10 Famous Musicians That Went Solo

3. John Lennon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jKZEvwKzj8 The angry and bitter persona that resulted from a traumatic childhood and the devastating loss of his mother always seethed below the surface of John Lennon€™s comedic public image but finally began to unveil itself in song form after The Beatles eschewed their soppy poppy ways and began to explore more profound subject matter. €˜Strawberry Fields Forever€™, Beatle John€™s creative zenith, portrayed a little boy lost and a man sickened by the fickle fishbowl of fame, isolated and alone, pining desperately for love and affection. In a succinct self-review, Lennon described the track as €˜psychoanalysis in song€™, a coping mechanism that he expanded on tenfold with his solo album proper, John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. On said release, the Beatles€™ €˜witty one€™ confounded everyone with an emotional tour-de-force. Informed by his indulgence in primal therapy, the LP is a candid and confessional affair with a sound that negated Revolver and Sgt. Pepper€™s sonic innovation in favour of something terser and more abrasive- stripped back music that faithfully mirrored the exposure of the artist€™s soul. Equal parts perceptive (€˜Love€™), painful (€˜Mother€™) and barbed (€˜Working Class Hero€™, €˜I Found Out€™), John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band featured topics too lacerating to make it past Paul McCartney€™s sensitive censoring (the guy tried to veto €˜Revolution€™ for crying out loud!) and created the blueprint for a million other acoustic-fondling introverts to weave their tales of woe. But nothing comes close to John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band€™s brutality and bravery, an album that despite the wealth and diversity of Lennon€™s subsequent records, best encapsulated his penchant for cynicism and honesty.

Worth the (solo) effort? Absolutely. We don€™t care what band he was in!

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Contributor

A 22 year old English Literature graduate from Birmingham. I am passionate about music, literature and football, in particular, my beloved Aston Villa. Lover of words and consumer of art, music is the very air that I breathe.