On This Day in 1969, John Lennon Recorded a Peace Anthem He Later Regretted Giving
On June 1, 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono recorded the anti-war tune “Give Peace A Chance”. The song would be officially released a few days later, but the scenario surrounding the recording of the song is quite interesting. And if you’re a diehard Lennon fan, you probably know the story quite well.
Though the song itself is an uplifting tune against violence, some listeners found the song (as well as its recording process) to be in poor taste. The Story Behind the Recording of “Give Peace a Chance”
“Give Peace A Chance” was originally written by John Lennon alone, though it was credited to Lennon–McCartney. The tune was written while Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, staged their famous “bed-in” honeymoon in Montreal, Canada. This, specifically, is where the controversy comes in.
The title of the song came from a phrase that Lennon would say when asked by reporters what the purpose of the bed-in was: “Just give peace a chance.” Fans of Lennon thought that the stunt, which involved the pair simply sitting in bed on two separate occasions for about a week at a time, was a solid nonviolent protest against the Vietnam War. Many critics at the time called the song that came from the stunt “clever.”
Source: americansongwriter.com/Em Casalena
