The late John Lennon was born 85 years ago today (October 9). To mark the milestone, some of the late Beatles icon’s closest musical associates and family members took to their social media pages to pay tribute to him.
Videos by American Songwriter
Lennon’s Beatles bandmate and longtime songwriting partner Paul McCartney posted a brief note and a photo. The message reads, “Sweet memories on this day of a very special friend. Happy birthday John.” The pic shows John and Paul in 1968 at Abbey Road Studios. It was taken by McCartney’s late first wife, Linda.
Lennon’s elder son, Julian, posted a birthday message to both his late dad and his younger brother, Sean, who is celebrating his 50th birthday.
Julian’s note reads, “Happy Birthday… Only Love…. Always…. … P.S. 50 is just a number…”
The post also features a video that includes photos of John and Sean taken, respectively, in 1965 and 2012. The clip also features footage of a lit candle, accompanied by a snippet of Julian’s song “Hold On.”
Klaus Voormann, who played bass on most of John’s solo albums, posted a simple message, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOHN!” It’s accompanied by a drawing Voormann did in 2004 depicting Lennon recording the 1967 Beatles song “Baby, You’re a Rich Man.” Klaus befriended The Beatles in the early 1960s when the band was living and playing clubs in Hamburg, Germany. He also is famous for creating the cover art for the band’s classic 1966 album Revolver.
Tribute Messages on The Beatles’ and Lennon’s Own Socials
The social media pages of The Beatles, the late George Harrison, and Lennon himself also featured birthday tributes.
The Beatles posted the message “Remembering John on his birthday today,” along with a video montage of various film clips of Lennon playing with the band, set to “Come Together.”
Harrison’s socials feature a similar note, “Remembering John on his birthday.” That’s accompanied by a video featuring various clips of Lennon with the Beatles and solo, including scenes from the films A Hard Day’s Night, Magical Mystery Tour, and Let It Be. The video is soundtracked by Harrison’s 1981 hit “All Those Years Ago,” which he wrote as a tribute to Lennon after John’s 1980 murder.
John’s social media pages feature a message celebrating both his and Sean’s birthday. The note reads, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHN! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SEAN!” and features a 1978 photo of Lennon holding his son as they blow out candles on a birthday cake.
Events Commemorating John Lennon’s Birthday
As previously reported, a number of special events are planned for October 9 to mark Lennon’s 85th birthday.
At 3 p.m. ET, a global listening party featuring selections from Lennon and wife Yoko Ono’s new Power to the People box set will take place. The event will be accessible at CitizenofNutopia.com.
At 4 p.m. ET, the Imagine Peace Tower near Reykjavik, Iceland, will be lit up in commemoration of John’s birthday. You can watch the lighting live at ImaginePeaceTower.com.
In addition, at 4:15 p.m. ET, a gathering to celebrate John and Sean’s birthday will be held at the Imagine Circle mosaic in the Strawberry Fields section of Central Park in New York City. Fans will gather to sing Lennon’s classic peace anthem “Imagine.”
Also, at midnight ET on October 10, the audio of Lennon and Ono’s historic August 1972 One to One concerts at Madison Square Garden will be available to download and stream. The same audio is included in the physical versions of the Power to the People box set. The box set also will be released on October 10.
(Photo by Steve Morley/Redferns/Getty Images)
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