The Last Songs by John Lennon, George Harrison, and The Beatles

When The Beatles broke up in 1970, everyone lost something. The Liverpool, England-born band encapsulated the 1960s. From the early part of the decade with their bubblegum pop songs about hand holding to the tracks they released later in the era about guitars crying and whispering words of wisdom, the band captured hearts and imaginations, and then—just like that—they were gone.

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Then a decade later, John Lennon was murdered and any hope of the Beatles reuniting was over. But here below, we can remember the band and its two late members—Lennon and guitarist George Harrison—by diving into their final recordings. Indeed, these are the last three songs from John Lennon, George Harrison, and The Beatles.

“Walking On Thin Ice” by Yoko Ono (Single, 1981)

The final song that John Lennon recorded wasn’t actually one of his own. Instead, it was this quintessential 80s song by his wife Yoko Ono, which he was working on days before he was murdered at 40 years old. In fact, when Lennon was shot in 1980, he was holding the final mix of “Walking on Thin Ice”, excited for it to be unleashed into the world. The six-minute new wave song, which is about the precariousness of life, was released a month later on January 6, 1981.

“Horse To The Water” by George Harrison from ‘Small World, Big Band’ (2001)

Two months before he passed away from cancer in November of 2001, George Harrison finished one last song. He’d written it with his son Dhani and the two traveled to Switzerland to track it. The Harrisons were backed by Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra. The tune, which is about the difficulty people have with change, features Harrison’s lively, albeit brittle voice. He was too weak to play guitar on it. The song was released mere days after he was gone.

“Because” by The Beatles from ‘Abbey Road’ (1969)

While trying to pinpoint the Fab Four’s final song can be hard, this is the likely best choice. Some may say it’s the 2023 offering, “Now and Then”, or the band’s 1995 song, “Real Love”, but those songs were made with Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison after Lennon had passed away. He wasn’t in the room for their completion, even though the then-three living Beatles were using some of his old recordings to add their parts over. Also, while “I Me Mine” was the final song recorded for the band’s final album, Lennon had already left the band by then. Indeed, “Because” was the last song that the four artists recorded together, tracking instruments (with Ringo keeping time in the other members’ headphones) as late as Aug 1, 1969.

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