[Music] John Lennon would have been 80 today

Lenny Rider · Oct 9, 2020

I wonder how different rock history would have been had he lived?

Would the Beatles have reformed for lucrative world tours, or even just for Live Aid?

And would the Frog Chorus have ever seen the light of day?

The timing of a star's death often dictates their iconic status, Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix and even Marc Bolan cases in point, if Lennon were still alive today would he be looked about as one of the greatest living artists in the history of popular music?

Is it PotG? · Oct 9, 2020

Imagine if he had lived.

dejavuatbtn · Oct 9, 2020

Health permitting I am sure that he would have been at the forefront of many of the peace and equality drives we see today. I expect he would have rejected a knighthood but welcomed a Nobel peace prize.

Thunder Bolt · Oct 9, 2020

No they wouldn't have re-formed. They both wanted solo careers or experimenting with other genres, like classical, film music, children's songs etc.
Yoko had too much say in what John chose to do.

Greatest ever? He wrote some good music but his greatest achievements were as a song writing duo.

marcos3263 · Oct 9, 2020

He will be forever immortalised due to his early passing and the manner that it happened.

He could have become a fat Elvis, a bitter Morrissey or a mad David Icke, there is no way of knowing if he would have been a force of good.

However he could of out Bono'd Bono which would have been a bonus

Lenny Rider · Oct 9, 2020

marcos3263 said:
He will be forever immortalised due to his early passing and the manner that it happened.

He could have become a fat Elvis, a bitter Morrissey or a mad David Icke, there is no way of knowing if he would have been a force of good.

However he could of out Bono'd Bono which would have been a bonus

If Adam Ant had died in a car crash in the summer of 1981, he'd have been right up there with Holly, Morrison and the rest of the 'died too young' icons, you are bang on about the timing of it all.

BrickTamland · Oct 9, 2020

What would have happened? Probably would have been violent to even more women

Ooh it’s a corner · Oct 9, 2020

BBC4 has a host of Lennon/Beatles progs tonigh

Questions · Oct 9, 2020

Lenny Rider said:
If Adam Ant had died in a car crash in the summer of 1981, he'd have been right up there with Holly, Morrison and the rest of the 'died too young' icons, you are bang on about the timing of it all.

Mark Bolan got better after he died

Lenny Rider · Oct 9, 2020

BrickTamland said:
What would have happened? Probably would have been violent to even more women

The Evil Genius argument.

Gandhi, Chaplin and Elvis would all be classed as paedos now...….

zefarelly · Oct 9, 2020

I always thought John Lennon was a bit odd . . . I was only 9 when he died.

Mellor 3 Ward 4 · Oct 9, 2020

Thunder Bolt said:
his greatest achievements were as a song writing duo.

A million percent this.

Like or loathe The Beatles, they (Paul and John) changed the course of popular music.

It's true they wanted different things, but who knows if they would have got back together.

GT49er · Oct 9, 2020

Lenny Rider said:
If Adam Ant had died in a car crash in the summer of 1981, he'd have been right up there with Holly, Morrison and the rest of the 'died too young' icons, you are bang on about the timing of it all.

The difference is, of course, that the 'died too young' icons like Holly, Morrison, Cobain and Hendrix had real talent and left behind an iconic body of work. Compared to which, Prince Charming doesn't quite cut it!

FWIW as far as Lennon is concerned, I think he'd created so much great stuff, mainly with Paul, but still some pretty decent stuff (and some awful crap) post Beatles, that he'd probably passed his peak and was pretty much worn out musically. I would guess at increasingly infrequent and not outstanding solo albums; maybe he'd get involved in the odd collaboration, which might have been mildly interesting. Not with the former Beatles though.

Jam The Man · Oct 9, 2020

At the time of his death, he was only at odds with George, and besides, all the ex Beatles collaborated with each other on quite a few projects post break up, so IMO I would've put money on them doing something together before the virtual reunion that was part of The Beatles Anthology in 1995.

I've always felt that Lennon has only become more popular than McCartney, simply BECAUSE he died. I know that wont be a shared view with many on here though!

Half Time Pies · Oct 9, 2020

Thunder Bolt said:
No they wouldn't have re-formed. They both wanted solo careers or experimenting with other genres, like classical, film music, children's songs etc.
Yoko had too much say in what John chose to do.

Greatest ever? He wrote some good music but his greatest achievements were as a song writing duo.

But Lennon and McCartney wrote the vast majority of Beatles songs separately, although all songs were name Lennon/ McCartney on the credits only a small percentage were written collaboratively.

Half Time Pies · Oct 9, 2020

Lenny Rider said:
I wonder how different rock history would have been had he lived?

Would the Beatles have reformed for lucrative world tours, or even just for Live Aid?

And would the Frog Chorus have ever seen the light of day?

The timing of a star's death often dictates their iconic status, Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix and even Marc Bolan cases in point, if Lennon were still alive today would he be looked about as one of the greatest living artists in the history of popular music?

I don't see what his death has do with it really, both McCartney and Lennon are legends of popular music because of the Beatles and the songs they wrote in the band and the influence that they had on music in general.

Lennon also, like McCartney, had a pretty decent solo career, Imagine for example is without doubt one of the greatest songs of all time.

Harry Wilson's tackle · Oct 9, 2020

BrickTamland said:
What would have happened? Probably would have been violent to even more women

Indeed. I grew up loving the Beatles and being so excited about them, and found Lennon's solo stuff so disappointing (Imagine was the first LP of 4 at once I bought and I never play it now). He struck me as a cynical narcissist who wrote dull songs (by himself) while milking the peace trope.

That said I think Lennon put in much more of a (musical) shift than Adam Ant (sorry [MENTION=17322]Lenny Rider[/MENTION]).

GT49er · Oct 9, 2020

Jam The Man said:
I've always felt that Lennon has only become more popular than McCartney, simply BECAUSE he died. I know that wont be a shared view with many on here though!

I don't think it's because Lennon was killed, although that did of course move hime to died-to-soon icon status. For at least a dozen years before Lennon's death, Beatles fans were very clearly divided between Lennonists and McCartney-ites, and I doubt if many have shifted their allegiance. Of course, McCartney's popularity may have decreased over the years BECAUSE he kept making records!

Harry Wilson's tackle · Oct 9, 2020

Lenny Rider said:
The Evil Genius argument.

Gandhi, Chaplin and Elvis would all be classed as paedos now...….

Hendrix beat up his girlfriends too. I don't see that genius needs to align with evil though.

We can all see that was wrong. These days, one episode and it would be restraining orders, therapy and possibly jail. And also it is a societal 'no no' now whereas, in the 70s, like 'jailbait', it wasn't regarded as a big deal.

And yet....it is interesting to evaluate the past by the values of today because that's how we learn. Albeit we should do this with measure - I don't see any great purpose in digging up the iconic zebra crossing and renaming the Cavern 'the shitty hole' :shrug.

I was going to say 'but this is NSC'....and yet NSC is actually very measured these days. Lovely people :thumbsup:

Palacefinder General · Oct 9, 2020

BrickTamland said:
What would have happened? Probably would have been violent to even more women

Appalling father as well. Had a lot of demons.

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