| Lennon was asking to imagine a place where
things that divide people (religion, possessions, etc.) did not
exist. He felt that would be a much better place. |
| A strong political message that is sugarcoated
in a beautiful melody. Lennon realized that the softer approach
would bring the song to a wider audience, who hopefully would listen
to his message. |
| Lennon later felt that this song should have
been a Lennon/Ono collaboration. Said John, "The lyric, the concept,
came from Yoko, but in those days I was more selfish, more macho,
and omitted to mention her contribution. But it was right out of her
Grapefruit book- there's a whole pile of pieces about imagine this
and imagine that." |
| Some people have wondered if Lennon included a
message in the video for this song as well. In the video, Lennon is
dressed as a cowboy and Yoko Ono is dressed as an Indian squaw. This
could be a kind of message about all cultures getting along. (thanks,
Adam - Dewsbury, England, for above 2) |
| In 2000, George Michael paid over $2 million
for the piano that Lennon wrote this on. He then returned it to the
Beatles museum in Liverpool. |
| Plays a role in the movie Forrest Gump.
Gump (played by Tom Hanks) appears on a talk show with Lennon,
talking about a place where there are "no possessions" and "no
religion." |
| A sidewalk mosaic spells out the word "Imagine"
in a section of Central Park dedicated to Lennon. The area is called
"Strawberry Fields," and is located across from Lennon's apartment
where he was shot. |
| This was not released as a single in the UK
until 1975, when it hit #6. Shortly after Lennon's death in 1980, it
was re-released in the UK and hit #1. It was replaced at #1 by
Lennon's "Woman," marking the first time an artist replaced himself
on top of the UK charts since The Beatles followed "She Loves You"
with "I Want To Hold Your Hand." |
| This is credited to The Plastic Ono Band, the
name Lennon used for some of his recordings after leaving The
Beatles. Ringo Starr played drums on this and Klaus Voorman played
bass. |
| On September 21, 2001, Neil Young performed
this on a benefit telethon for the victims of the terrorist attacks
on America. Almost 60 million people watched the special in the US. |
| At a 2001 tribute special to Lennon, Yolanda
Adams sang this with Billy Preston on organ. Preston played
keyboards on some Beatles songs, including "Get Back." |
| Oasis used the piano intro on their 1996 song
"Don't Look Back In Anger." |
| In 2002, this came in #2 in a poll by Guinness
World Records as Britain's favorite single of all time. It lost to "Bohemian
Rhapsody" by Queen. |
| This has been covered by many bands, including
Our Lady Peace, and a vastly toned down version by A Perfect Circle.
(thanks, Jeffrey - Victoria, Canada) |
| This was the last song played on WABC before
they switched from a top-40 format to talk radio. Based in New York
City, WABC was for decades the top AM radio station in the country.
They debated long and hard to decide which song should be their
farewell. (thanks, Rob - Minneapolis, MN) |
