"Imagine"
John Lennon
 |
 |
First released in 1971, and already John Lennon鈥檚 most famous post-Beatle song, 鈥業magine鈥 took on a whole new life of its own following John鈥檚 murder in December 1980.
The Beatles鈥 break-up in 1970 was bitter, public and very acrimonious, and, for a time, the world鈥檚 most fabled pop group were spending more time in the Law Courts than the recording studio. But as the new decade got under way, it was time for a fresh start - and four new careers.
 |
|
"That should be credited as a Lennon/Ono Song" |
The Beatles were gone, but Lennon was still spurred on by the solo success of George, Ringo and, particularly, Paul. After the controversy caused by his first solo album - 1970鈥檚 Plastic Ono Band - with its four-letter words and John鈥檚 insistence on styling himself a 鈥渨orking class hero鈥, Lennon thought it was time to get a touch more soft-centred. He described 鈥業magine鈥 as 鈥溾橶orking Class Hero鈥 with chocolate on.鈥
At the time he wrote 鈥業magine鈥, John and Yoko were ensconced in a massive 18th century, seven bedroom mansion set amidst a vast 70 acre estate near Ascot... imagine no possessions! The album, featuring that famous white piano, was recorded in the old chapel at Tittenhurst Park but Lennon - who was about to get really, preposterously, political - boasted of the title track: 鈥渋t is anti-religious, anti-nationalistic, anti-conventional, anti-capitalistic鈥 but because it is sugar-coated, it is accepted.鈥
 |
|
"We had a tiny studio at home" |
 |
Join the dots on the verse vocal melody and answering piano figures and a mystic mountain range is revealed, the ninth over each tonic major hanging like a sacred mist on the horizon. The waveform increases in the bridge, and breaks spectacularly at the long falsetto "You" before the more prosaic chorus melody. This is essential John, and the vocal twists in the chorus on "say" and "day" are identical to "This Boy", one of his earliest Beatles' songs. Dominic King |
 |
It was legendary record producer Phil Spector who supplied that peerless 鈥渟ugar coating鈥 when 鈥業magine鈥 was recorded in the summer of 1971. But a nice earlier version of the song survives, which has Lennon giving a tongue-in-cheek Elvis rendering, and admitting at the end 鈥淚 quite like that one!鈥
The piano on which 鈥業magine鈥 was written has been sold at auction, the hand-written lyrics have also gone, but the song itself lives on. I once asked Klaus Voorman, the track鈥檚 bassist, what it was like to have played on a song that became an anthem. He just smiled, and said 鈥渢he bass is not great - boom, boom boom boom, boom boom鈥︹
When first released, 鈥業magine鈥 reached No.3 in America and No.6 in Britain but after Lennon鈥檚 death in December 1980 the song gave him a posthumous No.1. And the song still carries an enormous emotional resonance, which time has done nothing to diminish. On National Poetry Day 1999, 鈥業magine鈥 was voted the nation鈥檚 favourite song lyric and soon afterwards the re-released single reached No.3.
In 2001, when they changed the name of Liverpool Airport to The John Lennon Airport, John鈥檚 widow Yoko unveiled a plaque which read 鈥渁bove us only sky鈥... As the teenage John Winston Lennon might well have said: 鈥淚magine!鈥
|
|
|
Test your knowledgeHave a go at the "Imagine" quiz! |
|
Like this song? Try these...
The Beatles
 |
|
| 听DON'T MISS |
|
|
|
 |
|
Doves
Special guests on Dermot's show this week
|
|
What's on
Find out more about current and forthcoming documentaries on Radio 2.
|
听Full Schedule
John Lennon wrote some of pop's finest lyrics. 
听Newsletter sign-up