John
John Winston Lennon was born 9 October 1940 in Liverpool, England. Best remembered for his singing and songwriting with The Beatles, John was also an accomplished instrumentalist, author, visual artist, and political activist. In his brief 40 years on this planet, he became one of the most influential and recognizable figures of his generation, and his influence is still felt strongly today.
Born to Julia Stanley Lennon and Alfred “Freddie” Lennon, in the middle of a Nazi air raid, John was named for his grandfather John “Jack” Lennon, and for British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The family was a musical one, if not a happy one. Freddie was in the merchant navy during the war and was rarely home. Lonely Julia got around without him, meeting a Welsh soldier named “Taffy” Williams, who impregnated her in 1944. When Freddie returned later that year, he tried to reconcile and to incorporate the unborn child into the family, but Julia turned him away. In June, Julia gave birth to daughter Victoria, who was given for adoption. John never knew of her existence. After Julia moved in with a new beau, she grudgingly handed care of John over to her sister Mary “Mimi” Smith. In July 1946, Freddie planned to take John and move to New Zealand, but Julia found out. Freddie demanded that John, all of five years old, choose between them. John chose his father, but when Julia walked away, John cried and ran after her. He would have no contact with his father for many years.
John continued to live with Mimi and her husband George, a dairyman. They encouraged him to be creative and musical, giving him puzzles and a harmonica. Julia visited often, teaching John to play piano and banjo, introducing him to Elvis Presley music, and buying him his first guitar. John became convinced that he would become famous, but Mimi was unconvinced. Many years later, John gave Mimi a silver platter with her words:
“The guitar’s all very well, John, but you’ll never make a living out of it.”
For high-school, John went to Quarry Bank Grammar School, where he was known for his great impressions of the teachers and for his drawings. It was here that he would form his first band, the Quarrymen. After uncle George Smith died in 1955, and Julia was killed by a drunk driver in 1958, John lost interest in school, and failed all his O-level exams. Mimi insisted that John go back to school. With some assistance and special permission, John got into the Liverpool College of Art. There he would meet Cynthia Powell, who would later be his first wife. Despite much support and tutoring from Cynthia, John was depressive and disruptive and known for his vicious wit. He failed his exams and dropped out of the college.
While school wasn’t working well for John, the music was. After he met Paul at a show and asking him to join the band, John was inspired by Paul to write songs. He wrote his first song, “Hello Little Girl” at the age of 18. It would later be a hit for another band, The Fourmost. Although John originally thought George to be too young, Paul convinced him to allow him to join the band.
“We all looked up to John. He was older and he was very much the leader - he was the quickest wit and the smartest and all that kind of thing.” - Paul
In 1962, John married Cynthia Powell, who was pregnant at the time. The marriage, and the birth of their son John Charles Julian Lennon, were kept from the public so as not to harm John’s sex-symbol image. The marriage was rocky from the start, with John being away for long stretches, using a lot of drugs, and sometimes being physically abusive. When Cynthia found out about an affair John was having with Yoko Ono, divorce proceedings commenced. On 20 March 1969, John and Yoko married.
While John and Paul became the most famous members of the band, due to their prolific songwriting and lion’s share of the lead singing, all decisions had to be agreed upon by all members and everyone had an equal say. Things started to sour, however, when the band’s manager Brian Epstein died. John and Paul competed for control, and John later admitted disliking “Magical Mystery Tour” and “Let It Be”. When John repeatedly brought Yoko into the studio, the conflict escalated, and by September 1969, John had quit the band.
After the demise of the band he had started, John continued to write and record music and to tour as a solo artist, and with his wife as part of The Plastic Ono Band. He went into left wing political activism and had major hits with the protest anthems “Give Peace A Chance” and “Imagine”. He maintained good relationships with George and Ringo, with George playing on John’s track “How Do You Sleep?”, and John writing the song “I’m the Greatest” for Ringo’s eponymous third album.
After a separation from each other of about 18 months, John reconciled with Yoko in 1975 and she soon became pregnant with John’s second child. Sean Ono Lennon was born on 9 October 1975 and John disappeared from the music scene, preferring to be a full time stay-at-home father. It was only in 1980 that John ended his retirement, writing a large number of songs and recording a new album, “Double Fantasy”. By the end of that year he would be dead, murdered outside his New York City apartment, on 8 December 1980.
Tags: Beatles, guitar, history, John, Yoko-Ono
Beatles, guitar, history, John, Yoko Ono
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