His first appearance on record was on Ono's album Season of Glass (1981), reciting a story that his father used to tell him. At the age of 9, he performed the song "It's Alright" on the Yoko Ono tribute album Every Man Has A Woman (1984). In 1988 Sean was featured in the cast of Michael Jackson's Moonwalker. He has recalled working with Jackson as a positive experience. Later in life, his initial efforts as a serious musician came as collaborations: he appeared on Lenny Kravitz's album Mama Said (1991) and formed backing-band IMA for his mother's album Rising (1995).
In 1997 Lennon (along with fellow IMA member Timo Ellis) joined New York-based Japanese duo Cibo Matto (Miho Hatori & Yuka Honda) for their second EP, Super Relax. Through his association with Cibo Matto, he was approached by the Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch, who expressed an interest in his music. Lennon's debut solo album, Into the Sun, was released in 1998 on the Beastie Boys' record label, Grand Royal Records. Regarding Grand Royal, Sean has said, "I think I found the only label on the planet who doesn't care who my parents are and what my name is. It's a good feeling to know that I wouldn't have gotten the offer if they wouldn't have liked my songs. That's pretty rare in the music business!". Into the Sun was produced by fellow Cibo Matto member and then girlfriend, Yuka Honda, who Sean claimed was his inspiration for the album. A music video for "Home", a single from the album, was directed by Spike Jonze and enjoyed extended airplay on MTV. Cibo Matto played as Sean's backing band on Into The Sun and joined him during the closing scene in the "Home" music video.
In 1999, Sean's EP Half Horse, Half Musician was released featuring new tracks such as "Heart & Lung" and "Happiness" as well as remixes of songs from Into The Sun. Later in the year, Cibo Matto released their second album Stereo Type A. To the dismay of many Cibo Matto fans Stereo Type A was to be their final album and the group has since disbanded. The Millennium saw Sean briefly stepping into the world of Hip Hop, contributing vocals to Del tha Funkee Homosapien and Handsome Boy Modeling School (in which he performed a duet on "Sunshine" with musician Josh Haden). In 2001, Sean performed "This Boy" and "Across The Universe" live with Rufus Wainwright and Moby for Come Together: A Night for John Lennon's Words and Music. In the following years Sean stayed out of the spotlight (aside from gaining minor media attention when he dated Elizabeth Jagger). However he collaborated with various bands and artists either as a session musician or as a producer.
After Grand Royal Records' demise in 2001, Sean signed with Capitol Records, yet no solo material surfaced until early February 2006, when "Dead Meat" was released as the first single from his new album, Friendly Fire. A promotional trailer for the CD/DVD package of Friendly Fire was leaked online in early 2006. The trailer featured scenes from the film version of the album, a DVD of music videos comprised into a film. In actuality, the videos were screen tests for Coin Locker Babies, another project on which Lennon is working, and rather than waste film, he decided to create a cinematic counterpart to his new album. Friendly Fire went on to be released in October, 2006. Though mixed reviews (however mostly positive) came from the music press, the album was highly praised by fans and many [attribution needed] consider it to be Sean's strongest work to date. The night the album was released, Lennon made his first major television appearance since 2001, performing "Dead Meat" live on the Late Show with David Letterman. Lennon has since appeared on The Sharon Osbourne Show (UK) and Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Aside from his solo music, 2006 also saw Lennon collaborating with Jordan Galland and his band Dopo Yume for their album The Secret Show as well as The Strokes guitar player Albert Hammond, Jr. on his debut solo album Yours to Keep. Since 2006, Sean has been touring extensively in promotion of Friendly Fire and while in France remixed his song "Parachute" in collaboration with French artist -M-. The remix is entitled "L'éclipse".
Albums
(1998) Into the Sun
(2006) Friendly Fire
EPs
(1999) Half Horse, Half Musician
Singles
(1998) "Home"
(1999) "Queue (Radio Mix)"
(2006) "Dead Meat"
Producer
(1999) Sean Lennon, Half Horse Half Musician
(2001) Valentine Original Soundtrack
(2005) Esthero, Wikked Lil' Grrrls
(2006) Sean Lennon, Friendly Fire
(2007) Irina Lazareanu, Some Place Along the Way
Actor
(1988) Moonwalker
(2006) Friendly Fire
(2008) (in production) Coin Locker Babies
Writer
(2005) Smile For The Camera
(2006) Friendly Fire
(2008) (in production) Coin Locker Babies
Dream
Sean Lennon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The time moves slowly
Like a foreign film
With no sub-titles to explain
Can you see what i mean
I know its just a dream
I've lost my laser beam
The skies are blue
Cream and purple circle
The waves break where you want them to
Can you see what i mean
I know its just a dream
I've lost my laser beam
Duma's hard core part
In Sean Lennon's song, "Dream," the lyrics depict a surrealistic dream-like state where time seems to move slower than it normally does in waking reality, reminiscent of a foreign film without subtitles. The singer's perception of themselves seems to be altered, as they've lost their "laser beam," indicating a loss of sharpened focus and possibly a sense of control. The imagery that the singer describes indicates a distorted perception of reality, as the skies are a mix of cream and purple circles, and the waves break in strange places. The use of the colors cream and purple create the sense of a phantasmagoric world, where nothing is quite what it seems.
The chorus of the song, "Can you see what I mean? I know it's just a dream," highlights the fact that the singer is experiencing a state of mind that they know is not real, yet the vividness of the dream makes it hard to differentiate between what is real and what is not. The line "Duma's hard-core part" is unclear in meaning, possibly referring to a person or band, or may just be another image that the singer sees in this dream state.
Line by Line Meaning
Another zone
The singer is in a different place, possibly a dream or alternate reality.
The time moves slowly
Time seems to be passing slowly, potentially emphasizing the dream-like state.
Like a foreign film
The singer finds their surroundings unfamiliar or disorienting.
With no sub-titles to explain
There are no clear cues or explanations for the artist's surroundings.
Can you see what i mean
The artist is seeking validation or understanding from someone else.
I know its just a dream
The singer is acknowledging that their current state may not be reality.
I've lost my laser beam
The singer has lost a sense of direction or purpose.
The skies are blue
The sky is colorful and potentially surreal.
Cream and purple circle
There is a vivid or unusual color pattern in the sky.
The waves break where you want them to
The artist has a sense of control over their environment, despite its otherworldly nature.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BRYAN G. FRYZEL, KRISLYN RIVERA, RODERICK KHARI FAISON-BEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Annastasia Grandiose
I think this is one of the most beautiful, heartfelt songs I have ever heard.
bree ledes
Como lo debe extrañar Sean, John hizo una cancion para su hijo y Sean hizo una cancion a su padre :'(
Spookshows.com
My favorite lyric is "Every note that I play goes up to the sky".
txemata1
Nunca había escuchado a Sean, y me ha sorprendido. La letra es como las de John, personal e intima.
LG H1
Remembering the little boy who was waiting upstairs for Daddy to tuck him in on that horrible night. Beautiful song.
Leah Gomez
I love and greatly appreciate Sean Lennon's "Listen" from 2008. He still touches my heart and spirit being so sadly with melancholy sorrows for them from New York especially all the emotions from fans for his Dad John Lennon and Mother Yoko Ono raising Sean Lennon alone. Give Peace A Chance! I Love You!!! :-)
Julián Kuri
Me hizo llorar mal, pero con una angustia atroz :'( ¡Pobre Sean! :'( ¡TE AMO TANTO, SEAN! :'(
Dara Roberts
If only John were alive to hear his boy sing these words to him! This is really moving! Your father is smiling down on you Sean!
Isabel Veidt
No entiendo la letra, pero da igual, amo su vocecita suave y delicada♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡
Germán de la O Lagunas
simplemente la reencarnacion de jhon lennon... addemas, conmovedora cancion :,)