Bands and fans come together for a daylong tribute to Lennon
by Michael Sangiacomo
Cleveland Plain Dealer

Twenty-five years ago yesterday, John Lennon was shot and killed outside his home in New York City.

On Saturday, more than a dozen performers from across the United States will gather at the Agora Theater to pay tribute to the life of the enigmatic Beatle.

Promoter Gary Jacob said he had a few misgivings about doing a Lennon tribute. He didn't want to commercialize on Lennon's death. But when it came right down to it, he had no choice but to do the tribute.

"His death on Dec. 8 is one of those days that people will always talk about," Jacob said. "Where were you when Kennedy was shot or man walked on the moon? Where were you when you heard John Lennon was killed? He means something to everyone."

Jacob said that of all the Beatles, Lennon was the most human.

"He was so beloved, not only as a musical genius and humanitarian, but we loved him because of his flaws, as well," he said. "He was troubled by the loss of his parents at a young age. He had a temper, a mean streak. He was very human, and he let us see all those sides of him. I think he exposed more of his life than the others."

The Concert for John features more than nine hours of music, chronologically exploring John's life and covering 250 Beatles and Lennon songs. It runs for 11 hours, with the live music beginning at 2 p.m.

The Agora doors open at noon with Beatles and Lennon films and a merchandise mall.

First up is British Export re-creating the Hamburg years, when the Beatles played American rock 'n' roll at clubs in Germany and at the Cavern Club in Liverpool.

At 3 p.m., British Export returns to re-enact the British Invasion with some of the Beatles' earliest songs, including "I Want To Hold Your Hand."

At 4 p.m., Hal Bruce performs "A Fab Medley," a solo rockabilly set of songs covered by the Beatles.

At 4:30 p.m., the band All You Need Is Love joins Bruce to pick up the Beatles story from "Rubber Soul" to "Abbey Road." That leads up to members of four Beatles cover bands re-creating the group's last live performance, the rooftop concert at Apple Records. That set includes "Get Back," "Come Together," "Don't Let Me Down" and "The Ballad of John and Yoko."

Instant Karma performs at 7 p.m. highlighting Lennon's solo career.

At 8:45 p.m., Dennis Lewin performs "A Lennon Piano Concerto," Beatles music done in a classical piano interpretation.

At 9:15 p.m., headliner Tim Piper and his band, Working Class Hero, perform a Lennon retrospective that includes songs from the entire Beatles and solo times.

The show ends with a finale that starts at 10:30 p.m., during which all the performers take the stage for songs including "Imagine," "So This Is Christmas," "Stand By Me" and "Give Peace a Chance."

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