35 years ago: The day John Lennon was shot

That an admittedly troubled and occasionally conflicted man sought to elevate himself toward lofty heights and to spread notions of peacefulness and compassion through his music, only to become the victim of senseless violence, was an irony that seemed too much to bear for many of his fans.

The gun used by Mark David Chapman to kill John Lennon is displayed next to their pictures at a small museum in the Forensic Investigation Division of the New York Police Department in New York, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015. His killer, John Mark Chapman, received 20 years to life in prison.

Meanwhile, Chapman was denied parole for an eighth time in 2014.

The Beatles star was 40 years old then.

Former Beatle John Lennon has been shot dead by an unknown gunman who opened fire outside the musician’s NY apartment.

Lennon and his Japanese-born wife, Yoko Ono, were returning to their apartment from a recording session when the shots rang out.

He told the New York Daily News newspaper’s Confidenti@l column: “There’s not much I can do about it, can I?” The memorial is located on the west side of the park right across from the Dakota, and feature the famous Imagine mosaic.

Joining a long list of British politicians criticizing Trump, Johnson said he would “welcome the opportunity to show Mr. Trump firsthand some of the excellent work our police officers do every day in local neighborhoods throughout our city”. John is signing his autograph on an album cover for Chapman, who would murder the former Beatle later that same day.

Lennon rocketed to fame in the early 1960s when he and fellow Britons Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr introduced a sound that changed the course of rock “n” roll.

Thirty-five years later many have remembered Lennon for his music, lyrics and passion for love and peace in the world.

In an interview earlier this year- his first major interview in five years – Lennon said he had wanted to leave the Beatles as early as 1966 but did not make the move until four years later because he “just didn’t have the guts”.

John Lennon’s songs and poetry still inspire, I still hear his influence not only just on his generation, but on every generation since.

The song’s lasting effect has found its way into the voices many of today’s biggest artists, as they have continually covered the track over the years in concert and special performances.

The albums are all out-of-print worldwide on vinyl, with the exception of previous LP remasters of “Imagine” and “Rock “n” Roll” which are in print in the United States.