WATCHING THE WHEELS

October 9, 2025 will mark the 85th anniversary of John Lennon’s birth. In celebration of a brilliant artist who remains at the top of my rock and roll pantheon, here—in chronological order—are my top ten Lennon solo songs.  (This could have easily been a top twenty, but I restrained myself!)

1. Cold Turkey

Lennon’s first single outside the confines of the Beatles was the anti-war classic “Give Peace A Chance.” He followed that with one of the most extraordinary songs of his career, the soul-shredding addiction saga “Cold Turkey.” I can’t imagine any other major rocker of the era putting out a song this naked, this raw.

2. Instant Karma

Lennon’s first official solo single—the two others were released when the Beatles were still a unit (or believed to be)—is another of his greatest, and his first collaboration with Phil Spector. “Instant Karma” is a joyful cosmic anthem, a rollicking rush of spiritual uplift, buoyed by the spectacular drumming of Alan White.

3. God

1970’s John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band remains one of the most unique and powerful albums in the history of rock and roll, and this song is the transcendent grand finale to Lennon’s tortuous emotional journey. In a little over four minutes, he puts the final nails in the coffin of the sixties and charts a path forward into the new decade. A masterpiece.

4. Imagine

What can I say that hasn’t been said already?  “Imagine” is the song that will forever define Lennon in the public’s mind: a utopian vision that some have called hopelessly naive. But if we can’t dream, how can we change the world? Needed now, more than ever. 

5. Happy Christmas (War Is Over)

John and Yoko took a public domain folk song called “Stewball” and used it as the foundation for a Christmas classic, complete with holiday bells and a children’s choir. The Christmas season never officially begins for me until I hear this song. 

6. Mind Games

After the debacle of the Sometime In New York City album (which is neither as bad as we thought it was back in 1972, nor as groundbreaking as Lennon and Ono wanted it to be), Lennon needed a reset—and “Mind Games” was the first step. The lyrics are a wonderful, Lennonesque phantasmagoria, but the message is familiar: “Love is the answer.” 

7. Nobody Loves You (When You're Down and Out)

Lennon went through did some serious wrestling with personal demons (and he had many) during his so-called “Lost Weekend” period, but the result was one of his finest albums, the brilliant Walls and Bridges. “Nobody Loves You” is to Walls as “God” was to POB: It’s the essence of the entire journey, boiled down to one harrowing, unforgettable song.

8. Stand By Me

The standout track on Lennon’s troubled oldies album, Lennon’s take on this Ben E. King classic is the definitive version. “Stand By Me” has extra meaning for me because I was there in the studio when Lennon and his backup band (which featured my old friend Jon Cobert) filmed the promotional video for this song. An amazing day.

9. Watching The Wheels

After five years away, John and Yoko returned to recording, joining forces for the excellent Double Fantasy album. “Watching The Wheels” was Lennon looking back on those five years with typical wit and philosophical musing. But the song ultimately became a final statement from an artist who left us too soon.

10. Grow Old With Me

Just Lennon at the piano in the Dakota, recording onto a cassette tape. But despite that (or perhaps because of it) “Grow Old With Me,” which appeared in this fragile form on the posthumous Milk and Honey album, never fails to move me. A simple, heartfelt paean to marital love, “Grow Old With Me” could have been written by Paul McCartney: The two of them had more in common than Lennon ever fully acknowledged.

©copyright 2025 J.M. DeMatteis