John Lennon²

With Paul McCartney:
• Absolute partners: 1965 was a golden year for the Lennon-McCartney duo. They spent long days composing together face to face for the albums Help! and Rubber Soul.
• Healthy competition: Although they maintained a strong artistic rivalry that pushed them to write better songs, the atmosphere remained one of deep friendship and mutual respect.

With George Harrison:
• The discovery of LSD: In the spring of 1965, John and George experimented with LSD for the first time (along with their wives) after being secretly given it by a dentist. Sharing this "trip" created a very strong psychological bond between them, temporarily distancing them from Paul and Ringo, who refused to use it at the time.
• Artistic growth: John began to validate and support George's growth as a songwriter more in the recording studio.

With Ringo Starr (or Richard Starkey):
• Close cohabitation: During this time, John and Ringo lived very close to each other in the Surrey area, which led them to visit each other constantly and go out partying together outside the studio.
• Relaxed dynamics: Their relationship was the least conflictive; John appreciated Ringo's sense of humor and the stability he brought to the group.

He has severe myopia (although when he is in public he does not wear his glasses as he believes they are not very rock 'n' roll; his prescription glasses are square and have thick frames; in fact, there are photos of Paul wearing John's glasses)

John is insecure about his weight, saying that it's his "Fat Elvis" phase (he hides this insecurity with sarcasm)

In fact, John, apart from knowing how to play the guitar, knows how to play the harmonica and organ and other keyboards (He played the Vox Continental organ, Hammond organ, harmonium (for example, in "We Can Work It Out"))

John's Guitars:
Fender Stratocaster (Color Sonic Blue / Sky Blue and a black version)
Rickenbacker 325

Acoustic guitars:
Gibson J-160E
Framus Hootenanny (12 strings) (A 12-string acoustic guitar he used in the Help! sessions, prominently featured on songs like "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" and in the film Help!.)

John Lennon's physical build was characterized as being the most robust or "thick".
He was approximately 1.79 meters (5 feet 11 inches) tall, maintaining a height very similar to that of Paul McCartney and George Harrison.
His weight was around 77-80 kg (about 170-175 pounds). In terms of body composition, he had a higher percentage of body fat compared to his low muscle mass at the time.
His face looked noticeably round and full (especially visible in the recordings for the film Help! and the Rubber Soul album sessions). He didn't yet wear his iconic round metal glasses permanently, nor did he have any facial hair.
He was often described as having a slightly hunched posture when walking or playing on stage.
He has three moles on his forehead (although the third one isn't very visible, and they're hidden by his bangs), small, almond-shaped, light brown eyes, a straight and prominent nose (in fact, his nose is called an aquiline (or Roman) nose. It was a strong profile, slightly curved, with a pronounced bridge. Lennon himself jokingly mentioned that his nose was his most giveaway feature when he tried to go out in disguise), and thin lips; his skin tone is fair (not tanned or dark).

Tastes:
• Bob Dylan and R&B music: He deeply admired Bob Dylan (whose folk influence he adopted in songs that year like You've Got to Hide Your Love Away) and Motown and R&B artists such as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and Fontella Bass. In 1965, he bought an iconic portable jukebox (KB Discomatic) filled with his 40 favorite songs to take on tour.
• Literature and writing books: He greatly enjoyed satirical and surrealist writing. In June 1965, he published his second book, A Spaniard In The Works, and confessed in BBC interviews that writing prose was more personally satisfying to him than the commercial music of the time.
• Spontaneity in creation: He liked to write quickly and not over-edit his texts or poems, preferring the freshness of spontaneity to the rigid discipline of editing.
• Ringo Starr's performance: During press conferences for the film Help! (released in August 1965), he openly stated that he considered Ringo to be the best actor of the four.
• Extravagant cars: In June 1965 he bought his famous Rolls-Royce Phantom V (originally matte black, before having it painted with psychedelic motifs years later), defying British conservatism

Dislikes: • Tours and the screaming of Beatlemania: By 1965, Lennon began to express his frustration with the massive tours. He even confessed privately to journalist Maureen Cleave: "I'm sick of pretending this isn't boring." He was frustrated that the screaming made it impossible to hear the live music.
• Certain original songs ("It's Only Love"): Composed for the album Help! in 1965, Lennon later cataloged it as the most embarrassing song he had ever written, detesting its forced rhymes and lyrics that he considered "abysmal" and "disgusting".
• The imposed discipline: Lennon stated in radio interviews that year that he couldn't stand being disciplined or told what to do, and

• Sarcasm and quick wit: He maintained his characteristic Liverpool acid humor and an irreverent attitude towards authority, the press and social conventions.
• Insecurity and vulnerability: Behind her confident star facade, she dealt with the overwhelming pressure of "Beatlemania" and doubts about her own talent.
• Turn towards introspection: Influenced by reading, the exhaustion of traditional pop stardom and the initial consumption of substances such as LSD, his lyrics ceased to be simple love songs to become more personal.
• Crisis and cries for help: He himself acknowledged that the album and the song Help! (1965) were not just a commercial product, but a genuine plea for help in the face of the loss of his anonymity and his mental health.

Dark side and contradictions: On a personal level, he was a turbulent figure: affectionate and fun with his inner circle, but prone to mood swings, jealousy, and aggressive behavior when he drank.

• Dark sunglasses: Although he was not yet wearing his iconic round glasses in public (which he would formally adopt in 1966 for the film How I Won the War), by 1965 it was already common to see him on the street wearing dark Wayfarer-style sunglasses or square-framed sunglasses.

The brown suede jacket: It was her signature piece of clothing that year. She was seen wearing it constantly offstage, at Abbey Road Studios, and at press conferences.

On the set of Help!: In the scenes filmed in the snow (Obertauern, Austria), Lennon wore heavy military-style coats or dark coats with scarves and turtleneck sweaters, foreshadowing the mod and structured coat aesthetic of the period.

In the scenes in the tropics (Bahamas), John wore short-sleeved cotton t-shirts and casual blouses (like his memorable blue top with an inverted "V" cut on the sides).

For certain sequences and promotion, tailor Douglas Millings continued to design special outfits for the group (such as the prototype military jacket or soldier boy style created specifically for Lennon).

This era marked a turning point where band members began wearing denim and casual clothing offstage more frequently.

During this period, Lennon experimented with a slight weight gain (which he jokingly called his Fat Elvis phase), and the first hints of the psychedelic aesthetic and round glasses that would define the following years of his career began to appear.
In everyday life:
• Instead of formal shirts with ties, Lennon began to opt for black or navy turtleneck sweaters, combined with corduroy jackets or military and aviator-style coats.
• Straighter trousers and jeans: He began to incorporate trousers made of more rustic materials such as corduroy and slightly looser denim, breaking with the tight dress trousers of the early Beatlemania years.
The sailor cap (John Lennon Cap): Although he adopted it in 1964, in 1965 he commissioned a custom version with a higher crown to stand out from the paparazzi. Made of black leather or corduroy, it was his essential daily accessory for walking around London.

Lennon's unease grew as the screams of fans at concerts became increasingly loud, making it impossible to hear the music, and the group's musical quality began to suffer. The repertoire was now dominated by Lennon-McCartney songs, whose lyrics were receiving more critical attention than in the early days of the partnership. Lennon's song "Help!" expresses his own feelings in 1965: "I meant it [...] It was me crying 'Help' [Help]." He had gained some weight (later referring to it as his "Fat Elvis" period), and he realized that he was subconsciously seeking change.

“For our next song, I’d like to ask for your help. Those of you in the cheaper seats can clap [...] and the rest of you just need to jingle your jewelry.” After a year of Beatlemania in the UK, their historic US debut followed with an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964; the group then embarked on two years of international touring and filming, while also writing hit songs. During this time, Lennon wrote two books, In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works. The Beatles received recognition from the British establishment when they were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire in the 1965 Queen’s Honours.

Brian Epstein, the band's manager since 1962, had no experience in artist management, yet he had a significant influence on the group's clothing choices and stage presence. Initially, Lennon opposed the idea of ​​wearing suits and ties, but later embraced it, saying, "I'll wear a bloody balloon if somebody's going to pay me." McCartney replaced Sutcliffe on bass after he decided to stay in Hamburg, and drummer Ringo Starr replaced Best, completing the four-member lineup that would last until the band's breakup in 1970. They released their debut single, "Love Me Do," on October 5, which reached number 17 on the UK charts. They recorded their first album, Please Please Me, in just ten hours on February 11, 1963, a day when Lennon was suffering from a severe cold, which was quite noticeable in his vocal performance on the last track of the day, "Twist and Shout." The Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership contributed nine of the fourteen songs. With a few exceptions—including the title track—Lennon had to forgo his penchant for wordplay in the lyrics, stating, "We were just writing songs [...] pop songs without much effort in them other than what was necessary to create a sound; and the lyrics were almost irrelevant." Regarding the notion that Lennon was always considered the leader of the group, McCartney explained, "We all looked up to John. He was older [...] he was the wittiest and most intelligent."

The Beatles achieved commercial success in the UK in early 1963. When their first son, Julian, was born in April, Lennon was away from home due to touring. During their performance at the Royal Variety Show, which was attended by the Queen Mother and several other members of the British royal family, Lennon mocked the audience.

McCartney suggested that his friend George Harrison join as lead guitarist. Lennon thought that Harrison, at 14 years old, was too young to join the group. McCartney had to arrange an audition where Harrison played "Raunchy" for Lennon to hear and accept.[45] Later, Stuart Sutcliffe, Lennon's friend from art school, joined as bassist.[46] Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, and Sutcliffe became "The Beatles" in early 1960 after the other members left the group. In August of that year, The Beatles were booked for 48 performances in Hamburg, Germany, and in urgent need of a drummer, they invited Pete Best to accompany them. Lennon was already 19 years old, and his Aunt Mimi strongly disliked the idea of ​​the trip, so she begged him to continue his studies. After their first tour in Hamburg, they agreed to do another in April 1961 and a third in April 1962. Like the other members, Lennon began regularly using phenmetrazine in Hamburg, as well as amphetamines, which served as a stimulant during their long nightly performances.

Mimi, skeptical of the idea that Lennon would ever be famous, assumed he would get bored with music, often telling him, "The guitar is all very well, John, but you'll never be able to make a living from it." On July 15, 1958, when Lennon was 17, his mother, returning home from a visit to the Smiths, was killed after being struck by a drunk police officer.

In 1957, Lennon failed all his O-level exams and was accepted to Liverpool College of Art only after his aunt intervened by speaking to the headmaster. Once at the college, he began dressing like a Teddy boy and was known for disrupting classes and ridiculing the teachers. As a result, he was excluded from painting and graphic arts classes and threatened with expulsion due to his behavior, which included sitting on a nude model's lap during anatomical drawing class. He failed his final year exam despite help from some classmates and his future wife, Cynthia Powell, and was "kicked out of the college before his final year."

At the age of 16, Lennon formed the skiffle group The Quarrymen. Named after his school, Quarry Bank High School, the group was formed in September 1956. By the summer of 1957, The Quarrymen were performing concerts combining skiffle and rock and roll. Lennon met Paul McCartney on July 6, 1957, during The Quarrymen's second concert, at a garden party at St. Peter's Church in Woolton; McCartney joined the group shortly afterward.

McCartney has said that John's aunt "thought John's new friends were working class" and often treated him condescendingly when he visited her nephew. According to Paul's brother, Mike, McCartney's father also disapproved of his new friendships, saying that Lennon would bring his son "

After the Parkes family moved to Scotland, the three cousins ​​used to spend their school holidays together there. Parkes recalls: “John, my cousin Leila, and I were very close. We used to have a lot of fun traveling by car from Edinburgh to Durness. This was from when John was nine until he was sixteen.” Lennon was 14 when his uncle George died, at 52, of a liver hemorrhage on June 5, 1955.

Lennon was raised Anglican and attended Dovedale Primary School, as did Shotton and Vaughan. In 1952, he passed the entrance exam for the first stage of his secondary education at Quarry Bank High School, which he attended until 1957. According to Harvey, at that time he was "a carefree, good-humored, docile, and cheerful boy." He often drew comic strips, which he compiled in a school notebook he called The Daily Howl, but despite his artistic talent, his school reports were negative: "Undoubtedly on the road to failure [...] hopeless rather a class clown wasting the time of the other pupils."

In 1955, rock and roll exploded onto the scene, and in 1956, the so-called "skiffle craze" erupted in Great Britain, captivating millions of British teenagers who were part of the generation born during the horrors of the last war. John then formed a deep bond with his mother, visiting her home on Blomfield Road, Liverpool, where she played Elvis Presley records for him and taught him to play the banjo, showing him how to play Fats Domino's "Ain't That a Shame."

His mother bought him his first guitar in 1956, an acoustic Gallotone that cost the modest sum of five pounds and ten shillings, money which Julia "lent" to John on the condition that the guitar remained in her house, and not Mimi's, knowing full well that her sister did not support her son's musical aspirations.

For the rest of his childhood and adolescence, he lived with his childless aunt and uncle, Mimi and George Smith, in their house called Mendips, located at 251 Menlove Avenue, Woolton. His aunt would buy him storybooks, while his uncle, a cattle farmer on a family farm, bought him a harmonica and had him do crossword puzzles. His mother visited Mendips almost every day, and when Lennon turned 11, he often visited her. Jovial and liberal, he was a very different figure from his Aunt Mimi's conservative and often prejudiced personality.

In the nearby Mendips neighborhood, John made his first lifelong friends from a very young age. Around the corner from his house on Vale Road lived Pete Shotton, Ivan Vaughan, and Nigel Walley; all three would become original members of The Quarry Men. He formed a particularly close relationship with Shotton, with whom he shared a rebellious spirit and a sense of humor that more than once earned them punishment and humiliation with beatings at school (a practice promoted by the English education system of the time), leading the teachers to nickname them "Shennon and Lotton." One of Lennon and his friends' favorite places during childhood was a wooded garden belonging to a Salvation Army orphanage called Strawberry Field, located less than 500 meters from his house.

He regularly visited his cousin, Stanley Parkes, who lived in Fleetwood. Seven years his senior, Stanley would take him out and to local cinemas. During his school holidays, Parkes would often visit him along with Leila Harvey, another mutual cousin, and together they would go to Blackpool two or three times a week to see shows. They visited the Blackpool Tower, where they saw performers such as Dickie Valentine, Arthur Askey, Max Bygraves, and Joe Loss. Parkes noted that Lennon particularly liked George Formby.

John Winston Lennon was born during World War II, on October 9, 1940, at Liverpool Maternity Hospital, to Julia and Alfred Lennon, a merchant seaman of Irish descent, who was away at his son's birth due to his wartime duties as a soldier and sailor. His parents named him John Winston Lennon after his paternal grandfather, John "Jack" Lennon, and the then Prime Minister, Winston Churchill. His father was often away from home, but regularly sent paychecks to 9 Newcastle Road, Liverpool, where Lennon lived with his mother; however, the checks stopped arriving when he was arrested in February 1944 for being "absent without leave." Six months later, he returned home and offered to look after his family, but Julia—who was pregnant by another man—rejected the offer. Under considerable pressure, Julia entrusted Lennon's care to her sister, Mimi Smith, after Mimi repeatedly reported the boy's family situation to Liverpool social services. In July 1946, Lennon's father visited Smith and secretly left with his son for Blackpool, intending to take him to New Zealand. Julia followed them—along with her current partner, "Bobby" Dykins—and, after a heated argument between the two, Alfred forced the five-year-old boy to choose with whom he would stay. Lennon chose his father twice, but as his mother walked away, he began to cry and followed her. It would be twenty years before Lennon saw his father again.