Happy 75th Birthday, John Lennon

It’s hard to “Imagine” that music legend John Lennon would have turned 75 years old today.

If not for the senseless actions of a crazed gunman nearly 35 years ago, the world might still be graced by the words and songs of the much-beloved and often-controversial musician.

Even though the Beatles split up when I was in elementary school, I have long been a fan of their music, and of their solo efforts following the breakup. I have been privileged to see Paul McCartney live in concert at Madison Square Garden, and Ringo Starr with his ever-changing All-Starr Band.

I never had the chance to see the late George Harrison perform, and of course, I never saw John Lennon play either. His last onstage performance came on Thanksgiving night in 1974, when he joined Elton John for three songs in New York City (I was nine at the time).

I was in high school watching Monday Night Football when Howard Cosell broke the news to the world that Lennon had been killed. I vividly recall the pictures of grief-stricken friends in the newspaper the next morning, and the stunning silence for 10 minutes observed worldwide the following week.

In 2009, despite being in the middle of chemotherapy treatments, I met some friends in New York and, for the first time, made the pilgrimage to West 72nd Street. We checked out the Dakota apartment building, where Lennon resided and where he was felled, then visited Strawberry Fields in Central Park a short distance away.

Were or are you a fan of the Beatles? How about Lennon, as a musician and a man? Did you ever get to see any of the Fab Four in concert? Please let us know in the comments section below.

RIP John; may “we all shine on” in your memory.

Photo credits: Tim Jensen and Darlene Bohorquez