John Winston Lennon, better known as John Lennon , was one of the most remembered musicians in history, and was part of one of the most successful bands: “The Beatles”. He was born on October 9, 1940, in the British city of Liverpool. He died in 1980, at the age of 40.

Best of John Lennon’s quotes

Lennon will always be remembered for his songs full of feeling but, in addition, this famous character gave many interesting reflections throughout his life. In fact, he is one of the musicians who has most inspired through his lyrics and his public image.

In this article you can find 60 of John Lennon’s best phrases for you to enjoy:

1. My role in society or that of any artist or poet is to try and express what we feel. Not to tell people how to feel. Not as a preacher, not as a leader, but as a reflection of all of us

Humble as ever, John Lennon explains his role as a musician.

2. They made us believe that each of us is half of an orange, and that life only has meaning when we find the other half. They didn’t tell us that we are already born whole, that no one in our life deserves to carry on our backs the responsibility of completing what we lack

We are all valuable people, we don’t need anyone to find happiness.

3. Being honest can’t make you get a lot of friends, but it always makes you get the right ones

When you have a good heart, the people around you are really valuable.

4. You either get tired fighting for peace or you die

John Lennon was always an advocate of peace . He was totally against war.

5. All we are saying is give peace a chance

He always believed that human beings should live in harmony instead of fighting against each other.

6. All you need is love

Love is a force that moves the world and makes it work better, it does not separate it.

7. Religion is only a way to take the tithe from the ignorant, there is only one God, and that one is not enriched like the charlatan priests

A quote from John Lennon that invites deep reflection on religion .

8. It doesn’t matter how long my hair is or the color of my skin or if I am a man or a woman

We all have our qualities, we’re different. However, we are all people.

9. The more I see the less I know, for sure

Again, his humble mentality comes out with this quote. .

10. Reality leaves much to the imagination

Lennon was always a creative person, that’s why he got as far as he did.

11. I wasn’t going to sacrifice true love for any friend or business, because in the end you’re left alone at night and neither of us wanted to be. You can’t fill a bed with groupies, it doesn’t work. I don’t want to be a swinger. Nothing works better than having someone who loves you hugging you

With this sentence, Lennon makes it clear that he was a faithful person.

12. There were four of us. I met Paul, invited him to join my band. Then George joined, and then Ringo. We were a group that got very, very big, that’s all

Lennon explaining how one of the best bands in history was formed.

13. Part of my suspicion is that I am a loser, and the other thinks I am God Almighty

People can feel down one day and up the next.

14. When you are drowning, you don’t say “I would be incredibly grateful if someone would take the precaution of realizing that I am sinking and come help me,” you just scream

A curious phrase that talks about life’s delicate moments.

15. I was in the eye of a hurricane. You wake up at a concert and think, “Wow, how did I get here?”

Being on top of the music world must be an incredible experience.

16. Surrealism had a great effect on me because I realized that the imagination in my mind was not madness. Surrealism for me is reality

John Lennon making clear reference to the surrealist art movement .

17. It doesn’t matter that you hide behind a smile and wear nice clothes, if there is something you can’t hide it is how rotten you are inside

There is nothing worse than having a stained soul and not being a worthy person.

18. We were all on this boat in the 1960s, our generation, a boat that was going to discover the new world. And the Beatles were on the bow of that boat

The Beatles are considered to be the best music band ever.

19. If being an egomaniac means believing in what I do and in my art or music, then you can call me that…I believe in what I do, and I will say so

A phrase with a touch of irony about the ego of a musician.

20. Some are willing to do anything but live here and now

Living in the present is an act of the brave people.

21. What the 60’s did is show us the possibilities and the responsibilities we all have. It wasn’t the answer. It just gave us an idea of the responsibility

The 1960s were years of change, but also years of growth.

22. I believe that time heals all wounds

Time cures everything, according to this famous character.

23. Jesus was right, but His disciples were common and ordinary

A phrase that makes clear its religious side.

24. There is nothing you can know that is not known

A quote expressing the extent to which we humans are constantly discovering things .

25. It doesn’t matter who you love, where you love, why you love, when you love, or how you love. It only matters that you love

This sentence can be summed up as: “the important thing is to love.”

26. The cross of the Legion of Honor has been conferred upon me. However, few escape that distinction

What Lennon said when he was given the British Legion Cross.

27. We live in a world where we hide to make love, while violence is practiced in broad daylight

A phrase that makes all the sense in the world. Better to make love than to make war.

28. I’m not technically very good, but I can make a guitar howl and move

John Lennon was a fantastic musician. That’s why he’ll be remembered forever.

29. Rituals are important. Nowadays it is modern not to be married. I’m not interested in being modern

This musician firmly believed in marriage as a form of commitment.

30. I don’t believe in killing, whatever the reason!

This artist was always against war , and argued that there is no reason to enter into a war. This is one of John Lennon’s most remembered phrases.

31. Everything is clearer when you are in love

Love makes you feel really rewarding experiences.

32. If anyone thinks that love and peace are a cliché, they must have stayed in the sixties, that’s their problem. Love and peace are eternal

The Beatles’ musician was a strong advocate of love and peace.

33. Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans

A great date that inspires everyone. A real motivational quote.

34. Yoko inspires all this creation in me. It’s not that she inspires the songs. She inspires me

Yoko Ono was the great love of her life . She never hid it.

35. God is a concept by which we measure our pain

Believing in God can be a way of not wanting to face reality.

36. I started the band. I broke it up. It’s as simple as that. My life with The Beatles had become a trap, a continuous tape… When I finally had the guts to tell the other three that, in quotes, I wanted a divorce, they understood that I was serious; unlike Ringo and George’s previous threats to leave

Lennon was one of the most emblematic figures of the Beatles , but he left the group in 1970.

37. Living is easy with your eyes closed

This ironic phrase refers to the fact that life can be complicated

38. I do not affirm divinity. I have never affirmed purity of soul. I have never claimed to have the answers to life. I just play songs and answer questions as honestly as I can.

His songs were not intended to impose beliefs, only to give his opinion.

39. You have to be a bastard to do that and that’s a fact. And the Beatles are the biggest bastards on earth

The Beatles were crowned at the top and are still remembered today.

40. When you do something noble and beautiful and no one notices, don’t be sad. The sunrise is a beautiful spectacle and yet most of the audience still sleeps

We can’t always be exemplary people. There will be times when we are not.

41. Being rich does not change your life experiences. The only difference, basically, is that you don’t have to worry about money, food, having a roof over your head, etc. But all other experiences, emotions, relationships are the same. I know: I was rich and poor and so was Yoko

Money doesn’t bring happiness. It’s told by someone who had a lot of money.

42. I can’t believe I’m being decorated. I thought it was necessary to drive tanks and win wars

A critique of how the world works , based on social relationships that are governed by money.

43. Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King are great examples of non-violent beings who died violently. That can never work. We’re pacifists, but I’m not sure what it means when you’re a pacifist and you get shot. I can’t understand that

Lennon talking about great characters of peace.

44. Each person is the reflection of the music he or she hears

The music we listen to depends on our personality. At least that’s what Lennon thinks.

45. I don’t fear death because I don’t believe in it. I think it’s just getting out of one car and into another.”

46. Everything will be fine in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end

We can all learn from our mistakes. They are opportunities for growth.

47. You’re alone with yourself all the time, with whatever you do. You have to go down to your own God in your own temple. It all depends on you, buddy

We are masters of our lives, and we can lead them if we have the will.

48. You don’t need anyone to tell you who you are or what you are. You are what you are!

One is what one is. Regardless of what anyone else thinks.

49. Let’s Dream of Peace

Again, a quote that refers to peace. Lennon promoted very worthy values .

50. A dream that you dream alone is just a dream. A dream that you dream about someone is a reality

Lennon was a lover of life, a lover of Yoko Ono.

51. You don’t need a sword to cut flowers

Clearly related to the war. It’s always better to give a flower than to kill someone.

52. My name is not Beatle John. It’s John Lennon

John Lennon decided to go it alone after the success of the Beatles.

53. 1+1=John+Yoko. Simple mathematics

Another quote that shows his pure love for Yoko Ono.

54. Love is wanting to be loved. Love is asking to be loved. Love is needing to be loved

We all need to be loved. We’re social beings, nobody likes to be alone.

55. When I was five, my mother always told me that happiness is the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I wrote happy. They told me that I didn’t understand the question. I told them that they didn’t understand life

A deep reflection on happiness . Something we should all learn.

56. It’s weird not to be weird

We all have our own personality, our own way of thinking, our own beliefs. It’s what makes us incredibly unique.

57. I’m not The Beatles, Paul’s not The Beatles. The Beatles are The Beatles. Separately, they’re separate. Moment to moment, so we live now. We appreciate every day and we’re afraid of it too. It could be the last day. Sounds funny, but any day you could get hit by a car or something. I’m starting to appreciate it

A phrase he uttered when the Beatles were splitting up.

58. Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears

Life should not be valued by the years you have, but by the experiences you have lived.

59. In my life I have only had two friends, Yoko and Paul

You can have everything in this life, but real friendship is something that does not abound .

60. People grow through people. If we are in good company, it is more pleasant

We learn from others. Life together is necessary to develop ourselves and to be happy.