Sean Ono Lennon Looks Back on Parents John and Yoko's 'Legendary Love': 'He Always Had His Heart Set on Her' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

John Lennon and Yoko One in New York City in April 1973.Photo:bob gruen/universal music

bob gruen/universal music

John Lennon and Yoko Ono in Montreal in June 1969.Bettmann/Getty

Bettmann/Getty

The first album Lennon and Ono recorded in their newly adopted hometown was 1972’sSome Time in New York City, a raw collection of diaristic songs depicting life at the front of the picket line. Melody took a backseat to messaging as they sang of women’s liberation, the Attica prison riot, draconian drug policies and the deadly conflict in Northern Island. Those who missed the “ripped from the headlines” nature of the lyrics were offered a hint with the album’s cover, which mimicked the front page of a newspaper.

The album was met with a lukewarm response from fans, who were expecting something more along the lines of the previous year’s “Imagine,” with Lennon’s delicate vocals hovering atop the lush orchestration and undulating piano figure. Moreover, it didn’t earn them any friends in the State Department.

“Some Time in New York City was basically a complete album of activism,” Sean says. “It’s punk. They just went in the studio and banged ‘em out. Which is a cool — it’s a beautiful album and I love it. But it was not very well-received. So I think my dad was like, ‘You know, maybe I should get back to making music that people want to listen to.’”

Yoko Ono and John Lennon in New York City in December 1968.Susan Wood/Getty

Susan Wood/Getty

The press conference was a moment of levity in the midst of a very trying time for the couple. According to Sean, comedy was how Lennon coped with stress. “I feel like everything my dad did, even at the most serious moments, had a bit of humor,” says Sean. “People who grew up with him in Liverpool say that he was the kind of guy who would make a joke even at a very difficult time.” (After years of legal battles, John won the right to stay in the US on Oct. 7, 1975 — two days before Sean’s birth.)

“The whole album is about my mom,” says Sean. “They’re mostly love songs about her. My dad declared to the world that ‘John and Yoko’ were one word. I think he always had his heart set on her. He was so in love with her. They had a legendary love and I think that this album is infused with that love. You can hear it.”

For more from Sean Ono Lennon, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday.

source: people.com