John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist, and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles.
He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (in 1997) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice, as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994). == Early years: 1940–1957 == Lennon was born at Liverpool Maternity Hospital to Julia (née Stanley) (1914–1958) and Alfred Lennon (1912–1976).
His father was often away from home but sent regular pay cheques to 9Newcastle Road, Liverpool, where Lennon lived with his mother; the cheques stopped when he went absent without leave in February 1944.
In July 1946, Lennon's father visited her and took his son to Blackpool, secretly intending to emigrate to New Zealand with him.
After passing his eleven-plus exam, he attended Quarry Bank High School in Liverpool from September 1952 to 1957, and was described by Harvey at the time as a "happy-go-lucky, good-humoured, easy going, lively lad".
From Edinburgh we would drive up to the family croft at Durness, which was from about the time John was nine years old until he was about 16." Lennon's uncle George died of a liver haemorrhage on 5 June 1955, aged 52. Lennon was raised as an Anglican and attended Dovedale Primary School.
In 1956, he formed his first band, the Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960.
He often drew comical cartoons that appeared in his own, self-made school magazine called the Daily Howl. In 1956, Julia bought John his first guitar.
In the description of Cynthia Powell, Lennon's fellow student and subsequently his wife, he was "thrown out of the college before his final year". == The Quarrymen to the Beatles: 1956–1970 == === Formation, fame and touring: 1956–1966 === At the age of 15, Lennon formed a skiffle group, the Quarrymen.
Named after Quarry Bank High School, the group was established by Lennon in September 1956.
After passing his eleven-plus exam, he attended Quarry Bank High School in Liverpool from September 1952 to 1957, and was described by Harvey at the time as a "happy-go-lucky, good-humoured, easy going, lively lad".
By the summer of 1957, the Quarrymen played a "spirited set of songs" made up of half-skiffle and half-rock and roll.
Later that year, Roxy Music's cover version of "Jealous Guy", recorded as a tribute to Lennon, was also a UK number-one. ==Personal relationships== ===Cynthia Lennon=== Lennon met Cynthia Powell (1939–2015) in 1957, when they were fellow students at the Liverpool College of Art.
Mimi was sceptical of his claim that he would be famous one day, and she hoped that he would grow bored with music, often telling him, "The guitar's all very well, John, but you'll never make a living out of it." On 15 July 1958, Julia Lennon was struck and killed by a car while she was walking home after visiting the Smiths' house.
In 1956, he formed his first band, the Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960.
Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Sutcliffe became "The Beatles" in early 1960.
After the first Hamburg residency, the band accepted another in April 1961, and a third in April 1962.
The case was settled out of court in November 1968, with Lennon giving her £100,000 ($240,000 in US dollars at the time), a small annual payment and custody of Julian. ===Brian Epstein=== The Beatles were performing at Liverpool's Cavern Club in November 1961 when they were introduced to Brian Epstein after a midday concert.
After the first Hamburg residency, the band accepted another in April 1961, and a third in April 1962.
As with the other band members, Lennon was introduced to Preludin while in Hamburg, and regularly took the drug as a stimulant during their long, overnight performances. Brian Epstein managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967.
The band's first single, "Love Me Do", was released in October 1962 and reached No.
That is why I am always on about peace." Recalling his July 1962 reaction when he learned that Cynthia was pregnant, Lennon said, "There's only one thing for it Cyn.
During this time Lennon wrote his first song, "Hello Little Girl", which became a UK top 10 hit for the Fourmost in 1963. McCartney recommended that his friend George Harrison become the lead guitarist.
They recorded their debut album, Please Please Me, in under 10 hours on 11 February 1963, a day when Lennon was suffering the effects of a cold, which is evident in the vocal on the last song to be recorded that day, "Twist and Shout".
He was older and he was very much the leader; he was the quickest wit and the smartest." The Beatles achieved mainstream success in the UK early in 1963.
Julian was born on 8 April 1963; Lennon was on tour at the time and did not see his infant son until three days later. Cynthia attributed the start of the marriage breakdown to Lennon's use of LSD, and she felt that he slowly lost interest in her as a result of his use of the drug.
Lennon was touring with the Beatles when Julian was born on 8 April 1963.
and the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewellery." After a year of Beatlemania in the UK, the group's historic February 1964 US debut appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show marked their breakthrough to international stardom.
The Beatles received recognition from the British establishment when they were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1965 Queen's Birthday Honours. Lennon grew concerned that fans who attended Beatles concerts were unable to hear the music above the screaming of fans, and that the band's musicianship was beginning to suffer as a result.
Lennon's "Help!" expressed his own feelings in 1965: "I meant it...
hot and hysterical." In March 1966, during an interview with Evening Standard reporter Maureen Cleave, Lennon remarked, "Christianity will go.
The furore that followed, which included the burning of Beatles records, Ku Klux Klan activity and threats against Lennon, contributed to the band's decision to stop touring. === Studio years, break-up and solo work: 1966–1970 === After the band's final concert on 29 August 1966, Lennon filmed the anti-war black comedy How I Won the War – his only appearance in a non-Beatles feature film – before rejoining his bandmates for an extended period of recording, beginning in November.
He's here, he belongs to me, and he always will." He said he was trying to reestablish a connection with the then 17-year-old, and confidently predicted, "Julian and I will have a relationship in the future." After his death it was revealed that he had left Julian very little in his will. ===Yoko Ono=== Lennon first met Yoko Ono on 9 November 1966 at the Indica Gallery in London, where Ono was preparing her conceptual art exhibit.
Starting with 1967's "All You Need Is Love", his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement and the larger counterculture. From 1968 to 1972, Lennon produced more than a dozen records with Ono, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums, his first solo LP John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, and the international top 10 singles "Give Peace a Chance", "Instant Karma!", "Imagine" and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)".
As with the other band members, Lennon was introduced to Preludin while in Hamburg, and regularly took the drug as a stimulant during their long, overnight performances. Brian Epstein managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967.
Lennon had increased his use of LSD and, according to author Ian MacDonald, his continuous use of the drug in 1967 brought him "close to erasing his identity".
The year 1967 saw the release of "Strawberry Fields Forever", hailed by Time magazine for its "astonishing inventiveness", and the group's landmark album Sgt.
When the group travelled by train to Bangor, Wales in 1967 for the Maharishi Yogi's Transcendental Meditation seminar, a policeman did not recognise her and stopped her from boarding.
Starting with 1967's "All You Need Is Love", his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement and the larger counterculture. From 1968 to 1972, Lennon produced more than a dozen records with Ono, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums, his first solo LP John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, and the international top 10 singles "Give Peace a Chance", "Instant Karma!", "Imagine" and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)".
Julia's memory would later serve as a major creative inspiration for Lennon, inspiring songs such as the 1968 Beatles song "Julia". Lennon's senior school years were marked by a shift in his behaviour.
While the film itself proved to be their first critical flop, its soundtrack release, featuring Lennon's Lewis Carroll-inspired "I Am the Walrus", was a success. Led by Harrison and Lennon's interest, the Beatles travelled to the Maharishi's ashram in India in February 1968 for further guidance.
At the end of 1968, Lennon participated in The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus, a television special that was not broadcast.
A film version was released in 1996. By late 1968, Lennon's increased drug use and growing preoccupation with Ono, combined with the Beatles' inability to agree on how the company should be run, left Apple in need of professional management.
Lennon's creative focus continued to move beyond the Beatles, and between 1968 and 1969 he and Ono recorded three albums of experimental music together: Two Virgins (known more for its cover than for its music), Life with the Lions and Wedding Album.
The case was settled out of court in November 1968, with Lennon giving her £100,000 ($240,000 in US dollars at the time), a small annual payment and custody of Julian. ===Brian Epstein=== The Beatles were performing at Liverpool's Cavern Club in November 1961 when they were introduced to Brian Epstein after a midday concert.
While his wife was on holiday in Greece in May 1968, Lennon invited Ono to visit.
When Lennon's wife returned home she found Ono wearing her bathrobe and drinking tea with Lennon who simply said, "Oh, hi." Ono became pregnant in 1968 and miscarried a male child on 21 November 1968, a few weeks after Lennon's divorce from Cynthia was granted. Two years before the Beatles disbanded, Lennon and Ono began public protests against the Vietnam War.
Looking for somewhere with better security, they relocated in 1973 to the more secure Dakota overlooking Central Park at 1West72nd Street. ===May Pang=== ABKCO Industries was formed in 1968 by Allen Klein as an umbrella company to ABKCO Records.
In 1969, he started the Plastic Ono Band with his second wife, Yoko Ono.
In 1969, he held the two week-long anti-war demonstration Bed-Ins for Peace.
In early 1969, Klein was appointed as Apple's chief executive by Lennon, Harrison and Starr, but McCartney never signed the management contract.
Lennon and Ono were married on 20 March 1969, and soon released a series of 14 lithographs called "Bag One" depicting scenes from their honeymoon, eight of which were deemed indecent and most of which were banned and confiscated.
Lennon's creative focus continued to move beyond the Beatles, and between 1968 and 1969 he and Ono recorded three albums of experimental music together: Two Virgins (known more for its cover than for its music), Life with the Lions and Wedding Album.
In 1969, they formed the Plastic Ono Band, releasing Live Peace in Toronto 1969.
The medal, together with Lennon's letter, is held at the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood. Lennon left the Beatles in September 1969, but agreed not to inform the media while the group renegotiated their recording contract.
They were married in Gibraltar on 20 March 1969, and spent their honeymoon at the Hilton Amsterdam, campaigning with a week-long Bed-In for Peace.
Lennon changed his name by deed poll on 22 April 1969, adding "Ono" as a middle name.
Klein hired May Pang as a receptionist in 1969.
After the Beatles disbanded in 1970, Lennon continued his career as a solo artist and as Ono's collaborator. Born in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager.
Lennon initially resisted his attempts to encourage the band to present a professional appearance, but eventually complied, saying "I'll wear a bloody balloon if somebody's going to pay me." McCartney took over on bass after Sutcliffe decided to stay in Hamburg, and Best was replaced with drummer Ringo Starr; this completed the four-piece line-up that would remain until the group's break-up in 1970.
He was outraged that McCartney publicised his own departure on releasing his debut solo album in April 1970.
It's as simple as that." In a December 1970 interview with Jann Wenner of Rolling Stone magazine, he revealed his bitterness towards McCartney, saying, "I was a fool not to do what Paul did, which was use it to sell a record." Lennon also spoke of the hostility he perceived the other members had towards Ono, and of how he, Harrison and Starr "got fed up with being sidemen for Paul ...
But what is leading us when we went round in circles?" == Solo career: 1970–1980 == === Initial solo success and activism: 1970–1972 === In 1970, Lennon and Ono went through primal therapy with Arthur Janov in Los Angeles, California.
Lennon later proudly declared, "He didn't come out of my belly but, by God, I made his bones, because I've attended to every meal, and to how he sleeps, and to the fact that he swims like a fish." ===Former Beatles=== While Lennon remained consistently friendly with Starr during the years that followed the Beatles' break-up in 1970, his relationships with McCartney and Harrison varied.
After moving to New York City in 1971, his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a three-year attempt by the Nixon administration to deport him.
In January 1971, Tariq Ali expressed his revolutionary political views when he interviewed Lennon, who immediately responded by writing "Power to the People".
Harrison refused to allow Ono to participate at the concerts, however, which resulted in the couple having a heated argument and Lennon pulling out of the event. Lennon and Ono moved to New York in August 1971 and immediately embraced US radical left politics.
I always thought it was about me and Yoko but he said it wasn't." Lennon's relationship with Julian was already strained, and after Lennon and Ono moved to New York in 1971, Julian did not see his father again until 1973.
He was initially close to Harrison, but the two drifted apart after Lennon moved to the US in 1971.
Starting with 1967's "All You Need Is Love", his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement and the larger counterculture. From 1968 to 1972, Lennon produced more than a dozen records with Ono, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums, his first solo LP John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, and the international top 10 singles "Give Peace a Chance", "Instant Karma!", "Imagine" and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)".
Lennon was embroiled in a continuing legal battle with the immigration authorities, and he was denied permanent residency in the US; the issue would not be resolved until 1976. Some Time in New York City was recorded as a collaboration with Ono and was released in 1972 with backing from the New York band Elephant's Memory.
Staged at Madison Square Garden on 30 August 1972, they were his last full-length concert appearances.
After George McGovern lost the 1972 presidential election to Richard Nixon, Lennon and Ono attended a post-election wake held in the New York home of activist Jerry Rubin.
Ono's song "Death of Samantha" was inspired by the incident. === "Lost weekend": 1973–1975 === While Lennon was recording Mind Games in 1973, he and Ono decided to separate.
Mind Games, credited to the "Plastic U.F.Ono Band", was released in November 1973.
I always thought it was about me and Yoko but he said it wasn't." Lennon's relationship with Julian was already strained, and after Lennon and Ono moved to New York in 1971, Julian did not see his father again until 1973.
Looking for somewhere with better security, they relocated in 1973 to the more secure Dakota overlooking Central Park at 1West72nd Street. ===May Pang=== ABKCO Industries was formed in 1968 by Allen Klein as an umbrella company to ABKCO Records.
In 1973, after she had been working with the couple for three years, Ono confided that she and Lennon were becoming estranged.
With Harrison joining Starr and Lennon at the recording session for the song, it marked the only occasion when three former Beatles recorded together between the band's break-up and Lennon's death. In early 1974, Lennon was drinking heavily and his alcohol-fuelled antics with Harry Nilsson made headlines.
Released in October 1974, it included "Whatever Gets You thru the Night", which featured Elton John on backing vocals and piano, and became Lennon's only single as a solo artist to top the US Billboard Hot 100 chart during his lifetime.
When Harrison was in New York for his December 1974 Dark Horse tour, Lennon agreed to join him on stage but failed to appear after an argument over Lennon's refusal to sign an agreement that would finally dissolve the Beatles' legal partnership.
The two later began to reestablish something of the close friendship they had once known, and in 1974, they even played music together again before eventually growing apart once more.
In 1975, Lennon disengaged from the music business to raise his infant son Sean and, in 1980, returned with the Ono collaboration Double Fantasy.
Lennon performed the song along with "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and "I Saw Her Standing There", which he introduced as "a song by an old estranged fiancé of mine called Paul". Lennon co-wrote "Fame", David Bowie's first US number one, and provided guitar and backing vocals for the January 1975 recording.
The band, known as Etc., wore masks behind their heads, a dig by Lennon, who thought Grade was two-faced. === Hiatus and return: 1975–1980 === Sean was Lennon's only child with Ono.
Sean was born on 9 October 1975 (Lennon's thirty-fifth birthday), and John took on the role of househusband.
In January 1975, he agreed to meet Ono, who claimed to have found a cure for smoking.
During his career break from 1975 until shortly before his death, according to Fred Seaman, Lennon and Ono's assistant at the time, Lennon was content to sit back as long as McCartney was producing what Lennon saw as mediocre material.
Lennon was embroiled in a continuing legal battle with the immigration authorities, and he was denied permanent residency in the US; the issue would not be resolved until 1976. Some Time in New York City was recorded as a collaboration with Ono and was released in 1972 with backing from the New York band Elephant's Memory.
During McCartney's final visit in April 1976, Lennon said that they watched the episode of Saturday Night Live in which Lorne Michaels made a $3,000 offer to get the Beatles to reunite on the show.
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist, and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles.
In 1975, Lennon disengaged from the music business to raise his infant son Sean and, in 1980, returned with the Ono collaboration Double Fantasy.
In September 1980, Lennon commented about his family and his rebellious nature: He regularly visited his cousin, Stanley Parkes, who lived in Fleetwood and took him on trips to local cinemas.
He wrote "Cookin' (In the Kitchen of Love)" for Starr's Ringo's Rotogravure (1976), performing on the track in June in what would be his last recording session until 1980.
The following month saw the release of Double Fantasy, which contained songs written during the summer of 1980, spent in Bermuda.
Lennon sailed a 43-foot sailing boat with his younger son in June 1980 journey to the British colony, where they briefly lived at Knapton Hill before local businessman Rolf Oskar Luthi vacated his Undercliff, his home at Fairylands, to enable the Lennons to take up temporary residence. The music reflected Lennon's fulfilment in his new-found stable family life.
a godawful yawn". == Murder: 8 December 1980 == At approximately 5:00 p.m.
on 8 December 1980, Lennon autographed a copy of Double Fantasy for fan Mark David Chapman before leaving The Dakota with Ono for a recording session at the Record Plant.
Harrison offended Lennon in 1980 when he published an autobiography that made little mention of him.
Lennon took notice when McCartney released "Coming Up" in 1980, which was the year Lennon returned to the studio.
Double Fantasy, his best-selling album, won the 1981 Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
In a further example of the public outpouring of grief, "Imagine" hit number one in the UK in January 1981 and "Happy Xmas" peaked at number two.
In 1982, Lennon was honoured with the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.
Sufficient additional material was recorded for a planned follow-up album Milk and Honey, which was released posthumously, in 1984.
In a 1987 interview, McCartney said that the other Beatles idolised Lennon: "He was like our own little Elvis...
He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (in 1997) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice, as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994). == Early years: 1940–1957 == Lennon was born at Liverpool Maternity Hospital to Julia (née Stanley) (1914–1958) and Alfred Lennon (1912–1976).
He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (in 1997) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice, as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994). == Early years: 1940–1957 == Lennon was born at Liverpool Maternity Hospital to Julia (née Stanley) (1914–1958) and Alfred Lennon (1912–1976).
A film version was released in 1996. By late 1968, Lennon's increased drug use and growing preoccupation with Ono, combined with the Beatles' inability to agree on how the company should be run, left Apple in need of professional management.
He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (in 1997) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice, as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994). == Early years: 1940–1957 == Lennon was born at Liverpool Maternity Hospital to Julia (née Stanley) (1914–1958) and Alfred Lennon (1912–1976).
In 2002, Lennon was voted eighth in a BBC poll of the 100 Greatest Britons.
In her 2005 memoir John, Powell recalled that, when they were dating, Lennon once struck her after he observed her dancing with Stuart Sutcliffe.
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