Oct
9
Seventy years ago, Oct. 9, 1940, John Lennon was born in Liverpool. Tragically, he is not around to celebrate his birthday today.
However, this should be a happy occasion for his fans, a time to reflect on all the joy he provided the world before his senseless murder in 1980.
The 70th anniversary of Lennon’s birth is being marked around the globe in all kinds of ways.
- EMI rolled out a major reissue campaign of his solo catalog earlier this week — read all about it here.
- Last fall’s complete Beatles remasters still sound amazing as well.
- iTunes is offering a free download of “(Just Like) Starting Over” from the new Double Fantasy Stripped Down. This fresh version of one of his best-loved tunes, without some of the studio dressing from the original 1980 release, is well worth adding to your iPod.
- Google‘s homepage has been decorated since yesterday with a cute animation based on Lennon’s drawings.
- YouTube has a video tributes to Lennon from his widow Yoko Ono, his old bandmate Ringo Starr, and fans from Brian Wilson to Jeff Bridges to the Jonas Brothers. You can also submit your own clip paying homage to Lennon if you like.
- The Washington post does a good job with it’s pictorial approach to Lennon’s life. Click here to see it.
Tags: Art, Entertainment, Nostalgia
You know, for this guy (and his former band, can’t quite remember the name…) to remain relevant and influential after all these decades is nothing short of a Phenomenon, with a capital “P”. Even though I can certainly appreciate the early Beatles, the stuff they did between the years of ’65-70 left the largest musical footprint in my opinion. And the Beatles solo work, especially from the years ’70-’75, was equally great, if not as influential. One exception is Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band album, birthed from his psycho therapy (or primal scream therapy, or whatever), which still cuts to the bone this day and went on to influence many a mope rocker of the 80′s and 90′s. Kurt Cobain, are you listening…?
Ian, I got a copy of “The Beatles 100 Greatest Songs” a special collection edition by Rolling Stone, which is a very interesting read. I am sure you would enjoy it too. It has lots of information on what was going on in their lives and other tidbits when they wrote the songs.