John Lennon
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John Lennon is one of the members of the famous band The Beatles. He is one of the greatest and most influential artists of all time. His biggest hit songs are "Imagine" and "Give Peace a Chance".
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[edit] About
John Winston Lennon, who changed his name in 1969 to John Ono Lennon, and who was a member of The Beatles, was born on October 9, 1940 in Liverpool, England. Guitarist, keyboard player, songwriter and vocalist, he married Yoko Ono, a Japanese artist, in 1969. Recorded under the name Plastic Ono Band, "Give Peace A Chance" became a national anthem for the peace movement. Lennon and his wife stayed in bed while being interviewed. At the peak of The Beatles success, Lennon was thinking about his solo career.
In 1964, he published a collection of his compositions, In His Own Write, followed by A Spaniard in the Works in 1965. In 1968 Lennon left the band to pursue his solo career. He recorded Unfinished Music, No. 1: Two Virgins with his new lover, but became a controversy because of a naked picture of Lennon and Ono on the cover. In 1969, Unfinished Music, No. 2: Life With the Lions and The Wedding Album were released under Avant-Gard Records. He performed a concert at Toronto rock & roll festival supported by the Plastic Ono Band. The band consisted of guitarist Eric Clapton, bassist Klaus Voorman and drummer Alan White. They released "Cold Turkey", a single about his battle with a brief, but intense, heroin addiction and the sudden withdrawal resulting from it.
Continuing their peace campaign, they released "War Is Over! (If You Want It)". In 1970, "Instant Karma" was released as a single, a song written by Lennon himself. It reached the Top Ten in both the U.K. and the U.S. A solo album was released later that year, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. In 1971, another protest single, "Power to the People" was released. Lennon and Ono became more actively involved in political activism and supported a number of American radicals. Their activism turned into an album, Sometime in New York City, released in 1972. It consisted purely of political songs which temporarily damaged Lennon's name and faced harsh criticism as his wife Yoko Ono took a significant role in this album.
In 1971, he moved to New York where he continued to take part in left-wing political demonstraion and the anti-war movement. The US government quickly gained notice, and the FBI and the NSA kept very close tabs on him, intercepting his phone lines, having informants in places where he was likely to show up and folowing him throughout. As a result, he had troubles getting a green-card for his for marijuana possession in 1968 (which was widely said to be fabricated) repeatedly sent his case to the Supreme Court and Immigration Services over the constant harrassment he received from the authorities. Later in 1973, he released Mind Games. A month before the release of Mind Games (October 1973), Lennon and Ono separated. The following year, he started partying a lot with Elton John, Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon, David Bowie and Ringo Starr in Los Angeles. Walls And Bridges was issued and became a hit with the single "Whatever Gets You Through the Night", composed by Elton John. Elton John helped Lennon and Ono to get back together. In 1976, Lennon was finally granted his green-card.
Throughout the latter half of the 1970s, Lennon vanished from the public eye and became very inaccessible to the press while raising his newborn son Sean, with whom he committed himself to be a full-time father, something only dreamt about at the height of Beatlemania. As disco and hard rock burned up the charts throuht 1976-1979, Lennon seemed to be a relic of the 1960s-early '70s, leading to rumours that he retired from the business. However, in 1980, Lennon after signing a contract with Geffen Records, Lennon returned back to the spotlight after what seemed to be a permanent retirement and recorded Double Fantasy throughout the spring and summer of 1980. The album was released on 17 November and quickly gained a spot in the Top 20. On December 8, he was shot by Mark David Chapman at the age of 40. Just hours before the unexpected tragedy, Lennon recieved the ironically cheerful news that the album "Double Fantasy" and its single "(Just Like) Starting Over" both became number one hits. The world was grief-stricken and on December 14, a ten-minute of silence was dedicated for Lennon at 2 p.m.
[edit] Awards & Certifications
Awards
| Year | Award | Category |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | Golden Laurel | Musical Performance, Male 2nd place for Help! |
| 1971 | Oscar | Best Music, Original Song Score for Let It Be (1970) |
| 1982 | Brit Award | Outstanding Contribution |
| 1982 | Grammy Award | Album of the Year for "Double Fantasy" |
| 1988 | BMI TV Music Award | Won for The Wonder Years |
| 1990 | BMI TV Music Award | Won The Wonder Years (1988) |
| 1994 | BMI TV Music Award | Won Grace Under Fire (1993) |
| 1995 | BMI TV Music Award | Won Grace Under Fire (1993) |
| 1999 | BMI TV Music Award | Won for Providence |
| 2003 | BMI TV Music Award | Won Providence |
| 2002 | BMI TV Music Award | Won Providence |
Certifications
| Year | Album | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | John Lennon / Plastic Ono Band | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| 1971 | Imagine | Certified 2x Platinum in U.S. |
| 1973 | Mind Games | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| 1974 | Walls And Bridges | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| 1975 | Rock 'N' Roll | Certified Gold in U.S. |
| 1975 | Shaved Fish | Certified Platinum in U.S. |
| 1980 | Double Fantasy | Certified 3x Platinum in U.S. |
| 1984 | Milk And Honey | Certified Gold in U.S. |
[edit] Chart Toppers
| Year | Title | The Billboard 200 |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Milk And Honey | 11 |
| 1986 | Live In New York | 41 |
| 1988 | Imagine: John Lennon | 31 |
| 1998 | John Lennon Anthology | 99 |
| 1998 | Lennon Legend -- The Very Best Of John Lennon | 65 |
| 2004 | Acoustic | 31 |
| 2005 | Working Class Hero: The Definitive Lennon | 135 |
[edit] News
[edit] Tours & Concerts
[edit] Announcements
- There will be an upcoming movie based on the real life of John Lennon Aactor Robert Carlyle will perform the role of John Lennon.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
 November 11, 1968 Zapple |
 October 20, 1969 Apple |
 May 26, 1969 Zapple |
 December 11, 1970 Apple |
 September 09, 1971 Capitol |
 November 02, 1973 Apple |
 September 26, 1974 Apple |
February 17, 1975 Capitol |
 November 17, 1980 David Geffen Co. |
 January 27, 1984 Polydor |
 November 03, 1986 Capitol |
[edit] Singles
| Year | Single | Label | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Cold Turkey | Apple | Live Peace In Toronto |
| 1969 | Give Peace a Chance | Apple | Live Peace In Toronto |
| 1970 | Instant Karma (We All Shine On) | Apple | Shaved Fish |
| 1971 | Happy Xmas (War Is Over) | EMI | Shaved Fish |
| 1971 | Imagine | EMI | Imagine |
| 1971 | Mother | CAT | Live In New York City |
| 1971 | Power to the People | CAT | John Lennon Collection |
| 1972 | Woman Is the Nigger of the World | CAT | Some Time In New York City |
| 1973 | Mind Games | CAT | Mind Games |
| 1974 | #9 Dream | CAT | Walls And Bridges |
| 1974 | What Ever Gets You Thru The... | CAT | Walls And Bridges |
| 1975 | Stand by Me | CAT | Rock 'N' Roll |
| 1999 | Jealous Guy | CAT | Imagine |
| 1999 | Love | EMI International | Imagine: John Lennon |
[edit] Compilations & Live Releases
| Album | Release Date | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Shaved Fish | October, 24, 1975 | Parlophone |
| Roots: John Lennon Sings the Great Rock & Roll Hits February, | 1975 | Adam |
| John Lennon Box Set | June, 15, 1981 | Parlophone |
| The John Lennon Collection | November, 10, 1982 | David Geffen Co. |
| Imagine: John Lennon [Original Soundtrack] | October, 10, 1988 | Capitol |
| Lennon | 1990 | Capitol |
| Lennon Legend: The Very Best of John Lennon | 1997 | Apple/Parlophone |
| Wonsaponatime | November, 03, 1998 | Capitol |
| Anthology | November, 03, 1998 | Capitol |
| Legend Box | March, 23, 1999 | Import |
| Bedism | September, 14, 1999 | Dressed to Kill |
| The Legends Collection | February, 13, 2001 | Dressed to Kill |
| Brandy Alexanders & the Wall of Sound | 2001 | Vigotone |
| Collection | November, 26, 2002 | EMI |
| Instant Karma: All-Time Greatest Hits | 2001 | EMI-Capitol |
| Acoustic | November, 02, 2004 | Capitol |
| Working Class Hero: The Definitive Lennon | October, 04, 2005 | Capitol |
| Peace, Love & Truth | August, 30, 2005 | EMI |
| Unfinished Music No. 2: Life with the Lions [Bonus Tracks] | December, 26, 2006 | Video Arts Japan |
| The U.S. vs. John Lennon | September, 26, 2006 | Capitol |
[edit] Other artists
[edit] Similar artists
[edit] Influences
[edit] Contemporaries
[edit] Trivia
- He was the only member of the Beatles that did not host Saturday Night Live, but would very likely appear had he survived 8 Dec. 1980.
- He bought a private island in Clew Bay, County Mayo, Ireland known as Dorinish. The island is a temporary getaway for Lennon.
- One of his collection entitled "My Anthology" fetched $226,150.00 at the London auction house.
- He was called a revolutionist by Fidel Castro.
- John Lennon was rumored to be anorexic and has eating disorders, which sheds some mystery on his dramatic weight loss and emaciated appearance since the late 1960s. But neither Lennon nor Yoko, nor anyone close to them (including the other Beatles and Julian) had confirmed nor denied this. The book "Lennon in America 1971-1980" mentions that Lennon allegedly weighed 135 lbs (61,2 kg.), which is alarmingly thin for his rumoured 5'11 stature.
