# Why no uproar about John Lennon’s “Imagine”? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 1, 2004, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074 "2004-10-01T17:53:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/41 "2004-10-02T08:11:05Z")
> [@Sternvogel](#): > > Also, the final verse created some controversy: > > _And the three men I admire most > The Father Son and Holy Ghost > They caught the last train for the coast > The day the music died_ > > Among the interpretations of this lyric are that the Holy Trinity literally abandoned the world (remember the frequent “God is Dead” references made during the late '60’s and early '70’s) or that Don McLean is blasphemously equating Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper to the three aspects of the Christian Divinity. Given that the song was about all the social and cultural upheavals that occurred in America between Buddy Holly’s death and the early 70’s, I thought it was actually a reference to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/42 "2004-10-02T13:21:52Z")
> [@Sternvogel](#): > > Also, the final verse created some controversy: > > _And the three men I admire most > The Father Son and Holy Ghost > They caught the last train for the coast > The day the music died_ > > Among the interpretations of this lyric are that the Holy Trinity literally abandoned the world (remember the frequent “God is Dead” references made during the late '60’s and early '70’s) or that Don McLean is blasphemously equating Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper to the three aspects of the Christian Divinity. > [@NDP](#): > > Given that the song was about all the social and cultural upheavals that occurred in America between Buddy Holly’s death and the early 70’s, I thought it was actually a reference to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. I think it is a prediction. The Father, Son & Holy Ghost are Bush I, Bush II, and Rumsfeld. After their defeat in the next election, they will leave Washington. “The day the music died” refers to 9/11, obviously. :rolleyes: Or maybe rising gas prices. The demise of Napster? Or else Don McLean just liked the way the words rolled off his tongue and had no hidden meaning in mind. Who knows? _Imagine_, in contrast, is pretty unambiguous. ---
**Author:** ![look\_ninjas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@look\_ninjas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_ninjas)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/43 "2004-10-02T14:04:48Z")
> [@NDP](#): > > Lennon was too rich to be a commie. 😃 “Was it a millionaire who said ‘Imagine no possessions?’” - Elvis Costello. I seem to recall that “Imagine” made it on the infamous Clear Channel “Do Not Play” list, but there don’t seem to be any copies of that floating around anymore. If there was a thread on it here, it seems to have vanished into the ether. Can anyone confirm or deny this? ---
**Author:** ![Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krisfer_the_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/44 "2004-10-02T22:17:50Z")
My mother first founfd the song in Spanish while she was in Peru in 1991… needless to sat she was rather surprised that it was an old song orginally in English… yeah Mom gotta lover her! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![EvilGhandi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@EvilGhandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilGhandi)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/45 "2004-10-02T22:35:51Z")
wolf\_meister, “Guess God is a Beatles fan.” One could just as easily assume that satan, using his unholy powers, was destroying that station opposing him. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/46 "2004-10-02T22:40:42Z")
> [@Psycho Pirate](#): > > I can guarantee you that John Lennon believes in a literal Holy God now. ☹ How much are you willing to wager on that one? ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074/47 "2004-10-03T01:20:14Z")
As a churchified Christian, I thnk I can state that it’s because no one will care. I understand that there are evangelicals who make asses of themselves routinely, but it’s also true that complaining about things like Lennon or Kiss or Slayer lyrics would just be spitting in the wind. There’s too big a divide to have a discussion on it. It’s like the typical American response to Muslims complaining that women are wearing tight clothing at the pool. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-no-uproar-about-john-lennon-s-imagine/267074.md?page=2)