HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHN.

Had John Lennon not been killed in 1980 and kept on going, he would have turned 66 years old this past Monday.

It's a shame really. A rock/pop icon to millions of baby boomers and new fans to this day , Lennon was known for his activism in politics and for speaking his mind on issues such as war, poverty, and racism. He was even a threat at one point to the U.S. government for his radical behavior and outlook on key issues. As much as many of us hate to admit it, he loved Yoko; theirs was a true and unconditional romance that truly lasted till death did them part. And Yoko has seemingly kept her end of the bargain, for she herself has never remarried.

What would Lennon say today? About our involvement in Iraq? About the frightening proliferation of nuclear weapons? About continued poverty and racism? About terrorism? Seems as though the more things change, the more they stay the same. Lennon dealt with Vietnam, the Cold War, and many other pertinent issues still alive and well in 2006. Yes Madonna, history does have a terrible way of repeating itself.

It is not politics, nor social issues for which we remember Lennon the most however. It is undoubtedly for his art; his enormous gift of songcraft. The man was a genius songwriter, helping to lead the way and establish the world's greatest pop/rock group in modern music history. We know he penned glorious classics such as Ticket To Ride, Strawberry Fields Forever, Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds, and I Am The Walrus, while with the group and that the albums Lennon helped to created while with The Beatles, stand as sixties recording pieces that were and still are ahead of their time.

As a solo artist too, Lennon branched out and did his thing in the seventies, writing out some amazing songs as well, that only seem lackluster because the other Beatles were not with him recording them. Somehow, everyone held onto the hope that the boys would one day eventually reunite. And they probably would have, were it not for that horrible tragic instant when that gunman fired and killed John, ending the dream forever. Yes, the man was mortal. No amount of genius, money, nor fame could save him. It was done, over, finished. We were all robbed of upcoming great Lennon songs and the Beatles reunion which should have been, but was never to be.

We are left with Lennon's legacy, which has only gotten better like fine wine. Who doesn't still listen to or play this man's music? Everyone with even a bit of musical taste has to like a Beatles record or two, or perhaps a solo Lennon song here and there.

Though no longer alive, we say Happy Birthday John. Happy 66th Birthday. You were and still are considered the greatest songwriter ever.

Well, you and that other dude: Sir Paul McCartney.