DBWI: What if Mark David Chapman managed to assasinate John Lennon?

[richie42]

Although those of us in the music industry shudder at such a thought, any of us knowing about John Lennon's time in the United States knows about the failed assasination attempt where Chapman was around The Dakoda, and his odd behaivor caused a NYPD officer to question him, Mark then ran away, and he was detained by the police, arrested with conspiracy to murder.

Although this would be certainly detrimental to the world, what whold have happened to the world if, and that is a grave if, Mark David Chapman managed to shoot and kill John Lennon.

 

[Rocano]

Although those of us in the music industry shudder at such a thought, any of us knowing about John Lennon's time in the United States knows about the failed assasination attempt where Chapman was around The Dakoda, and his odd behaivor caused a NYPD officer to question him, Mark then ran away, and he was detained by the police, arrested with conspiracy to murder.

Although this would be certainly detrimental to the world, what whold have happened to the world if, and that is a grave if, Mark David Chapman managed to shoot and kill John Lennon.

Well Lennons absence would lead to a whole new movement. Depression?

 

[Xen]

The Milk and Honey Album would be sorely missed, its hard to imagine 1982 without that album, or his biggest single since Imagine, Free As A Bird. Another thing hard to imagine is being without the Beatles reunion at the live-aid concert at Wembley Stadium in 1985, that was one hell of a show! The Beatles playing Imagine, Give Peace A Chance, Live and Let Die, along with some of their classical hits, wasnt it great to see them sing "She Loves You"?

Would Paul McCartney still have his world tour in 1989-90? I doubt it, I mean the Lennon-McCartney world tour sold out many revenues and set attendance records across the world and helped to lead to the Beatle reunion in 1995 and world tour the next year, and their new album, "Remember!".

The world would be a little bit darker

 

[richie42]

Well Lennons absence would lead to a whole new movement. Depression?

Now when you say deperssion, is this a new musical movement or a world wide economic depression spawned by the death of John Lennon.

 

[Sergio Van Lukenstein]

It would really have been a tragedy if Lennon had been killed. Usually, I'd say that it's lame when "dinosaur bands" get back together to make reunion albums (*cough*The Division Bell*cough*), but I think it was John and Yoko's radicalism and endless need for experimentation that made Remember! sound fresh. I mean, the Beatles are the only classic rock band that I can think of who actually managed to make a new album whose songs didn't bore concertgoers to tears while waiting to hear the old hits.

I love how people say Yoko broke up the Beatles, but ironically, her influence on John helped in a big way to make Remember! interesting and relevant.

 

[Count Dearborn]

There would have been no 1995 tour with his two sons.

 

[richie42]

The Milk and Honey Album would be sorely missed, its hard to imagine 1982 without that album, or his biggest single since Imagine, Free As A Bird. Another thing hard to imagine is being without the Beatles reunion at the live-aid concert at Wembley Stadium in 1985, that was one hell of a show! The Beatles playing Imagine, Give Peace A Chance, Live and Let Die, along with some of their classical hits, wasnt it great to see them sing "She Loves You"?

Would Paul McCartney still have his world tour in 1989-90? I doubt it, I mean the Lennon-McCartney world tour sold out many revenues and set attendance records across the world and helped to lead to the Beatle reunion in 1995 and world tour the next year, and their new album, "Remember!".

The world would be a little bit darker

OOC: I'm starting to like these musical DBWIs

You have a point there, although one cannot forget their later successes, which most were sadly after George Harrison's death. If Lennon had died, then the "Concert for George" wouldn't have went on, although you have to admit that it was playing the "America: A Tribute to Heroes" concert after 9/11 without George which really lead to their massive reunion in recent times. However, no one would have went to the Red Square Live 8 concert if The Beatles did not play there, which is an established fact.

 

[Atreus]

Okay, so the world would have lost so much. But what fills the gap left by Lennon?

 

[richie42]

It would really have been a tragedy if Lennon had been killed. Usually, I'd say that it's lame when "dinosaur bands" get back together to make reunion albums (*cough*The Division Bell*cough*), but I think it was John and Yoko's radicalism and endless need for experimentation that made Remember! sound fresh. I mean, the Beatles are the only classic rock band that I can think of who actually managed to make a new album whose songs didn't bore concertgoers to tears while waiting to hear the old hits.

I love how people say Yoko broke up the Beatles, but ironically, her influence on John helped in a big way to make Remember! interesting and relevant.

Exactly! I mean, and then there are some bands whose new music is just horrible, and listening to it makes me go into tears (*cough*Stiff Upper Lip*cough*).

 

[richie42]

Okay, so the world would have lost so much. But what fills the gap left by Lennon?

Within The Beatles or music in general?

 

[Mr_ Bondoc]

Then again, while it is certainly nice that John Lennon has been with the music scene as long as he has, there are still some things that would have never happened had he been killed. Personally the 1989 and 1991 "sleep-in" to protest the American involvement in El Salvador and Iraq were a little high-handed, even for my tastes as a liberal Democrat. The 1995 shaking of hands between P.M. Tony Blair and John Lennon to commemorate the Northern Ireland Peace Talks nearly sunk the talks altogether. Also Lennon's public support for Ralph Nader in the 2000 presidential election is often blamed for the landslide victory of George W. Bush (R-TX)....

 

[Marius]

Well, I remember reading an interview with Craig Roberts, lead singer of the Purple Monkey Disorder (I love those guys), that the moment he decided to make music was when he was 15, in 1991, when he heard Lennon's hit, "Don't Forget Them", released that year. Imagine a world without PMD, without their mix of melodic rock with a political message the world would be a sadder place.

 

[DrakonFin]

Well, I remember reading an interview with Craig Roberts, lead singer of the Purple Monkey Disorder (I love those guys), that the moment he decided to make music was when he was 15, in 1991, when he heard Lennon's hit, "Don't Forget Them", released that year. Imagine a world without PMD, without their mix of melodic rock with a political message the world would be a sadder place.

That's a good point! I love them too. PMD's concert in Helsinki in 2005, during the Suit Your Monkey Tour, was one of the best gigs I have ever been to, by any band.

Without PMD, what would I have listened in the late 90s? REM? Like Michael Stipe famously said, he was "never influenced by Lennon or the Beatles". (I liked it when Martin Lewis, in the piece he wrote in Time on Lennon's 60th birthday, confirmed that this is correct: careful analysis of REM lyrics, he wrote, shows that Stipe has mostly closely been influenced by the Monkees)

 

[sanusoi]

Iy might have acutally been better if the man had been assinated. I know you may call me a downer but the musci seen is stlae with John Lennon. It's feels like a broken record,

if he had been assisnated then prehaps the music scene would have flourised again with new things such as erm... rap and hip-hop. Those are still underground but these movemens are unique.

 

[Reylance]

The problem with all solo releases from artists of Lennon's caliber and age is they just don't make much of an impact on the music world. Sure, his name alone is enough to get attention from the major media and front-rack placement of the CD in stores (that's even true for Ringo!), but radio just isn't signing on.

I must say that Starbucks getting the exclusive release of Lennon's latest solo album for its first month has really helped the company attain notice as a serious force in the music world. Brick-and-mortar music stores, understandably, are rather upset with this arrangement.

 

[Mr_ Bondoc]

Iy might have acutally been better if the man had been assinated. I know you may call me a downer but the musci seen is stlae with John Lennon. It's feels like a broken record,

if he had been assisnated then prehaps the music scene would have flourised again with new things such as erm... rap and hip-hop. Those are still underground but these movemens are unique.

Actually, anywhere within the African-American community rap and hip-hop. Proof of this has been the lively development of the field since 1981, with artists like Queen Latifah, NWA, Tupac Shakur, et al. The fact that you had Aerosmith and Run DMC perform "Walk This Way" in 1987, shows that it has a crossover value. Also consider how in 2001, Eminem and John Lennon teamed up for the duet of "Stan"...

Count Dearborn- Then again, one has to consider that his two sons would later show a lack of talent from their father. Just consider the 1999 VH-1 Behind the Music special featuring the two sons. To make matters worse, you had John Lennon Jr. on the Surreal Life (VH-1) in 2004starring Ron Jeremy, Erik Estrada, and Johnny Bonaduce. The fact that he slept withTrishelle Cannatella has made me lose all respect for him. The fact that Sean Lennon was on The Biggest Loser (NBC-TV) in 2005 was probably the biggest embarassment of all. The fact that it was a joke on Robot Chicken (CAR-TV) should be another clue...