A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality.
-John Lennon
I like to think of the gatherings of the people at Strawberry Fields as the greatest cover band of all time because it is a gathering of people just singing and remembering the life and times of John Lennon.
I have trouble trying to capture the emotion and inspiration of these events in words but I've been to many and I've captured the event in photos several times. Below the fold are pictures from tonight and past gatherings of people who can still Imagine.
If someone thinks that love and peace is a cliche that must have been left behind in the Sixties, that's his problem. Love and peace are eternal.
-John Lennon
I should explain where Strawberry Fields is and what it means to many New Yorkers. Across the street from where John and Yoko lived, it was once the couple's favorite spot in Central Park. Renamed Strawberry Fields and relandscaped by a gift from Yoko to the city of New York, this tiny patch of Central Park now stands as a dedication to John Lennon and for many a tribute to peace activism.
There is not a statue or monument but a mosaic around the word "Imagine." People tend to just show up at this circle of peace year round and pay their respects by dropping off flowers or some small memory. Here is a photo from a cold winter day when I had the place to myself.
Twice a year, on John Lennon's birthday and the anniversary of his death, it becomes a special event. The mosaic is heavily decorated with mementos as the day goes on and we gather around the circle of tiles to sing into the night. The mosaic at around noontime on December 8th of last year.
Here are three photos from late this afternoon.
The Mosaic later in afternoon last year.
Some of the regular musicians that show up every year. I think they were singing "Give Peace a Chance" here.
And the band plays on.
As the day goes on every song John Lennon ever sang gets played over and over. Actually if you stay long enough you will hear everything by all of the Beatles. Strawberry Fields has a very special meaning here and you can hear a pin drop for "The Long and Winding Road." Sometimes the second performance of the same song is an entirely different event from the first. Sometimes it is one regular members of the band with everyone just listening or humming along, sometimes it is a guest soloist, more often it is just a big sing along.
The fact that this gathering is people of all ages is what I've always found most impressive, seeing John Lennon's message of peace in people who were not even born thirty years ago. I like to think of these gatherings as days of inspiration because some of those people singing lyrics for peace and love were not even born thirty years ago today.
Last year two beautiful young ladies, sisters that I introduced myself to and had a talk with their Mom, Samantha and Kay were singing all morning. Then they took center stage and Kay borrowed a guitar to play a few Lennon tunes. One of her songs was "Come Together" and there was not a dry eye in the house.
This year Kay and her Mom were back. This time she came with her own guitar.
I couldn't even get close this year at John's seventieth birthday. I was a perfect Central Park day and the turn out for John Lennon might have broke ten thousand.
How's this for showing the love?
On a cold December 8th the turnout is smaller but people still come from all over.
Here are just a few photos from today.
I have a new camera, it's an ESO (equipment smarter that operator) and very few of my photos came out.
During the December gathering each year the most moving song seems to be "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" but at each gathering there is one song that sticks out as the most powerful. It is a song that was not written by John Lennon. I think the power of "Stand By Me" can be found in the fact that the meaning has changed since John Lennon covered it.
When the night has come
And the land is dark
And the moon is the only light we'll see
No I won't be afraid, no I won't be afraid
Just as long as you stand, stand by me
For me it will always be "Imagine" and hearing people who were not even born during John Lennon's lifetime, people still young enough to believe in a peace loving world. There is something very powerful about people powered music.
Imagine" is also always the song when I decide to leave with a tear in my eye. The same faces say "Goodbye for now" and "God bless you for coming" each year.
I hope to see all those familiar faces and some new ones in ten months, on a day that I so wish could be John Lennon's seventy-first birthday.
Later on this evening as the time of John Lennon's death approaches, many will still be there and they will walk across the street to the Dakota to have a candle vigil as the place where he died.
"All We are Saying is Give Peace a Chance."