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I cannot believe it has been 29 years since John Lennon's murder. I remember it as if it were yesterday and am still so moved by the tragedy of it all. Twenty-nine years ago, on a Tuesday morning (December 9), I awoke to the sound of my alarm clock radio. It was not unusual for it to be blaringly loud because that is what I needed to wake me up. It was also not unusual to hear a Beatles song (or any of its counterparts, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison). It was WMMR, 93.3 FM that I listened to in those days and so when I heard a song playing (I cannot recall which song), I wasn't surprised. Then I heard another song play and I stopped to think about the significance of the day - December 9 - it wasn't any of the Beatles' birthdays? No. It wasn't any "special" anniversary, was it? No. Instead, shortly after the song had finished, it was announced that John Lennon had been shot and killed last night (December !! I was devastated to hear the announcement! I truly couldn't catch my breath and began to cry (and much like everyone else, it is sort of strange to feel such a loss of someone whom you don't "really" know personally). I just couldn't believe it - I turned on the tv, - yes, it was true. I had to tell someone. I had to share my grief. I called my sister, Anna, and told her; she hadn't yet heard it either. If I had been awake, watching Monday Night Football on December 8, I would have heard it then, but instead, it was the news I awoke to on December 9. It was a most upsetting day for me and every year since that time, I remember it. Many things have changed in the past 29 years, but one thing remains the same - our quest for peace and the fact that John Lennon was one of the most influential people in that quest. Music has also changed over the years, but one thing still remains the same - John Lennon was one of the most influential musicians of our time. I think it is a blessing to have been alive during John Lennon's time and I only wish that he hadn't been cut short in his time, but hopefully, our memories of who he was and what he did will keep the dream alive. Imagine. With a sad heart today, but always a hopeful soul, I want to say Rest in Peace, John Lennon. Pat Parker

Amen.

Thanks for that Pat. 29 years. Blimey!

i'll always remember that night. I stayed up late hoping to hear that maybe john pulled through.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h52FKWOrW2k =

And THANK YOU! TM for the wonderful video - it is one of my favorite Beatles songs (of course, there are many, many, many favorites). For Phaedrus - I can understand how you must have felt and that is why, in one sense, that it was good that I didn't hear the news on the night it happened. I also would have stayed awake all night . . . hoping against hope.

". . .music has also changed over the years. . ." There's only one good thing for John. He doesn't have to hear HOW much worse popular music has gotten. I have not ben alive during Lennon's time. I sometimes wonder though what would have happened had he lived on. Imagine The Beatles had reunited and there had been the 1980s Beatles. That would have been really weird. But I'm sure John would still fight for Human Rights too had he lived. btw. Does anyone know if PG and Lennon ever met in person?

Thanks Pat for this thread. . . Soil. . .good question. . .I don't know? Can feel that same feeling today that I felt when I heard the news many years ago. . .heart wrenching! = John has filled our hearts with music. . .his music, beauty and love live on forever. . .thank you John. . . Just posted this on the Kafe thread. . .it deserves a place here as well. . . Miss you John. . . www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GmVajkqLNU

Let's try that again! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GmVajkqLNU

Don't know if PG met John Lennon but Tony Levin was bassist on Double Fantasy.

That's one of my FAVORITE Christmas songs- thanks for posting.

I lived in NYC when this tragedy occurred and was one of the many thousands that turned out for the memorial in Central Park later that week. The 10 minutes of silence we observed was so intense as to be actually deafening. I remember that we made our way afterwards past the over-wrought Christmas window displays of Fifth Ave. to a midtown diner just south of the park to warm up with some hot coffee and food. The whole city seemed numb and sleep walking in spite of the season even for those who were not in the park for the memorial. As we sat, dazed and mostly silent, sipping our coffee and not eating our food, "War is Over" came on the radio and i just lost it. I could hear that there were also people at other tables having the same reaction. To this day i still can't listen to this song without welling up just a little and sometimes i still just let the gates open and the tears flow. It's crazy really. I mean, we didn't really know John, not personally anyway. But for many of us his music is so intrinsic to our lives, so deeply embedded in our experiences that his passing is like the death of a dear old friend and even to this day i still feel great sorrow over it. Thanks John, for making us feel, even when it is painful. You are truly missed.

Yeah, what he said.

Beloved John. I remember the morning of December 9th 1980 very well, as so many do. I am sure there is something magic about the grief of so many people. Something altering, changing.