Today is the 20th anniversary of the murder of John Lennon... Being one who likes to play "what if," I was wondering if any of you had thought on this:

What if Lennon hadn't been killed? Would he have revived his career? Would Double Fantasy have been such a hit? Would the Beatles have ever gotten back together?

What if it had been a different Beatle--say, Paul McCartney? Would the public reaction have been the same? Or say it was a different rock star--Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, etc--would it have been as much of a tragedy?

The floor is open to discussion.

-- Anonymous, December 08, 2000

Answers

Interesting... I will say that I would bet (being only a periferal Beatles fan so don't any diehards jump my ass please) that they would have staged a reunion tour and like all reunion tours, it would have been somewhat cool, but a little (or a lot) sad. So maybe from that standpoint it's just as well... always leave your audience wanting more.

-- Anonymous, December 08, 2000

The guy is no longer alive. Why discuss the inevitable? It won't make the anniversary any more special. He is who he is, and hypothesizing about what he would have become is just unnecessary... but go ahead if you find it that important.

-- Anonymous, December 09, 2000

Nice buzzkill, Camille. Thanks.

-- Anonymous, December 10, 2000

Someone want to pull the stick out of Camille's ass?

I'll go with Angela, the beattles would have done a reunion tour. Lennon would have strangling Yoko after realizing how fucked up she truly was. Lennon would have gotten away free after the jury deemed the act justifiable

-- Anonymous, December 10, 2000

Nope, sorry. It's stuck.

You people don't deserve to be guessing such a man's future.

-- Anonymous, December 11, 2000

We don't "deserve" to be discussing this? Look, I have as much right to pose the question as you have to put me down for doing so. I asked a question, in the simple hope of initiating a conversation. I don't necessarily find it "important;" I mean, my life isn't hinging on the outcome of this topic. I was just trying to hold a conversation.

Please, Camille, forgive me; I was just asking a silly little question. I beg your pardon for my curiosity. I'll go crawl back into my hole now, hiding my inquisitive and pondering mind from you, so that I may never tread upon your sensibilities again.

-- Anonymous, December 11, 2000

Camille, I thought as much. :P

To be perfectly honest, I don't really think Lennon was that great of a man to begin with. I mean he did make fantastic music, but so did a bunch of other dead musicians. But I still haven't forgiven him for the "Ballad of John and Yoko" or "I Am the Walrus"...

Playing "what ifs" is fun stuff. I still honestly believe that given time Lennon would have strangled that Yoko bitch.

Hey, here's a another "What If", would Steve Prefontaine have won the 5,000 meter race at the Montreal Olympic games if he wasn't killed in a car accident while driving totally "f"ing wasted 2 years before the competition?

Would Kurt Kobain have been this generations Lennon if he hadn't blown his brains out? No doubt the guy was one talented bastard druggie!

Would people make as much fun as they do of Celine Deon if the radio DJ's hadn't overplayed the Titanic song? Would Celine had married a man old enough to be her father if he hadn't molestered her when she was a teen?

Would people have mistoken the Corr's song "Breathless" for a Shania Twain if Shaina's husband Mutt Lange hadn't produced the song?

Would I had put more "what ifs" if Camille hadn't insulted my friend?

Who knows? The floor is open for discussion!

-- Anonymous, December 12, 2000

dont let it get ya down, J-dog... not your fault she's a grade a BITCH! i hate people like that. probably sits in the back of her class lisening to tool or some shit like that makin snide comments and giving evryone dirty looks. purple hair and black nailpolish, so many percings she can't walk thru the metal detectors at school they have to use the wand on her evry day, walkin around saying "oh noone understands me oh boo hoo hoo." whatever

so anyway back to lennon... i don't know why it was such a big deal because it was lennon. i mean yeah he was the anigma of the beatles and he hadn't done anything in years but so what? i guess it's mainly becaus he was A beatle. they wouldve done the same for th rest. actualy they probbly wouldve cheered if paul died... oh wait! paul IS dead! :P

-- Anonymous, December 12, 2000

Dude, I am the Walrus is one of the best Beatles songs ever.

-dan

-- Anonymous, December 12, 2000

lisening? evryone? percings? thru? evry? anigma? what the hell is that? becaus?

Heh. "Stevie"... you're a grade A retard. I think you're spelling impaired or something. Is it really that difficult to add the SILENT letters to words? Apparently so.

"I am the Walrus" was a great song. "Imagine" was even better.

-- Anonymous, December 13, 2000

Call me odd, but my favorite Lennon song is "Watching the Wheels." "Instant Karma!" is a close second.

-- Anonymous, December 13, 2000

i hate imagine! god my mom and dad used to listen to that song all the time when i was grwing up... its so damn sappy!

i like revolutin... that song kicks ASS!

-- Anonymous, December 13, 2000

I know it was you, Stevie. That was not funny.

It's bad enough that you come trolling around here, but it's really bad form when you use someone else's name. If you have nothing to contribute to the discussion, then go away.

Or if you're going to use my name, at least learn proper spelling and grammar.

-- Anonymous, December 13, 2000

now who has a stick up his ass.

-- Anonymous, December 13, 2000

Wow, this degenerated pretty quickly here. All y'all need a time out, or something...

ANYWAY -- interesting question, Jeremy. I believe Lennon would have been the loudest voice of reason during the excess of the '80's. Yeah, he would've really slapped-down the whole yuppie scene. It probably would've been pretty funny, actually.

Re: reunion concert. Probably. But the Beatles being The Beatles, it most likely would have broken all records and put lame-ass groups like The Who, The Stones, and The Eagles to shame. I'm sure it would have re-defined Reunion Concerts in general.

And no, Double Fantasy wasn't that great. Even with his death, I don't feel any of the singles off that album were all that strong.

Re: another Beatle having been killed. Well, that's a tough one. Ringo most likely would not have been mourned the same, as he was not as prolific as the Lennon/McCartney songwriting duo, or as well- respected as Harrison was in general.

McCartney had a larger family, a wife that folks didn't slag on (as much as Yoko, at least), and the whole daily-marijuana-habit that folks rallied behind (or against). And frankly, he was the most attractive, so had the most fans, sad a commentary as that is. He probably would have been mourned more than Lennon, in a shallow sort of way. IMHO.

Harrison had his whole world peace/feed Bangladesh vibe going, which people deeply respected. That would have been held up as an example.

Lennon was tougher to love. He was a very intelligent man, but had a smart mouth, which people don't always appreciate. His humor had more bite than McCartney's, who always seemed more of a fun-loving guy (note daily pot habit, heh). And Lennon was a guy, at the time of his death, just trying to live a quiet life. That, to me, made it more tragic.

I don't think any other rock star of his era would have been mourned more deeply than he was.

-Denise, aka

-- Anonymous, December 15, 2000