Yoko Ono's flickr page has a ton of gems, some of which combine illustrations from the John Lennon Anthology with first-hand accounts of their relationship by Yoko: Introduction, Ascot, New York City, The Lost Weekend, Dakota. [via].
posted by lunit on Mar 26, 2009 - 27 comments

Surely one of the most memorable musician photos ever is this one: Johnny Cash, making his feelings known with customary aplomb. But did you ever notice he was wearing a jumpsuit in that photo, and not his more standard black shirt/trousers ensemble? Well, that very jumpsuit just went for a handsome $120,000 at auction. Someone else just paid $300,000 for one of Elvis' peacock-emblazoned jumpsuits. And remember that little necklace John Lennon wore on the cover of Two Virgins? Yep, the only thing he wore. Fetched a cool $528,000. Meanwhile, in Japan, a bunch of grapes just went for $910. What a bargain! [more inside]
posted by flapjax at midnite on Aug 11, 2008 - 21 comments

I Met the Walrus In 1969, 14-year-old Jerry Levitan snuck into John Lennon's hotel room in Toronto and convinced John to do an interview about peace. This is the whimsically animated film that Jerry has produced about the interview.
posted by milestogo on Jul 6, 2008 - 26 comments

Lennon and McCartney's Studio Reunion. On March 28, 1974, John Lennon was in a Burbank studio producing Harry Nilsson's "Pussy Cats" album when Paul McCartney dropped in. The room froze and remained silent until John said, "Valiant Paul McCartney, I presume?" Paul responded: "Sir Jasper Lennon, I presume?" The tension broken, a jam session [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] ensued featuring Lennon on guitar and vocals, McCartney on drums and vocals, Stevie Wonder on electric piano and vocals, Harry Nilsson on vocals, Jesse Ed Davis on guitar and Bobby Keys on saxophone. A bootleg of the session has circulated under the title "A Toot and a Snore in '74".
posted by New Frontier on Mar 30, 2008 - 25 comments

George W. Bush covers John Lennon's War Is Over (If You Want It) in a collaboration with Wax Audio. Another coverversion of John Lennon's God is included on the B-side of the new limited edition 45. On the other hand, Yoko sez, "Vote Kucinich!" (previously on Mefi)
posted by jonp72 on Dec 12, 2007 - 23 comments

The Greatest Interviews of the 20th Century according to The Guardian. The interviews are with Princess Diana, John Lennon, Marlon Brando, Dennis Potter, Francis Bacon, Marilyn Monroe, Sex Pistols, Malcolm X, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Margaret Thatcher and Fidel Castro. You know who else is interviewed? That's right, Nixon. Oh, and there's a Hitler interview, too. Apparently he likes tea. So do I. Funny ol' world. [via Neil Gaiman]
posted by Kattullus on Sep 20, 2007 - 32 comments

The Beatles in film: A Hard Day's Night (1964), Help! (1965), Magical Mystery Tour (1967), Yellow Submarine (1968) and, finally, Let It Be [Apple rooftop concert only] (1970)
posted by Poolio on Sep 6, 2007 - 57 comments

John Lennon's Jukebox (BBC,Google vid,48min) wiki "In 1989, John Lennon's jukebox surfaced in an auction of Beatles memorabilia at Christie's, and was sold for £2,500 to Bristol-based music promoter John Midwinter. Lennon had apparently bought the jukebox – specifically a Swiss KB Discomatic – in 1965, and filled it with forty singles to take with him on tour. Midwinter spent several years restoring the box and researching the discs catalogued in Lennon's spidery handwriting. When Midwinter developed cancer, and his health began to deteriorate, his desire to see the player featured in some kind of documentary became all the more important." Guardian article,music.
posted by vronsky on Sep 1, 2007 - 61 comments

The Greatest Rock & Roll Show On Earth: Jethro Tull { Song For Jeffrey } The Who { A Quick One While He's Away } Taj Mahal { Checkin' Up On My Baby, Leaving Trunk, Corrina, Ain't That A Lot Of Love } Marianne Faithfull { Something Better } clowns ☻ The Dirty Mac John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards & Mitch Mitchell { Yer Blues [2nd take] } Yoko Ono with Ivry Gitlis & The Dirty Mac { Whole Lotta Yoko } The Rolling Stones { Jumpin' Jack Flash, No Expectations, You Can't Always Get What You Want, Sympathy For The Devil [previously] } (1968)
posted by Poolio on Sep 1, 2007 - 40 comments

The Beatles are Bigger than Jesus. It was 41 years ago today, that the Evening Standard published a Maureen Cleave interview with John Lennon, in which he declared the Beatles “more popular than Jesus”. Later in July, DATEbook, an American teen mag, printed only the Jesus statement and nothing else from the interview. The firestorm of reaction in the US was immediate. Radio stations nationwide, but particularly in the South and in the Midwest, banned the playing of Beatles records [Real Audio]. Death threats against all of the Fab Four poured in. In Cleveland, a preacher threatened to excommunicate any member of his congregation who listened to the Beatles, and in the South, the Ku Klux Klan burned the Beatles in effigy and nailed Beatles albums to burning crosses. On August 11, Lennon held a press conference in Chicago, where he apologized, sort of [Real Audio]. The press conference was on the eve of the Beatles’ last tour of their career. Many say this epsiode, as well as the riots that accompanied their tour of the Philippines (also in July), as well as the accumulated stress of being on top of the world for nearly four years at that point, precipitated the beginning of the end of the Beatles.
Is it true though? Are the Beatles bigger than Jesus? Though this was unanswerable in 1966, thanks to the magic of the web, we do know the answer today: according to Google, the answer is no. Still, other views persist.
posted by psmealey on Mar 4, 2007 - 71 comments

"Window in the Sky" is a YouTube style video synch mash-up done on a professional budget with the magic of copyright clearances. "It's a triumph of postmodern reconstruction" says the Washington Post.
posted by stbalbach on Jan 29, 2007 - 160 comments

NYC via DC's The Walkmen have recorded a fourth studio LP, a "note-for-note reproduction" of Harry Nilsson's 1974 album "Pussy Cats," famously produced by musician and drinking-buddy John Lennon during his "Lost Weekend" days in Los Angeles. You can listen to the new album here gratis.
posted by bardic on Oct 26, 2006 - 10 comments

"I'm John, and I used to play with my partner Paul." "I'm Paul, and I used to play with my partner Art." Yes, it's youtube, and it prominently features a couple of musicians from the sixties who have been discussed on the blue before with varying degrees of admiration/scorn. I still found this fascinating - compared to today's awards ceremonies, it looks downright ancient. But I love the spontaneity and the humor. Finally, as if that weren't enough - despite some stiff competition, the winner is...
posted by fingers_of_fire on Jun 18, 2006 - 18 comments

Plastic Ono Man
posted by thedailygrowl on Dec 16, 2005 - 27 comments

We'll Be Right Back For a full week in February 1972, Mike Douglas (warning: pop-up ads; page design) featured John Lennon and Yoko Ono as co-hosts of his hit afternoon talk show. The accompanying mash-up of counterculture and the mainstream must have been interesting to watch (at least to the Nixon administration). The folks at Rhino Home Video were kind enough to leave behind Stephen K. Peeples' extensive liner notes (see links 2-8 at bottom of page).
posted by LinusMines on Jun 14, 2004 - 1 comment

Oh no! Yoko to release a dance version of "Walking on Thin Ice" the track John Lennon was working on the night he died. It's been produced by The Pet Shop Boys and Danny Tenaglia. According to the article it's been a success in clubs. Has anyone heard it? Any good?
posted by feelinglistless on Feb 17, 2003 - 17 comments

Looking for a nursery theme? Try the John Lennon Collection & John Lennon Musical Parade. These products are based on his drawings of stylized animals. Imagine what Yoko Ono and the Lennon Estate come up with next.
posted by riffola on Feb 3, 2003 - 13 comments

Bunches and bunches of lost/stolen Beatles tapes recovered by cops. The fab 4 were My Era but I'm no particular fan of 'em, prefering the Byrds for hippie-dippie flashback, the Beach Boys for that let's-fire-up-the-Lincoln-SUV-and-burn-rubber mood, the post-Brian-fries-his-brain Beach Boys again for acid nostalgia and (fuller tips hat to the Dark Side) little Frankie Zappa, of whom I bought Freak Out as a $1.98 loss leader in 1966 and everything since, up through and including Läther . Nevertheless, this looks like it might be fun.
posted by jfuller on Jan 11, 2003 - 28 comments

Happy Xmas (War is over) This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the UK release of John and Yoko's perennial Christmas classic. A very Merry Xmas And a happy New Year Let's hope it's a good one Without any fear War is over, if you want it War is over now. Happy Xmas
posted by thedailygrowl on Dec 25, 2002 - 1 comment

The son of a rock god interviews a rock genius... (Scroll down to "Audio") Sean Lennon's 48-minute interview with Brian Wilson covers all aspects of music, from the genesis of a great song, to the competition between artists in the late 1960's. (The interview is in four parts, in RealAudio format.)
posted by greengrl on Aug 26, 2002 - 15 comments

Steven Lightfoot believes that author Stephen King murdered John Lennon, with the blessings of Ronald Reagan. Mark David Chapman was just an innocent pawn in their evil game. Witness the lengths Steven Lightfoot goes to to prove his theories. Here's the story that the media doesn't want you to read.
posted by iconomy on Jun 1, 2002 - 31 comments

Beatles wanted to do Lord of the Rings film in 1960s John was to play Gollum; Paul would be Frodo; George would play Gandalf; and Ringo would play Sam.
posted by andrewraff on Mar 29, 2002 - 21 comments

No Short Haired Yellow Bellied Son of Tricky-Dicky's gonna MotherHubbard soft-soap Me with just a Pocketful of hope!!1 Warning!!! Applet window!
posted by crunchburger on Jan 16, 2002 - 21 comments

Ever wanted to chat with John Lennnon? Now here's your chance! It seems Lennon is alive, well and chatting on the internet. Technology firm Triumph PC Group has developed a virtual version of the late Beatle using "sophisticated" artificial intelligence programming. As a Lennon fan I was hoping for something cool but left the site with far more questions than answers.
posted by murray_kester on Oct 19, 2001 - 14 comments

Let me take you down (from 15,000 feet), 'cause we're going to... be landing at John Lennon Airport. The renaming ceremony for Liverpool's airport takes place on Monday. So, who else deserves an airport named after them? [more]
posted by holgate on Jun 29, 2001 - 26 comments

Where were you when you heard that John Lennon had died, 20 years ago today? I was seven, getting ready for school when the news came over on our old radiogram, and I can remember my mother's white-faced shock: one of those moments that emblazoned itself upon my memory.
posted by holgate on Dec 8, 2000 - 59 comments

And what would you do with 2 Million dollars? Ah yes, buy a piano.
posted by Cobbler on Oct 18, 2000 - 13 comments

John Lennon's Killer to Face Parole Board Could be released by December. Argh.
posted by annathea on Sep 5, 2000 - 5 comments