After The Beatles, Lennon launched a successful solo career by releasing the critically acclaimed albums

Solo career

Lennon and Ono recorded three albums of experimental music together: Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins, an album known more for its cover than the musical content, Unfinished Music No.2: Life with the Lions, and Wedding Album.

His first "solo" album was Live Peace in Toronto 1969—recorded prior to the breakup of The Beatles—recorded at a Rock 'n' Roll Festival in Toronto with The Plastic Ono Band. He also recorded three solo singles: the anti-war anthem, "Give Peace a Chance", "Cold Turkey", and "Instant Karma!".

Following The Beatles' split in 1970, Lennon released John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, a raw emotional album that dealt with Lennon's pain in losing his mother and split with The Beatles. It included "Working Class Hero", which was banned by BBC Radio for its inclusion of the word "fucking".

His album Imagine followed in 1971, and the title song would later become an anthem for anti-war movements.

The song "How Do You Sleep?" was widely perceived as a personal attack against McCartney, although Lennon later claimed that he wrote the song about himself.

On 31 August 1971, Lennon left England for New York, and released the "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" single in December of 1971.To advertise the single, Lennon and Ono paid for a billboard in Times Square, which read, "WAR IS OVER" in large text with "if you want it" in much smaller text underneath.

Some Time in New York City was released in 1972. Recorded with Elephant's Memory, it contained songs about women's rights, race relations, Britain's role in Northern Ireland, and Lennon's problems obtaining a United States Green Card. Lennon had been interested in left-wing politics since the late 1960s, and reportedly donated money to the Trotskyist Workers Revolutionary Party.

In 1972, Lennon released "Woman Is the Nigger of the World". Many radio stations refused to broadcast the song, although Lennon was allowed to perform it on The Dick Cavett Show. On 30 August 1972 Lennon and Elephant's Memory gave two benefit concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York to benefit the patients at the Willowbrook State School mental facility on Staten Island. These were to be Lennon's last full-length concert appearances.

In November 1973, Lennon released Mind Games, which was credited to "the Plastic U.F.Ono Band".

He also wrote "I'm the Greatest" for Starr's album Ringo (his own demo version of the song appears on the John Lennon Anthology) and produced "Too Many Cooks (Spoil The Soup)" for Mick Jagger. In September 1974, Lennon released Walls and Bridges and the single "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" (a #1 duet with Elton John). A second single from the album, "#9 Dream", was released in December. He wrote "Goodnight Vienna" for Starr, and played piano on the recording.

On 28 November, Lennon made a surprise guest appearance at Elton John's Thanksgiving concert at Madison Square Garden after he lost a bet with John that "Whatever Gets You" would reach #1 Lennon performed "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" and "I Saw Her Standing There".

Lennon rush-released Rock 'n' Roll, an album of cover songs, in February 1975 – with Phil Spector as producer – before Roots: John Lennon Sings the Great Rock & Roll Hits was released (issued by Morris Levy on the Adam VIII label).

Lennon made his last stage appearance on ATV's 18 April 1975 special called A Salute to Lew Grade performing "Imagine", "Stand By Me" (cut from the televised edition), and "Slippin' and Slidin'" from his Rock 'n' Roll LP. Lennon's backup band was BOMF (also known as "Etc." that evening). The band members wore two-faced masks which were digs at Grade, with whom Lennon and McCartney had been in conflict because of Grade's control of The Beatles' publishing company. Dick James, The Beatles' publisher, had sold his majority share in Maclen Music (Lennon's and McCartney's publishing company) to Grade in 1969.

During "Imagine", Lennon interjected the line "and no immigration too", a reference to his battle to remain in the United States. In October 1975, Lennon fulfilled his contractual obligation to EMI/Capitol for one more album by releasing Shaved Fish, a greatest hits compilation.

On 9 October 1975 – Lennon's 35th birthday – his son Sean Ono Lennon was born. Lennon wrote and recorded "Cookin' (In The Kitchen of Love)" with Ringo Starr in June 1976, his last recording session until his 1980 comeback.

In 1977, Lennon announced he would be taking three years off to raise Sean. Lennon emerged from retirement in November 1980, releasing Double Fantasy, which also featured Ono.

In June 1980, Lennon had traveled with Sean to Bermuda for a sailing trip on a 43-foot sloop, where he wrote songs for the album. The name of the album was taken from a species of freesia flowers that Lennon had seen in the Bermuda Botanical Gardens. He liked the name and saw it as a perfect description of his marriage to Ono.

After the release of the album, Lennon started planning the next album, Milk and Honey.Lennon was asked whether the group were dreaded enemies or the best of friends in 1980. He replied that they were neither, but had not seen any of them for a long time.

Lennon said that the last time McCartney had visited Lennon they had watched the episode of Saturday Night Live, in which Lorne Michaels made a $3,000 cash offer to get The Beatles to reunite on the show. They had considered going to the studio to appear as a joke, but were too tired. This event was fictionalized in the 2000 television film, Two of Us.

Life as The Beatles

See also the music of The Beatles.