Born in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager. In 1956, he formed The Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Sometimes called "the smart Beatle", Lennon initially was the group's de facto leader, a role he gradually ceded to McCartney. Through his songwriting in the Beatles, he embraced myriad musical influences, initially writing and co-writing rock and pop-oriented hit songs in the band's early years, then later incorporating experimental elements into his compositions in the latter half of the Beatles' career as his songs became known for their increasing innovation. Lennon soon expanded his work into other media by participating in numerous films, including How I Won the War, and authoring In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works, both collections of nonsense writings and line drawings. Starting with "All You Need Is Love", his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement and the larger counterculture of the 1960s. In 1969, he started the Plastic Ono Band with his second wife, multimedia artist Yoko Ono, held the two-week-long anti-war demonstration Bed-ins for Peace and left the Beatles to embark on a solo career.
Between 1968 and 1972, Lennon and Ono collaborated on many works, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums, several more films, his solo debut John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and the international top-10 singles "Give Peace a Chance", "Instant Karma!", "Imagine", and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)". Moving to New York City in 1971, his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a three-year deportation attempt by the Nixon administration. Lennon and Ono separated from 1973 to 1975, during which time he produced Harry Nilsson's album Pussy Cats. He also had chart-topping collaborations with Elton John ("Whatever Gets You thru the Night") and David Bowie ("Fame"). Following a five-year hiatus, Lennon returned to music in 1980 with the Ono collaboration Double Fantasy. He was murdered by a Beatles fan, Mark David Chapman, three weeks after the album's release.
As a performer, writer or co-writer, Lennon had 25 number-one singles in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Double Fantasy, his best-selling album, won the 1981 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. That year, he won the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. In 2002, Lennon was voted eighth in a BBC history poll of the 100 Greatest Britons. Rolling Stone ranked him the fifth-greatest singer and 38th greatest artist of all time. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (in 1997) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (twice, as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994).
Studio albums
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970)
Imagine (1971)
Some Time in New York City (with Yoko Ono, 1972)
Mind Games (1973)
Walls and Bridges (1974)
Rock 'n' Roll (1975)
Double Fantasy (with Yoko Ono, 1980)
Milk and Honey (Posthumous with Yoko Ono, 1984)
Experimental studio albums with Yoko Ono
Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins (1968)
Unfinished Music No. 2: Life with the Lions (1969)
Wedding Album (1969)
Dear John
John Lennon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over, you've won
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over, you've won
Ha da doo, doo doo doo
Doo doo, doo doo doo
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over
And dear John
Put the T-V on, have a snack
Wash your mother's back
The race is over
The song Dear John by John Lennon is essentially a message to himself. He is telling himself to take it easy and not be too hard on himself. Lennon was known to be quite self-critical and this song is a reminder to himself that life isn't a competition to be won, it's meant to be lived to the fullest. The repetition of the lyrics drives home the message that it is important to take a break and not be too hard on oneself. Everyone needs to heal and recharge at times and it is absurd to expect anyone to constantly be at their best.
The line, "Put the T-V on, have a snack, wash your mother's back" is a message to himself to take care of the things that matter most in life. The T-V and the snack represent simple pleasures, the things that make life enjoyable, while washing his mother's back represents taking care of family, which is what ultimately matters in life. The song is a reminder to Lennon that he needs to take care of himself and focus on the things that really matter.
Line by Line Meaning
Dear John
A greeting indicating care and concern for John
Don't be hard on yourself
Don't criticize or judge yourself too harshly
Give yourself a break
Take a rest, be kind to yourself
Life wasn't meant to be run
Life is not a competition, it's not about constantly striving to achieve more
The race is over, you've won
You don't need to do anything more, you've succeeded
Ha da doo, doo doo doo
Non-lyrical sounds, no specific meaning
Dear John
A repeated greeting indicating care and concern for John
Put the T-V on, have a snack
Relax, enjoy some leisure activities
Wash your mother's back
Take care of your loved ones, show your appreciation
The race is over
You don't need to keep pushing yourself, the pressure is off
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JOHN LENNON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
A R S E N I Y
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over, you've won
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over, you've won
Ha da doo, doo doo doo
Doo doo, doo doo doo
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over
And dear John
Put the T-V on, have a snack
Wash your mother's back
The race is over
VEN
His acoustic guitar and piano solo tracks near the end of his life are so beautiful
A R S E N I Y
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over, you've won
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over, you've won
Ha da doo, doo doo doo
Doo doo, doo doo doo
Dear John
Don't be hard on yourself
Give yourself a break
Life wasn't meant to be run
The race is over
And dear John
Put the T-V on, have a snack
Wash your mother's back
The race is over
Kaila Kocsis
I believe the "mother" part was referring to Yoko, he called her Mother after Sean was born :)
Lucas
Haunting
Mick Standing
Isn't it nice to see and hear John so down to earth and peaceful with himself before he died.
Alex M.
La carrera termino John y lograste ganar. Ahora descansa en paz 🌛
moon
eu espero em algum momento me lembrar dessa música e lembrar de não ser duro comigo mesmo, que a vida não foi feita para correr e que eu mereço descansar
krowta
what a beautiful song what a beautiful man i wish he lived a full life
nonnel64
Never listened it entirely, thank you for posting!
Paul Shotter
Dear John by John Lennon classic song from the seventies good stuff