John Lennon's 70th Birthday

John Lennon's Birthday was celebrated around the world:



Here is a video of the unveiling of a statue celebrating John Lennon's life and commitment to peace in his hometown of Liverpool. His son Julian and ex-wife Cynthia were present at the ceremony.




Rolling Stone also highlighted events and releases celebrating Lennon's birth including the reissue of all of Lennon's newly remastered solo albums. There is also a film called Nowhere Boy about to be released which focuses on Lennon's early years in Liverpool. Reportedly, Paul and Yoko both approved of the film and liked the portrayal of Lennon's early life. Would you see it?


Here is a trailer:



[Image via amazonaws.com]

  

Happy Birthday John Lennon!

In 1961, John spent his 21st birthday in Paris with Paul.

Check out this photo of John and Paul from their trip to Paris.

This year marks John's 70th birthday, and it is being celebrated all around the world.

I will post some of the celebrations later on.

[Image Beatlesource.com]

Off to Paris!

On September 30, 1961, Paul and John set off to hitchhike to Paris. John had been given 100 pounds as an early birthday present and decided to go to Paris, inviting Paul to go with him. He told his Aunt Mimi he was going to sell his paintings. Paul bought him a hamburger to celebrate the occasion, but John could not find much reason to celebrate: 


"I wasn't too keen on reaching twenty-one. I remember one relative saying to me, 'From now on, it's all downhill,' and I really got a shock. She told me how my skin would be getting older and that kind of jazz." 


-John Lennon, Anthology, 1963. 


[Image via mybeatlescollection.com]

Who Will Open the 2012 Olympics in London? Paul McCartney or the Rolling Stones

Here is an article from the India Times that discusses the tough decision the London Olympic committee is trying to make regarding the opening of the 2010 London games. Both Paul McCartney and the Rolling Stones are interested in playing the opening ceremonies to represent the host country. Both have played the Super Bowl half-time show, so neither are strangers to large venues. Who do you think should represent London at the opening ceremonies? Paul's daughter Stella McCartney has been commissioned to design the English uniforms for the games, so maybe they'll pick Paul to keep it all in the family. What do you think?





[Image via onethirtybpm]

Paul McCartney on Glee?

Check out this article on MSN about Paul McCartney. Apparently, he contacted Glee creator Ryan Murphy to say how much he admires the show and to offer the use of some of his songs in future episodes. Ryan Murphy wouldn't elaborate, but he did say that the show definitely intends to do something with Paul's songs. What do you think about Paul's music appearing on Glee?

Paul McCartney at the White House

As promised, here are some more videos of the tribute to Paul McCartney at the White House that aired last night on PBS.

Dave Grohl with "Band on the Run"



Jack White with "Mother Nature's Son" and "That Would Be Something"



Here is Paul serenading Michelle Obama with "Michelle"



End of "Hey Jude":

Paul McCartney Honored at White House

The ceremony honoring Paul McCartney with the Gershwin award for song at the White House airs tonight on public television (for those in the USA). Here is a video showing the Jonas Brothers' prep for their performance of "Drive My Car." Not sure why Paul requested them, maybe to appeal to the younger crowd...but I don't really get it. That said, here it is:

*I will try to find videos of the other performances. 

Happy Belated Birthday Ringo!

July 7th was Ringo's 70th birthday! Since I didn't have the blog then, I thought I'd celebrate it anyway (no matter how late).

Ringo has been touring the last few months with his All Star Band. ( I saw them last month and they were great) Paul McCartney surprised Ringo on his birthday by coming out at the end of the show to play "Birthday" with/for Ringo. It's touching to see how flustered and surprised Ringo is at the beginning, and how clearly touched his is at the end of the song. There were several special guests at Ringo's birthday performance including his son Zac Starkey, who can be seen playing drums with his father.

Here is a pretty good video of the performance from Youtube:



[Image via Boston.com]