"The Beatles," Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, and John
Lennon changed the world of popular music forever. In 1969, the image of The
Beatles was crumbling from within. But there was life after The Beatles demise
for John Lennon. Lennon pursued his dreams of world peace with his wife Yoko
Ono, from the breakup of The Beatles in 1970 (not "official" until
1975), until his murder in 1980. John Lennon began to release solo records. He
recorded one of his most popular and influential solo songs, "Give Peace A
Chance," from a bed in Montreal, where he was answering questions for
reporters. Soon after, The Beatles recorded and released their last album,
"Abbey Road," and disbanded. John’s efforts for world peace included
a press conference where he and his wife were in a bag (the idea was that if
everyone lived in bags, there would be no predujice), several bed events, where
reporters were invited, films, and, of course, his songs. Shortly after The
Beatles broke up, he formed a new band, "The Plastic Ono Band." The
group backed Lennon on many albums and later combined with another band,
"Elephant’s Memory." The merged band gave a charity performance in
New York City on August 30, 1972. It was their last performance together. Soon
after, John Lennon temporarily retired from recording and the public eye to give
his family more attention. In 1980, John Lennon released his long awaited
comeback album, "Double Fantasy." The album was generally viewed as
mediocre, but it was good to have John back "in the saddle" again. The
album seemed to have topped out at #2 and was now declining. Tragically, on
December 8th of that year, John Winston Ono Lennon, was shot to death outside of
his New York appartment building. "Double Fantasy" went up the charts
again and hit #1 and the man who had said "All you need is love" and
"Give peace a chance," had died by the gun. The area of Central Park
where John once enjoyed many walks is now called "Strawberry Fields,"
in honor of one of his most famous songs he wrote with The Beatles. In 1985, his
last live performance with The Plastic Ono Elephants Memory Band was released on
home video. John Lennon is now highly regarded of one of the greatest and most
influential musicians of all time. John Lennon changed the world with his music,
ideas, and his mind. From his days as a Beatle until his death, Lennon was one
of the most influential people of his time.