Local Lennon fans remember the rock icon's life and death on the anniversary of his murder

Shawn Wibbenmeyer was just a toddler when John Lennon was shot to death 25 years ago today in New York City.

The 29-year-old was too young to be affected by the former Beatles' untimely death when it happened. That didn't stop him from being affected later by the music and message of the iconic Lennon.

To Wibbenmeyer, the music is only one aspect of Lennon's enduring attraction. Music like Lennon made, both solo and with the Beatles, just isn't made anymore, he said. But the legend goes beyond a collection of notes.

"He had a good message, he spoke a lot about peace and anti-war," Wibbenmeyer said. "Today there are very few musical activists that do things for the real reasons, it's more about publicity. He was pretty original for doing his own thing -- he didn't care about making money."

Dr. Jeff Noonan, a professor of music at Southeast Missouri State University and rock and roll fan, said it was the political bent behind Lennon's art and actions that have immortalized him as such an icon. Of all the Beatles members, Lennon was the hardest to figure out for young people in the 1960s, said Noonan, who speaks from experience.

"Lennon was the one who was always pushing the envelope, not just musically, but politically, he was stretching things," Noonan said.

Noonan was an eighth-grade student when he first heard the Beatles during their American invasion. Their impact was so profound on him, like so many other baby boomers, that Noonan and his friends formed a garage band, playing Beatles covers like "A Hard Day's Night" and "Please Please Me."

Hearing the Beatles also inspired Chuck McGinty to start a band. He's still a musician to this day, playing locally with Mid-Life Crisis. Lennon wasn't his favorite Beatle, though, largely due to his hard political stances and stunts like his bed-in with Yoko Ono.

"We were too naive to really understand Lennon," said McGinty. "We weren't worldly, we were in the Midwest where we were protected.

"You got the news from your friends."

Even though he favored the musicality of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, McGinty was still floored in 1980 when Lennon's life was taken away.

"It was a crushing time, because most of us were still awestruck by the success of the Fabulous Four," McGinty recalls. "It was like, 'What's going to happen now?'"

The world moved on, but Lennon still isn't forgotten. At P-Mac Music, the Beatles and John Lennon are some of the best-selling artists to this day, said manager Eric Karlish.

At Wibbenmeyer's store, Hempies, Lennon and Beatles merchandise still sells and the music is still played over the store sound system.

In Wibbenmeyer's estimation, the world would be a better place today if Lennon hadn't been the victim of untimely death.

For fan Mike Brown, that early end is the real tragedy, regardless of the fact that it happened to an icon.

Lennon was, after all, just another human, but a famous one.

"It's really a shame that he died the way he did," said Brown. "But it's no less a shame for your next door neighbor to be murdered."

msanders@semissourian.com

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