John Lennon

John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English musician, songwriter and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney remains the most successful in history.

Born in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager. In 1956, he formed the Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. He initially was the group's de facto leader, a role he gradually seemed to cede to McCartney. In the mid-1960s, Lennon authored In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works, both collections of nonsense writings and line drawings. Starting with "All You Need Is Love" in 1967, his songs were adopted as anthems by the counterculture and anti-war movement. In 1969, he started the Plastic Ono Band with his second wife, multimedia artist Yoko Ono, held the two-week-long anti-war demonstration bed-in for peace, and left the Beatles to embark on a solo career. Lennon and Ono collaborated on many works, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums and several films. From 1969 to 1972, he achieved four UK top-10 singles with "Give Peace a Chance", "Instant Karma!", "Imagine", and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)".