Tag Archives: John Lennon Imagine

John Lennon Imagine

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John Lennon Imagine. I remember the bittersweet night of being a professional DJ at a club in Randolph, NJ on a Monday night, it was December 8,1980. The club was mostly packed, especially for a Monday night in winter. The dance floor was jamming and everybody was having a good time. A young woman came up to the DJ booth and begged me to play Bruce Springsteen. I explained that the dance floor was full and she would have to wait till it thinned out, otherwise everybody would probably stop dancing. She finally convinced me to play him while she was standing there. I had the record in my hand when one of the bouncers ran up and told me John Lennon had just been shot and killed. I dropped the record on the floor of the DJ booth. After the song playing was over, I turned on the mike and announced his death. I asked for moment of silence and then played “Imagine” before returning to my regular set, although not regular at all. It is the moment I think of the most when I get behind my turntables, then CD Players and now MacBook. Growing up, he was hero my hero with his music and desire for peace.

John Lennon Imagine Music Video

The next day, as Program Director of the local college radio and DJ, I stated that we only play John Lennon Imagine and music by John Lennon for the next twenty-four hours.

The Beatles and John Lennon Imagine Icon

 

“BMI named John Lennon Imagine one of the 100 most-performed songs of the 20th century. The song ranked number 30 on the Recording Industry Association of America‘s list of the 365 Songs of the Century bearing the most historical significance. It earned aGrammy Hall of Fame Award and an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. A UK survey conducted by the Guinness World Records British Hit Singles Book named it the second best single of all time, andRolling Stone ranked it number 3 in their list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time“. Since 2005, event organisers have played it just before the New Year’s Times Square Ball drops in New York City. Dozens of artists have performed or recorded versions of “Imagine”, including Madonna, Stevie Wonder, Joan Baez, Elton John, and Diana Ross. Emeli Sandé recorded a cover for theBBC to use during the end credits montage at the close of the 2012 Summer Olympics coverage in August 2012. “Imagine” subsequently re-entered the UK Top 40, reaching number 18.” Wikipedia

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Elton John Empty Garden

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Elton John Empty Garden. I still get emotional and shaky when I think of the night John Lennon was shot and killed12/8/1980. I was the professional DJ that night in a club and dropped the record I had in my hand when I was informed of this shocking event. It was and still is my “Where were you when J.F.K. was killed?” moment. This song was a tribute to John Lennon from his good friend and Godfather to his second son Sean, Elton John. It made remembering John all that much more difficult and real.

 

John Lennon was my hero growing up. His words and music about peace, love and personal action are still with me today and have shaped my being. I was crushed when he died. Somehow, Elton being a friend of his and one of my favorite writers at the time made it seem better since he too was grieving the loss of a special man personally. Elton John Empty Garden.

 

Elton had performed on several Lennon songs and even appeared onstage with him at his final concert in 1974.  When he performed this song at a sold-out Madison Square Garden show in August 1982, Elton was joined onstage by Lennon’s wife Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon.

 

There has been some discussion of which “garden” Elton John Empty Garden was writing about. Perhaps the “empty garden among the flagstones” are the thousands of flowers that were left at the entryway to the Dakota that night and through the following days. People simply did not know what to do with their grief and so they gathered outside the Dakota with their flowers and radios and sang his songs into the morning. Yoko had to send her assistant outside saying she loved the singing but it was keeping her awake so would they gather again that Sunday and remember how “John loved and prayed for the human race. Please pray the same for him.” Others say John’s beauty and creativity itself was ‘the garden’. Still others argue that it is actually Madison Square Garden where they played together especially John’s last performance. Regardless of the truth, all of them have equal and different pull at my heart, they all work for me and feel true.

 

This remains one of the most touching and emotional songs for me. “Hey Hey Johnny, won’t you come out to play?”Elton John Empty Garden.

 

I miss you John. Where are you?

Elton John Empty Garden

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ