Favourite Songwriters – John Lennon

“Reality leaves a lot to the imagination” – John Lennon

There are not too many songwriters that wrote about their reality with a wonderful mix of poignency and child-like imagination like John Lennon did.

As songwriters one thing that we need to do is to listen to other writers and learn from them. Whether they be famous or local, we all have something to learn from others.

For me, John Lennon was always with me when I was growing up.

My Mum was a huge Beatles fan and John was her favourite, so therefore his music, either as a Beatle or as a solo artist was always being played in the background.

I really love the way that he didn’t use flowery language to enable his song message to come across to people.

A John Lennon lyric is very, very conversational in its tone so that the listener can easily understand the song and also relate to it immediately.

John Lennon found at an early age that he had a unique way of looking at the world and was not afraid to show others his view.

He was also not afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve and bear his soul through his songs, a very brave thing to do especially when the eyes of the world were on him 24 hours a day.

There are many songs that Lennon wrote that inspire me, mainly because of the brutal honesty in his lyrics.

Songs like “Working Class Hero” (the oppression of the working class), “Jealous Guy” (his encounters with the green eyed monster), “Beautiful Boy” (his song about his son, Sean) and “Woman” (his undying love for Yoko Ono) all illustrate this point.

However, the song which is the top of my ‘songs I wish I had written’ list is “Imagine” without a doubt.

“Imagine” has all of the hallmarks of a great song:

Simplicity of form
Heartfelt, universal lyrics
A beautiful but simple arrangement
Instantly recognisable melody

If you really look at the lyrics you’ll notice the mix of poignancy and child-like imagination that I mentioned in the introduction.

Here John Lennon simply states that if we allow ourselves to imagine what peace would be like perhaps our actions can follow it.

The beauty of this song is the simplicity of its message. No religion, no boundries and no greed.

It may seem too simplistic in this world of information overload but the song asks us to simply ‘imagine’ it. The listener (through the song) is then left to contemplate the answer.

I’ll be introducing you to other songwriters that have inspired me in later posts so keep on reading. If you have a songwriter that inspires you, why not let me know?

We can both learn about them together.

Until next time, happy writing,

Corey Stewart
Singer/Songwriter/Musician

Keywords: john lennon, imagine john lennon, john lennon lyric, songwriter, songwriting, songwriting idea, songwriting tip, songwriting help, songwriting blog, corey stewart

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Friday, May 30th, 2008 Favourite Songwriters

5 Comments to Favourite Songwriters – John Lennon

Tom Slatter says:

May 30, 2008 at 9:20 pm

Oh dear, oh dear. Corey, you don’t really like this guy do you? Imagine is (yes, just in my opinion….) the worst song ever written.

Judging by the popularity of this post on my blog: http://tomslatter.wordpress.com/2008/01/02/reasons-to-dislike-the-beatles-part-one/

some people agree with me.

And the first youtube video in that post is a wonderful answer to the lyrical crime that is Imagine…

Ben Walker says:

June 1, 2008 at 6:25 am

Woah there, Mr Slatter! Let’s not be too hasty to dismiss the Lennon legend…

I know what you mean. I gave up on the Beatles for a few years for the same sorts of reason (simplicity of lyrics, obvious harmony etc.). But then I woke up to the reality of the situation, and realised the genius of Lennon’s writing (Macca’s is another matter – I’m still not convinced he has a clue).

John’s writing has such an infectious humour to it, and he uses simplicity as an artistic device to encourage the listener to consider their response without distraction. Like Corey said:

>The listener (through the song) is then left to contemplate the answer.

It was, in fact, an art installation by Yoko Ono (I know!) that changed my mind. It included some works by John, the most substantial of which was a collection of household objects (chairs, saucepans, vases etc.) chopped in half and labelled “Half a Chair”, “Half a Saucepan” and so on. His art (including his music) was all about provoking thought without imposing his own opinion.

@Tom I get what you’re saying entirely, and I hope you’ll give the L Man another chance.

PS: I can heartily recommend The Lennon Companion (Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/5ps88q) for a real insight (and balanced commentary) on John.

Tom Slatter says:

June 3, 2008 at 2:53 am

Well, you might be right. Maybe the simplicity is a tool. But then, what were John and Yoko saying with their bedsitting anti-war protest? What was Lennon saying with Imagine?

If the simplicity is “an artistic device to encourage the listener to consider their response without distraction”, then surely the answer he expects us to draw is ‘this is patronising, simplistic twaddle, therefore the opposite view must be more sound’.

So, when he patronises us, imagining no possessions whilst playing his expensive piano in a room of his extensive mansion, is he really saying ‘flower-power buddhist-lite hippies like I’m pretending to be are idiots. Their views are absurd’?

Isn’t it more likely that he hadn’t thought about it much?

Anyhoo, it really is just a matter of taste. I’m not saying he’s no good, I’m saying I personally can’t stand him, and here are some musical/lyrical features I don’t like.

Someone who likes him might give exactly those same features as plus points.

songwritingzen says:

June 3, 2008 at 11:31 am

Well Tom and Ben I thank you both for your enlightening and passionate conversation about Mr Lennon. I wasn’t aware that a blog post would stir up such comments.

To answer your first question Tom, yes I do like the guy but bear in mind, my connection to Lennon and his music feels like the same connection as I have to breathing.

I totally admit it’s hard to see him in any other light when you grow up with Lennon’s music. I mean John Lennon was used to send me to sleep as a baby so there’s a fair bit of conditioning going on here.

Nevertheless, it’s refreshing to hear someone say that they can’t stand Lennon rather than the normal “I-like-him-because-everybody-else-likes-him” stuff that you come across from time to time.

Even though I grew up with Lennon I like to think that I can still put forward some sort of intellectual point of view about his music.

I never thought of Lennon’s writing as patronising though. I never thought that Lennon playing “…his expensive piano in a room of his extensive mansion…” was something that I should react to.

I also never proclaimed that “Imagine” was a work of immense complexity both in a musical and lyrical sense. I just appreciate the songs existance.

Sure “Imagine” might be patronising, simplistic twaddle but Lennon used the world stage to actually say something through his music. No matter how obvious or simple it may be.

Anyway, I’m not here to convert anyone. I’m happy to agree to disagree.

Ben, cheers for your input as well. I appreciate the point of view you’re putting across as well as Toms. This for me is what this blog is all about. It’s only through animated discussions such as this that real community is formed.

Let’s keep it going

Corey

Ben Walker says:

June 3, 2008 at 6:10 pm

> Someone who likes him might give exactly those same features as plus points.

Good point. Critics tend to talk about Lennon’s (artistic and political) infantilism, which is central to his songwriting and recording styles. On one hand it makes him sound simple and trite, on the other hand the simplicity of his message gives it a directness that often creates a feeling of emotional identity in the listener. It depends on the listener. ;o)

But let’s not forget that Lennon’s first solo album was a product of his “primal release” therapy, and is therefore a very personal record. And there’s nothing that polarizes an audience like a very personal record.

I’m very much enjoying the chat (and the quality moderation ;o). Keep up the good work!