John Lennon would have turned 70 on Saturday (October 9). To mark the occasion we've compiled a video playlist mapping the decade that saw him transform from sardonic Beatle into visionary activist and beyond, remaining all the while simply an extraordinary songwriter. Here's to you, John.
Give Peace A Chance
(Single, 1969)
Apple
We begin in bed. Flanked by the likes of Timothy Leary, Petula Clark, Tommy Smothers and Allen Ginsberg, John delivers his protest rant from behind the beard, long hair and granny glasses that would define his appearance during The Beatles' final months.
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Cold Turkey
(Single, 1969)
Apple
John & Yoko's dalliance with heroin gave birth to this narcoleptic blues howler performed here at Madison Square Garden on August 30, 1972.
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Instant Karma!
(Single, 1970)
Apple
Lennon's only solo appearance on Top Of The Pops was made off the back of this song. In this clip, check out Beatles' minder/confidante Mal Evans on tambourine and John's delight at the drum fill in the third verse.
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Mother
(John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, 1970)
Apple/EMI
The opening track on his undisputed masterpiece John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, Mother emerged during his Primal Scream therapy treatments. Lennon: "The piano does it all for you... your mind can do the rest."
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Imagine
(Imagine, 1971)
Apple/EMI
Enter John Lennon the dreaming idealist, this time via a live version from the Mike Douglas show. Hands up who expected a saxophone solo...
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How Do You Sleep?
(Imagine, 1971)
Apple/EMI
Here's Lennon's sneering retort to McCartney's Too Many People, recorded for the Imagine album at his Tittenhurst Estate in 1971. Despite later denying that the song had anything to do with his former partner in song, the vicious lyrics ("the only thing you done was Yesterday" etc.) and the presence of George Harrison on guitar still give this clip extra sting.
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Rock Island Line
(Cover, 1972)
The Beatles were all huge fans of Lonnie Donegan and this clip of Lennon jamming the king of skiffle's crossover hit shows that his admiration for pre-'60s rock'n'roll remained undimmed.
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Attica State
(Some Time In New York City, 1972)
Apple/EMI
Some Time In New York City remains a shambolic artefact of John & Yoko's sojourn into the world of Jerry Rubin (seen here on the far right) and his army of yippie activists. Here's Lennon's commentary on the Attica State prison riots of 1971.
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Mind Games
(Mind Games, 1973)
Apple/EMI
WATCH VIDEO HERE!
Dismissed by Lennon as "just an album... rock'n'roll at different speeds", the songs on Mind Games soundtracked his 18-month Lost Weekend split from Yoko. The title track eventually made the US Top 20.
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#9 Dream
(Walls & Bridges, 1974)
Apple/EMI
The number nine returns to the Lennon universe, this time in the form of a dreamy ballad taken from 1974's Walls & Bridges.
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Stand By Me
(Rock'n'Roll, 1975)
Apple/EMI
Lennon's cover of Ben E. King's soul standard retains the original's arrangement and sees the rock'n'roll obsessive adding serrated 3am vocals.
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Watching The Wheels
(Double Fantasy, 1980)
Apple/EMI
After a five-year absence, Lennon and Ono's return to the pop world arrived in the form of Double Fantasy (reissued this month in Stripped Down format). This video was put together for the posthumous single release.
Compiled and annotated by Ross Bennett
(on "Mojo Magazine")
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