Imagine (song) - Recording and Commercial Reception

Recording and Commercial Reception

Lennon and Ono co-produced the song and album with Phil Spector, who commented on the track: "We knew what we were going to do ... It was going to be John making a political statement, but a very commercial one as well ... I always thought that "Imagine" was like the national anthem." Lennon described his working arrangement with Ono and Spector: "Phil doesn't arrange or anything like that— and Phil will just sit in the other room and shout comments like, 'Why don't you try this sound' or 'You're not playing the piano too well' ... I'll get the initial idea and ... we'll just find a sound from ."

Recording began at Ascot Sound Studios, Lennon's newly built home studio at Tittenhurst Park, England, in May 1971, with final overdubs taking place at the Record Plant, in New York City, during July. Relaxed and patient, the sessions began during the late morning, running to just before dinner, in the early evening, with breaks for lunch in the early afternoon. Lennon taught the musicians the chord progression and a working arrangement for "Imagine", before rehearsing the song until he deemed them ready to record. Some early rehearsals of the song featured Lennon and Nicky Hopkins playing the same piano, and Spector initially attempted to record the piano part with Lennon playing the white baby grand in the couple's all white room. However, after having deemed the room's acoustics unsuitable, he abandoned the idea in favour of the superior environment of Lennon's home studio. They completed the session in minutes, recording three takes and choosing the second one for release. The finished recording featured Lennon on piano and vocal, Klaus Voormann, bass guitar, Alan White, drums and the Flux Fiddlers, strings.

Issued in the United States in October 1971, "Imagine" peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It reached number 1 in Canada on the RPM national singles chart, remaining there for two weeks, and spent five weeks on top of Australian number one singles chart, Lennon's only solo Australia number 1. Upon its release the song's lyrics upset some religious groups, particularly the line: "Imagine there's no heaven". When asked about the song during one of his final interviews, Lennon said he considered it to be as strong a composition as any he had written with the Beatles. He described the song's meaning and explicated its commercial appeal: "Anti-religious, anti-nationalistic, anti-conventional, anti-capitalistic, but because it is sugarcoated it is accepted ... Now I understand what you have to do. Put your political message across with a little honey." Lennon once told Paul McCartney that "Imagine" was "'Working Class Hero' with sugar on it for conservatives like yourself". On 30 November 1971, the Imagine LP reached number one on the UK chart. It became the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed album of Lennon's solo career.