Two Forgotten Friday Favorites: John Lennon

A graphic artist "imagines" Lennon at 70 years old

You'd have to be living under a rock to not know that tomorrow would have been John Lennon's 70th birthday; PR and social networking outlets have been building up to it for months now. Yoko Ono recorded a birthday message on YouTube and is inviting other viewers to submit their own; there's a new boxed set of solo Lennon material about to be released, and tons of musical celebrations planned all over the world. 

As a Beatles fan, it's hard for me to put into words what John Lennon means to me (especially when George is my favorite Beatle) and give him the proper justice I'll try: Lennon, to me, was not just about peace but about positive thinking, which has been my mantra for nearly three years now. Lennon really believed in the ability to change the world through the power of your mind. John and Yoko believed that the more people who thought positively, the more likely change could be created (that's the message of the songs Imagine and Mind Games, after all.) In fact, I think all of the Beatles thought this way at one time or another - songs like Rain drive home the message ("When it rains and shines, it's just a state of mind") and All You Need Is Love ("There's nothing you can do that can't be done") reinforce positive thinking in my opinion. I also think it's no accident that a new site about positive thinking that I'm dying to see (Mr. Never Give Up) is about to be launched tomorrow, on Lennon's birthday.

Enough babbling...on to the music! Asking me to pick just two Lennon songs is like asking me to just eat two potato chips, but I'll try. I HAVE to include the Imagine video (even though it's hardly a forgotten favorite)...the opening sequence of John and Yoko walking together through the mist is bittersweet for me. No embedding allowed...so here's the link. 


And here's my favorite solo Lennon song, Just Like Starting Over:


  
I wish you all peace, love, and many positive thoughts. Have a great weekend everybody!