Lennon was given his first guitar by his father at age 11 and formed his first band at age 13 with school friend Justin Clayton, who has since played on each of Lennon’s albums. “Justin and I spent all our time learning the classic rock and roll songs, like ‘Roll Over Beethoven,’ Lennon recalls. “As I got older, I began to listen to the Beatles more carefully and became fascinated by the intelligence that went into their songwriting — the arrangements, melodies, and lyrics, which was great as I began to write my own songs. Crafting a great song is always my final goal.”
Though Lennon was also interested in pursuing acting (and was offered an education through the renowned Royal Shakespeare Company), he decided to stick with music. “I'd fallen madly in love with being able to play three or four chords, and everybody standing up and yelling and screaming,” he says. “The simplicity and ease of it drove me toward a career in music more than anything else.”
In 1983 Lennon, then aged 20, was offered his first record deal and released Valotte the following year. Produced by Phil Ramone, the album was certified platinum and earned Lennon a Grammy Award nomination for “Best New Artist.” It also included two major hits, the title track, which was a fixture on the Billboard Top 40 chart for 12 weeks, peaking at No. 9, followed by Too Late For Goodbyes, which spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Noted film director Sam Peckinpah (The Wild Bunch, The Getaway) directed the videos for both singles, the success of which made Lennon an international star, necessitating a global tour of Asia, Europe, the U.S., and Australia. “It was bonkers,” Lennon says. “Coming out of hotels, people would literally trying to rip the clothes off you. I had spent my last year of school in the middle of nowhere in North Wales. To go from that to doing a world tour and having screaming girls after you was crazy.”
Because of his popularity, the record company urged Lennon to make a follow-up album immediately, which he did, releasing The Secret Value of Daydreaming in March 1986. Though Lennon felt he did not have enough time to write or record the album, Daydreaming (also produced by Phil Ramone) went on to gold certification and spawned the hit “Stick Around,” which earned him his first No. 1 on the Billboard Rock chart. (Eighties stars Michael J. Fox and Jami Gertz appear in the song’s video.) After taking a much-needed break, Lennon released the vocally experimental Mr. Jordan in 1989, which featured the rock radio hit Now You’re In Heaven, followed by 1991’s Help Yourself, whose highlights include Saltwater, a plea for environmental responsibility, and Other Side of Town, featuring Blue Nile singer Paul Buchanan.
Lennon decided to take a hiatus following the release of Help Yourself to focus on other creative pursuits, including his interest in acting. In 1993, he was featured as the voice of David Copperfield in an animated NBC special of the Dickens classic. In 1995, film director Mike Figgis asked Lennon to make a cameo in his new film Leaving Las Vegas. “I was told to dress like an ’80s English rock and roll bartender,” Lennon says, “So I rode my Harley to the set wearing clothes I would normally wear and Mike said, ‘That’s great!’” (Nicolas Cage, who won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his role, orders a beer from Lennon’s bartender character before getting head-butted by another patron and thrown out by Lennon.)
In 1996, Lennon contributed the original composition “Cole’s Song” to the soundtrack to the film Mr. Holland’s Opus, which starred Richard Dreyfuss and featured a score by the late renowned composer Michael Kamen. “I’d met Michael a few times and thought he was an incredible writer and orchestrator,” Lennon says. “I got word that he thought of me for writing this song, not only because of the subject matter, but because two of Dad’s songs were also in the film,” Lennon says. “He thought it would be a nice touch for me to come up with something that would work at the end of the film.” Also that year, Lennon made a cameo in the independent comedy film Cannes Man, directed by Richard Martini and starring Seymour Cassel and Francesco Quinn.
Lennon returned to the music business in 1998 with Photograph Smile.
In 2002, he recorded a version of "When I'm Sixty-Four", from the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, for an Allstate Insurance commercial.
In 2009, Lennon released a tribute song and EP, "Lucy", honouring the memory of Lucy Vodden (née O'Donnell), the little girl who inspired the song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds".
Lennon released his sixth solo album, the self-produced Everything Changes, in the UK on September 26th, 2011, through British independent label Conehead Management Ltd.
The seventh studio album by Lennon, Jude, was released on 9 September 2022. The album's title is a reference to the Beatles 1968 song "Hey Jude", written by Paul McCartney (and credited to Lennon–McCartney) for the then five-year-old Julian.
Johnny B. Goode
Julian Lennon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Way back up in the woods among the evergreens
There stood a log cabin made of earth and wood
Where lived a country boy named Johnny B. Goode
Who never ever learned to read or write so well
But he could play a guitar just like a-ringin' a bell
Go go
Go Johnny go go
Go Johnny go go
Go Johnny go go
Johnny B. Goode
He used to carry his guitar in a gunny sack
Go sit beneath the tree by the railroad track
Oh, the engineers would see him sitting in the shade
Strumming with the rhythm that the drivers made
People passing by, they would stop and say
"Oh my that little country boy could play"
Go go
Go Johnny go go
Go Johnny go go
Go Johnny go go
Go Johnny go go
Johnny B. Goode
His mother told him "Someday you will be a man
And you will be the leader of a big old band
Many people coming from miles around
To hear you play your music when the sun go down
Maybe someday your name will be in lights
Saying "Johnny B. Goode tonight"
Go go
Go Johnny go
Go go go Johnny go
Go go go Johnny go
Go go go Johnny go
Go
Johnny B. Goode
The song "Johnny B. Goode" by Julian Lennon is a cover version of Chuck Berry's original classic from 1958. The lyrics are about the title character Johnny B. Goode, a young country boy from Louisiana who has a talent for playing the guitar. Despite being illiterate, Johnny has a natural ability to make his guitar ring out like a bell. He would often sit under a tree by the railroad track and play his guitar, drawing a crowd of people passing by to stop and listen to him play. His mother tells him that he will one day become a great musician and lead a band, with his name up in lights. The song celebrates Johnny's talent and potential for stardom through its lively rhythm and catchy chorus.
Line by Line Meaning
Deep down in Louisiana close to New Orleans
The story takes place in Louisiana, near New Orleans.
Way back up in the woods among the evergreens
Johnny B. Goode lived in a log cabin in the woods, surrounded by evergreen trees.
There stood a log cabin made of earth and wood
The log cabin where Johnny B. Goode lived was built from earth and wood.
Where lived a country boy named Johnny B. Goode
The main character of the story is a country boy named Johnny B. Goode.
Who never ever learned to read or write so well
Johnny B. Goode had difficulty reading and writing.
But he could play a guitar just like a-ringin' a bell
Despite his difficulty with reading and writing, Johnny B. Goode was a skilled guitar player.
Go go
This line is a refrain that appears throughout the song and encourages Johnny B. Goode to keep going.
He used to carry his guitar in a gunny sack
Johnny B. Goode carried his guitar in a sack made of gunny cloth.
Go sit beneath the tree by the railroad track
Johnny B. Goode would sit under a tree near the railroad tracks.
Oh, the engineers would see him sitting in the shade
Train engineers passing by would see Johnny B. Goode sitting in the shade.
Strumming with the rhythm that the drivers made
He would play his guitar in time with the rhythm of the trains passing by.
People passing by, they would stop and say
Passersby would stop and comment on Johnny B. Goode's guitar playing.
"Oh my that little country boy could play"
People were impressed with Johnny B. Goode's guitar playing despite his young age and country background.
His mother told him "Someday you will be a man
Johnny B. Goode's mother told him that he would one day become a man.
And you will be the leader of a big old band
She also predicted that he would become the leader of a big band.
Many people coming from miles around
Johnny B. Goode would draw people from miles around to hear him play.
To hear you play your music when the sun go down
People would come to hear Johnny B. Goode play music in the evening.
Maybe someday your name will be in lights
Johnny B. Goode's mother hoped that someday his name would be famous and appear in lights.
Saying "Johnny B. Goode tonight"
She imagined a future where people would say "Johnny B. Goode tonight" in anticipation of seeing him perform.
Go
The song concludes with the affirmation to "go" and continue playing music.
Johnny B. Goode
The title of the song represents Johnny B. Goode himself, as someone who rises above his humble beginnings to become a skilled musician.
Lyrics © OLE MEDIA MANAGEMENT LP
Written by: Chuck Berry
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
NaenaeMD
I almost cried at the end when Chuck said to Julian "I'm proud and I'll tell him when I see him." Talking about when he sees John in heaven.
Aishik Roy
goddamn ninjas cutting onions around here
smallie210
I don't think he said that. He said "tell mama hello" then Julian said "I will" then Chuck said "I'll tell you..(not sure what he says afterwards).."
Vincent
@smallie210 No he doesn’t.. he says “tell papa hello. i’ll tell you what he says when I see him”
Potato
@Vincent Yep, not sure how people can't hear this. It's clear as day
TerpyTee
@Vincent chuck said tell mama hello then something else i couldn’t make out.
Raph66
Julian is the only child of a celebrity that most fans seemed to accept as a musician in their own right. He looked and sounded similar to his dad. There were also some good songs on Valotte. Even so, he was smart enough to realize he should pursue a different career ultimately. There’s no competing with a celebrity parent, especially a Beatle. Julian is now a successful photographer and occasionally records music. I really respect the guy
Jason Mucci
His new album is quite good.
notbraindead
I've always respected Julian. He stood on his own feet right from the beginning. His version of "Stand By Me" is far better than John's.
Jon Elson
'Help Yourself' album is also good. He's a class act, with real talent. Unlike Sean, who tries so hard to be his Dad, and fails big time.