Artist from the past – John Lennon

John Lennon was a member of The Beatles from 1957-1970.  He is considered by many people to be a creative genius and peace advocate.  Interestingly, Lennon failed out of art school before joining The Beatles where he wrote and co-wrote many hits during Beatlemania.  After The Beatles broke up, John maintained a successful solo career until he was tragically murdered in New York City on December 8, 1980. 

In 1971 Lennon released Imaginewhich is his most recognised solo project.  The title track has become synonymous with his life and his message of peace.  Several other tracks on the album were also politically charged.  These songs were representative of the political upheaval that was occurring towards the end of the Vietnam war and Nixon’s presidency.  The album struck such a chord that it quickly became the #1 album worldwide. 

Lennon’s political activism and philosophical lyrics place him squarely in the same category as other folk singer/songwriters of the same period.  Lennon, however, separated himself in one obvious way:  he was the “John” from “John, Paul, George, and Ringo” — the most popular band in the world at the time.  Lennon’s activism was not limited to his lyrics, however, as he was an active supporter of the civil rights movement and anti-war protests.  Imaginealso featured former Beetle George Harrison on the track “How Do You Sleep?” 

No discussion about Imagine could be complete without a discussion of the album’s co-producer, Yoko Ono.  Yoko co-wrote one track from Imagine, but was the topic of two songs.  Some disgruntled Beetlemaniacs saw this as Yoko self-promoting herself on the coattails of Lennon.  The song “Oh Yoko!” was written entirely by Lennon as an ode to the woman he loved.  Yoko has since attempted a musical career of her own, but is more celebrated as a visual artist and political activist.  Forever dubbed “the woman that destroyed The Beatles” Yoko was married to Lennon and was his business partner throughout his solo career.  She also supervise the remastering of Imagine in 2000.

Of course, Lennon was one of those public figures who are met with throngs of supporters wherever they go.  However, with great love there often comes great hate.  Lennon preached free love, togetherness, peace, and a Marxist view of society.  The things that he stood for ultimately led to his murder during the Cold War era in 1980.  Lennon has been compared to such figures as Gandhi for his selfless struggle for peaceful relationships around the world and in his own country, and ultimately being killed for his views.  

Imagine is not only an album or a song, it is the inscription on the Lennon memorial commemorating the life of John Lennon in Central Park in New York City.  The man and the album inspired activism for peace and developed ideas within the people of the United States that may have ultimately led to such events as the destruction of the Berlin wall and the end of the Cold War which had raged since the end of World War II.  While there is no direct evidence that these events were caused by this album, I like to think that the idea of peace throughout the world was developed by people associated with (and who listened to) John Lennon’s work.  His political activism for peace surely struck a chord with many Americans.