John’s handwritten set list from the Beatles’ first concert in America on February 11, 1964, on stationery from their hotel in Washington, DC.

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Dr. Joyce Brothers interviews the Beatles at the Plaza Hotel in New York.

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The Beatles chafe under their squeaky-clean image and cause controversy with the “Butcher Cover.”

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John grows weary with the constant demands of press.

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A “Beatles Bonfire,” where teens are urged to burn records and memorabilia in protest of John’s observation that the band is more popular than Jesus.

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The Beatles celebrate the release of their latest album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which goes on to become the bestselling studio album in British history.

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The Beatles celebrate the release of their latest album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which goes on to become the bestselling studio album in British history.

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John and his son Julian in front of John’s psychedelic Rolls-Royce.

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In early 1968, the Beatles are among many celebrities who travel to India to study transcendental meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (L to R: John, Mike Love of the Beach Boys, the Maharishi, George, actress Mia Farrow and her brother John Farrow, singer Donovan, and Paul).

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During a month at the ashram, John and Paul write most of the songs for what will become The Beatles, aka the White Album.

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John and Julian with Eric Clapton, during the December 1968 filming of the documentary The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus.

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Eric Clapton, Keith Richards, and John Lennon at the Rock and Roll Circus.

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John with Mick Jagger in London.

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On January 30, 1969, the Beatles give their last-ever live performance together, on the rooftop of Apple Records.

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John Lennon and Yoko Ono, one of rock music’s most famous pairings.

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On March 20, 1969, John and Yoko get married in Gibraltar, then stage a lengthy “Bed-In” Peace Protest as part of their honeymoon.

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On March 20, 1969, John and Yoko get married in Gibraltar, then stage a lengthy “Bed-In” Peace Protest as part of their honeymoon.

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John at the piano where he wrote Imagine, the most celebrated album and single of his solo career.

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Eric Clapton, Klaus Voorman, John Lennon, and Yoko Ono goofing poolside in Toronto, the day after the Plastic Ono Band’s first public performance.

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John plays “Instant Karma! (We All Shine On),” which he wrote in less than an hour.

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John wearing a “People for Peace” armband on the TV program Top of the Pops with the Plastic Ono Band.

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