John Lennon Quotes

134 Sourced Quotes

Life is just what happens to you,
while you're busy making other plans.

John Lennon
I was looking for a name like the Crickets that meant two things, and from crickets I got to beetles. And I changed [to] B E A because … B E E T L E S didn't mean two things, so I changed … the E to an A. And it meant two things then. … When you said it, people thought of crawly things; and when you read it, it was beat music.

John Lennon
I've had cocaine, but I don't like it. The Beatles had lots of it in their day, but it's a dumb drug, because you have to have another one 20 minutes later. Your whole concentration goes on getting the next fix. Really, I find caffeine is easier to deal with. … A little mushroom or peyote is not beyond my scope, you know, maybe twice a year or something. You don't hear about it anymore, but people are still visiting the cosmos. We must always remember to thank the CIA and the Army for LSD. That's what people forget. … They invented LSD to control people and what they did was give us freedom. Sometimes it works in mysterious ways its wonders to perform.

John Lennon
These critics with the illusions they've created about artists — it's like idol worship. They only like people when they're on their way up … I cannot be on the way up again. … What they want is dead heroes, like Sid Vicious and James Dean. I'm not interesting in being a dead (expletive) hero. … So forget 'em, forget 'em.

John Lennon
There's only one person in the United States we ever wanted to meet … not that he wanted us. And we met him last night. We can't tell you how we felt. We just idolised him so much. … You can't imagine what a thrill that was last night. Nothing really affected me until I heard Elvis. If there hadn't been an Elvis, there wouldn't have been the Beatles.

John Lennon
The dream is over...
I was the Dreamweaver But now I'm reborn I was the Walrus But now I'm John.

John Lennon
There's a shadow hanging over me,
Oh yesterday came suddenly.

John Lennon
I think a label like "avant-garde" defeats itself. You learn to have avant-garde exhibitions. The very fact that avant-garde can have an exhibition defeats the purpose of avant-garde, because it's already formalised and ritualised.

John Lennon
She told me she worked in the morning And started to laugh, I told her I didn't And crawled off to sleep in the bath. And when I awoke I was alone, This bird had flown. So I lit a fire, Isn't it good Norwegian wood.

John Lennon
I've always considered my work one piece and I consider that my work won't be finished until I am dead and buried and I hope that's a long, long time.

John Lennon
I heard the news today, oh boy.
Four thousand holes in Blackburn Lancashire.
And though the holes were rather small,
They had to count them all.

John Lennon
Don't believe that jazz about there's nothing you can do, "turn on and drop out, man" — because you've got to turn on and drop in, or they're going to drop all over you.

John Lennon
There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance.

John Lennon
Above all else never let people know how physically unattractive they actually are. Everyone deserves to believe they are beautiful.

John Lennon
So we sailed on to the sun Till we found a sea of green, And we lived beneath the waves In our yellow submarine.

John Lennon
It's been a hard day's night,
And I've been working like a dog.

John Lennon
It was a load of rubbish. It was like meeting Engelbert Humperdinck.

John Lennon
If people take any notice of what we say, we say we've been through the drug scene, man, and there's nothing like being straight.

John Lennon
I'd spent five hours that morning trying to write a song that was meaningful and good, and I finally gave up and lay down. Then, "Nowhere Man" came, words and music, the whole damn thing, as I lay down...Song writing is about getting the demon out of me. It's like being possessed. You try to go to sleep, but the song won't let you. So you have to get up and make it into something, and then you're allowed sleep.

John Lennon
Life is very short, and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friends.

John Lennon
Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV And you think you're so clever and classless and free But you're still fucking peasants as far as I can see.

John Lennon
My little rebellion was to have my tie loose, with the top button of my shirt undone, but Paul'd always come up to me and put it straight.

John Lennon
God is a concept
By which we measure our pain.

John Lennon
If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it Chuck Berry.

John Lennon
Will the people in the cheaper seats clap your hands? All the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewelry.

John Lennon