy metal musician Dimebag
Darrell was murdered in 2004 on the anniversary of
Lennon's death in an unrelated shooting spree.
* Though Lennon was usually a vocal campaigner for
peace, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/649397.stm he
may have supported the IRA.  Records leaked from
MI5 and the FBI in 2000 reportedly showed a
£175,000 donation to the IRA during the early
1970s. He is known to have identified with and
spoken in favour of the Ireland|Irish civil rights
movement, especially during his Some Time In New
York City-era fling with radical-militant
politics.
* Lennon's friend, musician Klaus Voorman, did the
artwork for Beatles|The Beatles Revolver
(album)|Revolver album cover.  In addition to
performing with Lennon's Plastic Ono Band, Voorman
also performed with George Harrison and Manfred
Mann.
* He had an apartment set aside for his collection
of fur coats.
* On Lennon's posthumous compilation album
Acoustic (John Lennon album)|Acoustic, a demo
recording of the song "God" contains the lines "I
just believe in me/And that's reality". This lyric
was changed to "I just believe in me/Yoko and
me/And that's reality" when the song was included
on the Plastic Ono Band album. It has been
suggested that the change of the song's lyrics was
due to Ono's persuasion of Lennon.
* On July 28, 2005 Lennon's handwritten lyrics
sheet for the classic "All You Need is Love" sold
for £600,000 at an auction in London.

==See also==
*List of best-selling music artists

==External links==

commons|John Lennon

* imdb name|id=0006168|name=John Lennon
* http://www.thrasherswheat.org/jammin/lennon.htm
Imagine was covered on America: A Tribute to
Heroes by Neil Young.
* http://www.bagism.com/ John Lennon fan site
* http://www.lennon.net/ The Liverpool Lennons
website
*
http://www.peacemakersguide.org/peace/Peacemakers/
John-Lennon.htm Bruderhof Peacemakers Guide
profile on John Lennon
* http://www.johnlennon.it/ John Lennon Dreamsite
— Celebrates Lennon's ideals of peace, love
and freedom. Offers pictures from the Imagine Your
Are exhibit at Galleria Nazionale d’Arte
Moderna in Rome by Fiorella Dorotea Gentile
* http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/lennon.htm FBI
file on John Lennon
*
http://www.words4ever.net/authors/1304/john-lennon
-quotations-sayings.htm Famous quotations by John
Lennon
* http://johnlennon.lyrics.info/ John Lennon
lyrics — A complete collection of lyrics
from http://lyrics.info/ lyrics.info
* http://beatles.ncf.ca/lennon_inquiry.html John
Lennon's private testimony to the Le Dain
Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of
Drugs, 1969-12-22, in Montreal, Quebec.
* http://www.thebeatles.com.hk/john/ The Beatles
Studio: John Lennon A Hong Kong based fansite with
lyrics, discography and many John Lennon
information.


The Beatles