The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

were originally a quartet, but only two of the members remain.

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

was murdered in December 1980, and

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

succumbed to

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

in 2001. There have been numerous tributes to both of them.

The Beatles

During the mid 1960s, Beatlemania was an unprecedented global phenomenon, and two songs devoted to them reached the charts: "

We Love You Beatles "We Love You Beatles" is a song by the Carefrees. It was a 1964 in music, 1964 novelty record about The Beatles and the song peaked at number 39 on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100; it was the only Beatles novelty ...

" by

The Carefrees The Carefrees were a British group formed in 1964, most known for their song "We Love You Beatles". Although often referred to as a girl group, the Carefrees consisted of three women and three men: female vocalists Lynn Cornell, Barbara Kay and ...

(#39) and "

A Letter to the Beatles "A Letter to the Beatles" is a novelty song by the Four Preps. It was released as a single on March 9, 1964, by Capitol Records who had both the Beatles and the Four Preps signed to their roster. "A Letter to the Beatles" rose to number 85 on t ...

" by

The Four Preps The Four Preps are an American popular music male quartet. In the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the group amassed eight gold singles and three gold albums. Their million-selling signature tunes included "26 Miles (Santa Catalina)", "Big Man (The Four ...

(#85). Over the years, many other songs mention the group in their lyrics: *

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Police ...

– "Born In the 50s" *

The House of Love The House of Love are an English alternative rock band, formed in London in 1986 by singer-songwriter-guitarist Guy Chadwick and co-founder and lead guitarist Terry Bickers. They rose to prominence in 1987 with their first single " Shine On", r ...

– "The Beatles and the Stones" *

Run-DMC Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of ...

– "King of Rock" *

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

– "The Seeker" *

Jellyfish Jellyfish and sea jellies are the informal common names given to the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animals with umbrella- ...

– "All I Want is Everything" *

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

– "1977" *

The Dream Academy The Dream Academy were a British band consisting of singer/guitarist Nick Laird-Clowes, multi-instrumentalist (chiefly oboe, cor anglais player) Kate St John, and keyboardist Gilbert Gabriel. The band is most noted for their 1985 hit singles "L ...

– "

Life in a Northern Town "Life in a Northern Town" is the debut single by British band the Dream Academy, released in March 1985. It is from their self-titled debut studio album ''The Dream Academy''. The song was written as an elegy to British folk musician Nick Drake ...

" *

Leonardo Favio Fuad Jorge Jury (28 May 1938 – 5 November 2012), better known by his stage name Leonardo Favio (), was an Argentine singer, actor and filmmaker. He is considered one of Argentina's best film directors and one of the country's most enduring cul ...

– "Ding Dong, Ding Dong, Estas Cosas del Amor" * Akustikats - "Bit by Beat - A Tribute to The Beatles" *

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo ...

- "All You Wanna Do Is Dance"

John Lennon

Lennon was murdered in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Mark David Chapman Mark David Chapman (born May 10, 1955) is an American man who murdered former Beatles member John Lennon in New York City on December 8, 1980. As Lennon walked into the archway of his apartment building at The Dakota, Chapman shot Lennon from a ...

, who had a been a childhood fan of The Beatles. After his death, a crowd gathered in mourning to pay tribute to him in ten minutes of silence as requested by his widow,

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...

Posthumous recognition

Lennon has been the subject of numerous posthumous awards. His album ''

Double Fantasy ''Double Fantasy'' is the fifth album by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, released in November 1980 on Geffen Records. Produced by Lennon, Ono and Jack Douglas, it was the seventh and final studio album released by Lennon during his lifetime. The album ...

'' was awarded a 1982

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for Album of the Year and a 1982 Brit Award for outstanding contribution to music. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine ranked Lennon in sixth place in a countdown of the greatest artists of all time, and Lennon's song "Imagine" was voted the third greatest song of all time. Several posthumous compilation albums have been released, such as ''

Lennon Legend ''Lennon Legend: The Very Best of John Lennon'' is the third official compilation album of John Lennon's solo career, coming after 1975's ''Shaved Fish'' and 1982's ''The John Lennon Collection''. Because neither collection spanned Lennon's re ...

'' and '' Working Class Hero: The Definitive Lennon''.

Concerts and Albums

''Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur''

In 2006, a selection of modern recording artists released versions of Lennon's songs on a charitable album called '' Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur'', named after a

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

. Performers included U2,

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. His style incorporates elements of rock, blues, soul, R&B, funk, jazz, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, pop and folk. Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male Roc ...

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a powe ...

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternative ...

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...

, and

The Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie, who replaced Kim Hil ...

, among others. U2 recorded the title track.

Songs

"All Those Years Ago"

George Harrison had written "All Those Years ago" before the death of Lennon. The lyrics were originally different, however; upon hearing the news of Lennon's death, Harrison changed the lyrics and rewrote the song as a tribute to Lennon. Surviving Beatles,

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

and

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

, along with McCartney's wife

Linda Linda may refer to: As a name * Linda (given name), a female given name (including a list of people and fictional characters so named) * Linda (singer) (born 1977), stage name of Svetlana Geiman, a Russian singer * Anita Linda (born Alice Lake i ...

and

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...

member

Denny Laine Denny Laine (born Brian Frederick Hines, 29 October 1944) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, known as a founder of two major rock bands: the Moody Blues, with whom he played from 1964 to 1966, and Wings, with whom he played from 1 ...

, contributed to the recording.

"Here Today"

McCartney recorded his own personal tribute to Lennon, titled "Here Today," on his 1982 album, ''

Tug of War Tug of war (also known as tug o' war, tug war, rope war, rope pulling, or tugging war) is a sport that pits two teams against each other in a test of strength: teams pull on opposite ends of a rope, with the goal being to bring the rope a certa ...

''. McCartney had been affected by Lennon's death to the extent that he became reluctant about touring.

"Life Is Real (Song for Lennon)"

Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. Regarded as one of the greatest singers in the ...

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

wrote "Life Is Real" as a tribute to Lennon. The title may be a reference to the lyric 'love is real', from Lennon's 1970 song "

Love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

", or the line 'nothing is real', from

' "

Strawberry Fields Forever "Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on 13 February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Penny Lane". It represented a departur ...

"Hey John"

The

GDR East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

rock band '' Die Puhdys'' dedicated Lennon their song "Hey John", performed and recorded in 1981. The band describes their fan feelings about John Lennon, especially to his song "

Give Peace a Chance "Give Peace a Chance" is an anti-war song written by John Lennon (originally credited to Lennon–McCartney), and recorded with the participation of a small group of friends in a performance with Yoko Ono in a hotel room in Montreal, Quebec, Ca ...

". The song contains Lennon samples from "Give Peace a Chance" and "

Imagine Imagine may refer to: * Imagination Music Albums * ''Imagine'' (Armin van Buuren album), 2008 * ''Imagine'' (Eva Cassidy album), 2002 * ''Imagine'' (Janice Vidal album), 2012 * ''Imagine'' (John Lennon album), 1971 ** ''Imagine: John Lennon' ...

"Roll On John"

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

wrote "Roll On John" as a tribute to Lennon on his 2012 album entitled ''

Tempest Tempest is a synonym for a storm. '' The Tempest'' is a play by William Shakespeare. Tempest or The Tempest may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Tempest'' (1908 film), a British silent film * ''The Tempest'' (1911 film), a ...

''.

"Empty Garden (Hey, Hey Johnny)"

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

wrote "Empty Garden (Hey, Hey Johnny)" for Lennon, a dedication for Lennon to show a love for their friendship. Elton John titled it "Empty Garden," as Lennon told him stories how he was going to create a garden outside of

The Dakota The Dakota, also known as the Dakota Apartments, is a Housing cooperative, cooperative apartment building at 1 West 72nd Street (Manhattan), 72nd Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The Dakota was construc ...

, which was the building where Lennon lived, and how he never was able to grow it as he was shot by a crazed fan outside of his home in 1980.

"The Late Great Johnny Ace"

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...

wrote this song about both the fifties singer

Johnny Ace John Marshall Alexander Jr. (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), known by the stage name Johnny Ace, was an American rhythm-and-blues singer. He had a string of hit singles in the mid 1950s. Alexander died of an accidental self-inflicted gunsh ...

and John Lennon in 1981. It was first performed for the concert in

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

in 1981, as seen in the film, but not included on the

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

. It was finally released on his 1982 album "

Hearts and Bones ''Hearts and Bones'' is the sixth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was released in 1983 by Warner Bros. Records. Background The album was originally intended to be called ''Think Too Much'', but Mo Ostin, president ...

Films

''
The U.S. vs. John Lennon ''The U.S. vs. John Lennon'' is a documentary film about John Lennon, Lennon's transformation from member of the Beatles to anti-war activist opposing the reelection of Richard Nixon as president in 1972. The film also details the attempts by the ...
''

'' Imagine: John Lennon''

George Harrison

died from lung cancer on 29 November 2001. Tributes were performed by some of the most well known musicians of the time.

Posthumous recognition

A year after Harrison's death, his final album, ''

Brainwashed Brainwashed may refer to: *Brainwashing, to affect a person's mind by using extreme mental pressure or any other mind-affecting process Music Albums * Brainwashed (George Harrison album), ''Brainwashed'' (George Harrison album), 2002, or the ...

'', was released. ''

The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 ''The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992'' is a box set of albums by English rock musician George Harrison. It was released in 2004 and comprises most of the singer's output on his Dark Horse record label. The set contains Harrison's five studio albums ...

'', a compilation set of a selection of his albums, was released in 2004. Harrison was voted the 21st greatest Guitarist of all time by ''

'' magazine and was inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...

in 2004. Film director

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

directed a feature-length documentary about Harrison's life, '' George Harrison: Living in the Material World'' (2011).

Concerts and Albums

Concert for George

A year after his death Harrison's friends commemorated him in a tribute concert held at

Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...

.''The Concert for George'', Catalogue number: 0349702412 The show featured musicians

Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known export of North Ind ...

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

Jeff Lynne Jeffrey Lynne (born 30 December 1947) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder of the rock music, rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which was formed in 1970. As a songwriter, h ...

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the lat ...

, and

among others. Harrison's son Dhani performed, playing the guitar.

Jim Keltner James Lee Keltner (born April 27, 1942) is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. He was characterized by Bob Dylan biographer Howard Sounes as "the leading session drummer in America".Howard Sounes. ''Down ...

, a session drummer who had played with Harrison in the

Traveling Wilburys The Traveling Wilburys were a British-American supergroup consisting of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty. Originating from an idea discussed by Harrison and Lynne during the sessions for Harrison's 1987 album ...

, also appeared.

Songs

"Never Without You"

Ringo Starr wrote and recorded a tribute song to Harrison titled "Never Without You", released on '' Ringo Rama'' in 2003.

Films

'' George Harrison: Living in the Material World''

References

{{John Lennon

The Beatles

John Lennon

Posthumous recognition

Concerts and Albums

''Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur''

Songs

"All Those Years Ago"

"Here Today"

"Life Is Real (Song for Lennon)"

"Hey John"

"Roll On John"

"Empty Garden (Hey, Hey Johnny)"

"The Late Great Johnny Ace"

Films

''The U.S. vs. John Lennon ''The U.S. vs. John Lennon'' is a documentary film about John Lennon, Lennon's transformation from member of the Beatles to anti-war activist opposing the reelection of Richard Nixon as president in 1972. The film also details the attempts by the ...''

'' Imagine: John Lennon''

George Harrison

Posthumous recognition

Concerts and Albums

Concert for George

Songs

"Never Without You"

Films

'' George Harrison: Living in the Material World''

References

''
The U.S. vs. John Lennon ''The U.S. vs. John Lennon'' is a documentary film about John Lennon, Lennon's transformation from member of the Beatles to anti-war activist opposing the reelection of Richard Nixon as president in 1972. The film also details the attempts by the ...
''