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John Lennon (1940 – 1980) : Musician ‘.
. . it turned out great, didn’t it, Mimi ?’ There was little in John’s early life to suggest that he may
become one of the world’s most famous musicians. Born in 1940,
John spent his early years living with his mother, occasionally his
father, but mainly his aunt, Mimi. In 1952, John started at Quarry Bank
High School in Liverpool and five years later formed his group the Quarrymen
with some of his school friends; on 6th July 1957, John met Paul McCartney
for the first time. A few months later George Harrison joined the group
and in 1959 they became known as Johnny and the Moondogs. In 1960, they
took the name Silver Beetles and, in the same year, John left the Liverpool
College of Art. In August 1960 they made their first visit to Hamburg.
John was later to say “I grew up in Hamburg, not Liverpool.” In September 1962 the Beatles released their first single, “Love me do”. It entered the charts at number 48. In February 1963, the Beatles recorded their first LP in eleven hours – ’Please please me’. The title song was released as a single and became the first number one hit. In August 1963, the Beatles made their last appearance at the Cavern Club in Liverpool (their 292nd ). By the end of the year ‘The Times’ newspaper was calling John and Paul “the outstanding English composers of 1963”. The rest, as they say, ‘is history’. Number one records, films, honours all followed. John released books of poetry : “In his own write”, “The Spaniard in the Works’ . In 1964, the Beatles made their first appearance in America and on 4 April the group occupied the top five places on the Billboard American singles chart. In September 1966 John began filming “How I Won the War”. The following year, 1967, saw perhaps some of the Beatles’ greatest record releases : John’s ‘Strawberry fields forever’ was one of their most revolutionary singles; the B.B.C. banned John’s ‘A Day In The Life’ because its lyrics might encourage drug taking; ‘Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band’, arguably their finest achievement, was released in June 1967.
In his biography of John Lennon, Ray Coleman writes this, “History will record (John) as one of the great pacemakers of the 20th century. Teddy boy, pop star, rebel student, propagandist for peace, poet, artist, song writer, musician, band leader, sloganist, philosopher, wit, loving husband, doting father - Lennon was all of these things and more. The founder, the powerhouse, the engine room of the Beatles - he became a dream-weaver for generations of idealists”. ‘Without him the Beatles would never have existed, still less become popular music’s finest group. Without him, they would have had no cutting edge, conscience or originality’. It is more than 20 years now since John was killed; but he continues to be very much alive in spirit, as the Beatles story continues to grow. John Lennon was never merely a pop star or solely the founder of The Beatles. He had grown beyond that, became a poet, wit and philosopher. He is remembered equally as a Beatle and as a solo artist. He made an early attempt to throw away his Beatles’ past when he went to live in New York in 1971 - but he found it impossible. Towards the end of his life, John seemed to have finally come to accept that too. ”I’m a Beatle fan, too” he told one friend. John’s aunt, Mimi : “The school reports about John. I won’t
have it. How are you going to get a good job if you don’t do well
at school? Go to your room and do some homework’. Eight years later, John returned to meet Mimi as a successful Beatle.
“If the Beatles hadn’t come along, you could have ended
up on the scrap heap without any school qualifications and you’d
soon have got through the bit of money I had.” When he became a pop star he laughed at his aunt’s tellings-off. “Actually, Mimi, you were quite right. I’d never have made it as a single performer as a guitarist. I was never good enough. But, I guessed something would happen . . . then I met Paul and we met George and . . . well it turned out great, didn’t it, Mimi ?’ Web Links Bagism
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© 2002 All rights reserved. Page design P. Hughes, Campion CHS
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It
is quite possible that more words have been written about John Lennon
than any other contemporary rock star. Unlike our other European personalities,
he is much closer to our own times. Many of the students’ parents
and grandparents will have grown up as fans of the work of the Beatles
and John Lennon; and unlike our other European personalities, John’s
life ended violently, cruelly cut short in 1980 at the hands of a deranged
‘fan’. Though the world remembers Lennon as a musician,
he was also a writer, an artist and a peace campaigner.
The
years to 1966 -1969 saw the Beatles continue to dominate the music charts
on both sides of the Atlantic. But, by late 1969, the cracks in the
group were beginning to show. In 1970, the greatest pop and rock group
the world had ever known finally split up. Each of its members would
go on to successful solo careers and John himself would release his
most famous single, “Imagine”.
