Lennon rehearsing "Give Peace a Chance" Background information Birth name John Winston Lennon Born 9 October 1940(1940-10-09) Liverpool, England Died 8 December 1980 (aged 40) New York City, New York, United States Genre(s) Rock, pop, experimental Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, Musician, Poet, Artist, Peace activist Instrument(s) Guitar, Harmonica, Piano, Bass, Vocals Years active 1957 – 1975, 1980 Label(s) Parlophone, Capitol, Apple, Vee-Jay, EMI, Geffen Associated acts The Beatles Plastic Ono Band The Dirty Mac Website JohnLennon.com Notable instrument(s) Rickenbacker 325 Epiphone Casino Gibson J-160E Les Paul Junior John Ono Lennon, MBE (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English rock musician, singer and songwriter, who gained worldwide fame as one of the founders of The Beatles. In his solo career, Lennon wrote and recorded songs such as "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine". Lennon revealed his rebellious nature and wit on television, in films such as A Hard Day's Night, in books such as In His Own Write, and in press conferences and interviews. He was controversial through his work as a peace activist, artist, and author. Lennon had two sons: Julian Lennon, with his first wife Cynthia Lennon, and Sean Ono Lennon, with his second wife, avant-garde artist Yoko Ono. During a separation from Ono, Lennon spent almost two years with May Pang in Los Angeles, and then New York, from 1973 to 1975, before returning to Ono. Lennon called this period with Pang his "Lost Weekend". Lennon was murdered in New York City on 8 December 1980. In 2002, respondents to a BBC poll on the 100 Greatest Britons voted Lennon into eighth place. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Lennon number 38 on its list of "The Immortals: The Fifty Greatest Artists of All Time" and ranked The Beatles at number 1.