John Winston Lennon was born to Julia Stanley and Alfred Lennon on October 9th, 1940 in Liverpool, England. Johns father left when he was only five and his mother gave him to her sister, Mary "Mimi" Smith to raise. His Aunt described him as artistic. He was often found drawing, writing or singing a lot. When he was in Grammar School he started a band with some friends called "Quarrymen". In 1957 he met Paul McCartney and asked him to join the band.

"The Beatles" were formed in 1962. With Parl McCartney, Lennon wrote several timeless classics during his Beatles days. His creativity (along with admitted experimental drug use) took music to a new level. They set standards that only a few bands have been able to achieve.

The Beatles were a major part of the psychedelic sound with songs like "I Am The Walrus" and "Strawberry Fields Forever," which were released in 1967. Lennon married his second wife in 1969. Yoko Ono an avant-garde conceptual artist joined him that year for the famous bed-in for peace which resulted in the song "Give Peace a Chance."

In 1970 The Beatles broke up but Lennon continued on with a solo career and political activism. He was best known for his brutally honest lyrics which proved he had nothing to hide. Even though the songs were easy and fun to listen to they were actually bitter confessionals of insecurity.

For all of the unvarnished genius of Lennon's recordings, what lingers in the publics minds goes beyond musical legacy. Rather, it has to do with leading by example. John and Yoko's relationship endured challenges from within and without to become one of the most touching and celebrated romances of the 20th Century. During the early 1970's Lennon fought the U.S. government to avoid deportation (a campaign of harassment by Nixon-era conservatives that was overturned by the courts in 1975) and came to love his adopted city of New York.

In 1975, John dropped out of the public spotlight to raise Sean, his son with Yoko. In the fall of 1980 John and Yoko made an optimistic comeback with their album "Double Fantasy," featuring such songs as "Just Like Starting Over" and "Woman." Just when his career seemed refreshed and full of promise he was tragically murdered on December 8th, 1980 infront of his home at the Dakota Building in New York City.

John Lennon was more than a musician. He was an artist. A poet. A writer. A father. A husband. A visionary. A creative spirit. A sense of humor. A genuinely honest person who had nothing to hide. The writer of "Imagine" will always be remembered.