IN MY LIFE - MrsC10English

IN MY LIFE
A glimpse at the life and death of John Lennon.
By Emma Williams
He was born, John Winston Lennon. Died John Ono Lennon, and throughout his life
changed the world through his powerful words and innovative music. The 9th of
October marks, what would have been, the 70th Birthday of the Musical legend whose
music and influence, challenged society over the four decades of his short life.
John was born in 1940, in the town of Liverpool, England. Raised by his Aunt Mimi, he
grew up in the city. In his late teen years he established the Quarrymen, a band
comprised of his school friends, which later transformed into the Beatles. The year of
1964, saw the Beatles at the height of their fame with ‘Beatlemania’ being the term to
describe the tremendous and at times terrifying response to their catchy tunes received
from their young audiences all around the world. John, who was deemed the ‘smart’
Beatle, created 27 albums, 55 singles and 37 music videos with his three band mates
along the course of the bands short life of only 8 years. Like popular artist of today
movies also are apart of John’s achievements with John starring alongside Paul, George
and Ringo in the two Beatles films, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ and ‘Help’. John, always
truthful when asked questions, got into several sticky situations for making comments
that were not appreciated by particular groups in society while apart of the Beatles. This
outspokenness, a quality that remind an infamous part of John’s character up until his
dying day.
After the disbandment of the Beatles in 1970, John continued to make music,
collaborating primarily with Wife, Yoko Ono, who by some, is blamed for the Fab Four’s
break-up. An idea, which John himself found extremely ridiculous, he blaming the break
on several events that weakened the group and his relationships with each member. His
fantastic debut, solo album, ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ (1970) lead the way for the
innovative, powerful, emotional and personal songs he would create for the last decade
of his life. Songs like, ‘War is Over,’ ‘Give Peace A Chance,’ and ‘Imagine’ are just some
of John’s songs that changed the way in which the public was influenced and the set idea
of the place of a ‘musician’ in society. Never before was there a musician, quite like
John, with sharp, directed political and social ideas who wasn’t scared to voice these
opinions. Like when he was the ‘smart’ Beatles, his candid comments and personal
opinions got him into trouble. With the United States frequently trying to deport John.
His blunt opinions have also been speculated to be a contributing factor that lead to his
untimely and violent death.
Mark David Chapman, a troubled man obsessed with the Novel ‘The Catcher In The Rye’
murdered John, age 40, outside his apartment building, the Dakota in New York City on
December 8, 1980. Chapman shot Lennon four times in the back, while wife, Yoko
looked on in utter horror. Mark waited at the scene until police arrived, Lennon slowly
bleeding to death metres away from him. The sudden and violent death of the founding
member of the Beatles, sparked a reaction similar to that of the assassination of late
president JFK, with hundreds of people gathering in places across the world to pay
tribute to the life’s work of the musical legend. Chapman was sentenced with his murder
and remains behind bars, and has been denied parole six times with each of his
applications being opposed by Yoko.
John was a singer, songwriter, guitarist, painter, political activist, writer, humorist, and
the founding member of the of the greatest bands of all time and in December, 1980, the
globe discovered a fact that no one had ever fully been sure of. He was human. Like may
of the great people in history he died young but this month we celebrate his birthday, his
life and the musical masterpieces he created that will be ours forever to enjoy.
9 October, 1940 - 8 December 1980
HAPPY
BIRTHDAY
JOHN!
STILL THE ONE
Left: Crowds lining up at the Ticketek Offices
By Christine-Ann Tecson
With almost eight hundred
hundred people lining up
for tickets to one of the
biggest concerts of the
century, U2 has proved
that they are still a massive
hit. Fans camped out in the
freezing cold, starting from
the night before to grab a
chance to see their idols in
concert. Ultimate fan
Ashley Summers said, “I’ve
been a fan of U2 for almost
all of my life. My parents
had introduced me to them
when I was six years old
and I’ve loved them ever
since. I’m thirty now. I’ve
been out here since three
am in the morning. So I’m
tired but excited!”
Right: One of the most popular bands of the
century, U2
What seemed like a sea of
people powerfully pushed
their way to the ticket
vendors to get a chance to
glance at the forever
famous U2 and their
supporting act Jay-Z with
his own hits like ‘Empire
State Of Mind’ when the
ticket offices opened at
5pm. The U2 fans were
greeted by some of
Sydney’s home grown
talents strumming on their
guitars and releasing their
powerful vocals after
winning the ‘SING YOUR
HEART OUT’ competition
in which prizes included
being able to sing their
hearts out to a top-notch
audience.
It was a fever-pitched night
that itself had already felt
like a concert
with the
people, the music and the
endless supply of food
provided by the food
vendors for no less that
$4.00 which granted them
more than just a little
profit for the night.
Ambulances were on
standby and the police had
been called out to keep an
eye on things in
case things got rowdy.
However, as people had
been lining for up for
several hours and online
sales (both pre-sale and
general admission) had
been hitting the roof not
everybody got their ticket
to the first announced
concert. There was clearly
disappointment for those
who didn’t get tickets to
U2’s sold out show to be
held on the 13th of
December, 2010 at the
grand ANZ Stadium. So
with one concert sold out,
they had announced a
follow up gig to be held a
day after at the same
venue. The sound of the
crowd’s ground trembling
cheers echoed outside the
Ticketek offices the
moment the second concert
was announced. One to-be
concertgoer gleamingly
said, “I was so upset that I
wasn’t going to be able to
go since I had just left after
I finished work but they
had announced the second
date and now I know I’ll
get a ticket for sure!” While
the fans had suffered in the
cold decked in their scarves
and coats, the staff
members that were
fronting the ticket sales
had also suffered. When
asked what he had felt
about the sales of the night,
staff member Dylan
Holmes said with mixed
emotions, “This was one of
our busiest nights! I’m so
tired. I wish I was paid on
commission! Probably
would’ve earned a couple of
hundred thousand,”
continuing with a loud
chuckle which was true
evidence that the U2 fever
had not died out and they
are still the one.
Fans in for a treat with evidence from U2’s Barcelona
Concert.
For a chance to win two tickets to the U2 360 Sydney
Concert at ANZ Stadium, plane tickets to and from
your destination (or spending money) text ‘U2 IS
STILL THE ONE’ to 131 757
EDITORIAL
ACDC; Immortal Rock Gods To The World
By Emma Williams
It seems that now more
than ever new bands and
musicians are emerging
more frequently than
ever; with the new
‘sensation’ changing
almost in a by-weekly
fashion. With all these
new acts suffocating the
average person, it comes
to one’s attention that the
standards in the music
business have weakened
considerably with aspect
of actual talent being
lowered as a priority when
it comes to the screening
process for new musical
acts. It can be seen that
the music plays little role
in the signing of an artist
with importance being
drawn upon the quality of
the ‘smoke and mirrors’
that cloud the innocent
consumer from the fact
that their favourite singer
lacks both natural talent
or originality. Imagine a
world where the same low
standards we now allow
for our musicians polluted
the prerequisites needed
to become our doctors,
our lawyers. These people
no longer needing the
intelligential credentials
but rather just possessing
the best bedside manner
or having the nicest hair
cut.
It maybe that musicians
of today need to look
towards
their
predecessors that came
before the auto-tune
technology. When
concerts were about the
music and musician
engaging in with the
audience. These
musicians whose fans had
and
have
true
appreciation for the music
and emotions behind their
music rather then
idolising a superficial trait
that in years to come will
have either faded or have
become irrelevant. Like a
lawyer studies common
law and legal precedents,
it may be of benefit that
today’s musicians
understand where music
has been in order to fully
formulate where they
would like to take it.
There is reason why AC/
DC, who started out in
1973 are still performing
to sold out crowds. That
the Beatles, who dis-band
almost forty years ago, are
still capturing and
inspiring people with
their music.
Out
Out Now at the following retail
stores : Big W, JB-HI, Target, Kmart
and selective stores.
The Script - Signs and Faith
Out Now at the following retail
stores : Big W, JB-HI, Target, Kmart
and selected stores.
LETTERS TO THE
EDITOR
--Hello,
I just wanted to share my love of ‘Echo’, I
look forward to every month when the new
edition comes out. It is one of those
magazines which you can read over and over
again because its content is so rich and
relates to todays society. I particularly enjoy
reading the creative piece as every month a
new structure or idea is produced. Also,
without ‘echo’ i would never know what new
releases or concerts are coming out without
the amazing advertisements in ‘Echo’. I
would like to commend the creators, writers
and editors for their talent to be able to
produce such a truthful and entertaining
magazine. One more thing, for all those
people who dislike this magazine, please stop
being so immature you need to have a
passion and care for music.
Samantha ‘Jayne’ Heart, BRISBANE, 19
-Editor of Echo magazine ,
As a diligent reader who has enjoyed reading
each issue of Echo every month, I am
extremely disappointed to develop a range of
complaints with the way your magazine has
changed in recent times.
To begin with, I feel a certain degree of
disappointment in the quality of music choice
and featured topics recently promoted and
discussed throughout the more current issues
of your magazine. As a longtime reader and
follower who has greatly appreciated the
unique variety and quality substance of the
articles that uncover a new world of songs
and musicians exposed through each monthly
installment, I am in disbelief to say that this
positive regard is no longer expressed. It use
to be that Echo magazine opened my eyes to a
fresh experience each issue, but
unfortunately, has more recently had me
yawning at the repetition of seeing the same
bands talked about over and over again.
Secondly, I unfortunately feel increasingly
unimpressed by the new sway in mainstream
choice of music. Personally to me, I always
felt that Echo was a magazine that I could
count on to provide me with alternative
choices of music to what the readers are use
to hearing every second on the radio. This
however has changed and left me longing for
that exclusive and distinct sound I prefer.
In addition, I believe that Echo magazine has
not taken into consideration their long-time
followers, due to the underwhelming quality
of the current articles and choice of music. By
taking inspiration from your older articles
and style, this may assist in developing the
true Echo persona we all know and love. Also,
by looking further into alternative music
choices this will lead onto a number of new
readers and aid in the keeping long-time
followers. Sometimes the more popular
choice results in becoming the same as every
other magazine we see on the shelves of or
favorite news agents. To prevent this, my
suggestions should be taken into account.
Alexia ‘Natalie’ Smith, NEWTOWN, 22.
MV PLOT COMPETITION WINNER
Last weeks competition was a close one! The magazine was overwhelmed with
numerous creative works in the forms of comic strips, short narratives and scrapbooks.
They were all great! Burdened with such a task, after much deliberation we finally chose
a short narrative by Natalie Rous which had captured every single one of the team. The
three runners up have won a $200 voucher to Urban Outfitters, Monster Beats by Dr.
Dre Headphones worth $299.99 and $50 voucher to Dymocks while our first prize gets
a $1000 bedroom makeover courtesy of IKEA.
Our last competition was to write approx. 300 words (in any creative form) about which
‘era’ you would like to go back to by influence of music and culture.
--By Natalie Rous
As the main character switches on his glossy blue 5th generation Ipod nano, he sits on
his bed scrolling past modern music and his collection of new-age songs, until he
reaches the playlist titled 1960s classics. He lies back, decides to choose Rain by the
Beatles and closes his eyes.
He opens his eyes to discover himself in the same room, yet it is significantly different.
He is astonished to come to a realization that he has been transported to the 1960s, as
he gazes at the posters on the walls depicting the Beatles in the way they looked back
then. In the background he hears music playing, so he evokes on a journey to find out
where this music is coming from. As soon as he opens the door a wave of atmosphere
takes over with the new remix track becoming clear to the main character of the video
clip. It opens to a scene of young adults at an ordinary 60s party. They all seem to know
him whilst he substantially fits in wearing classic 1960s attires. He joins in on the
entertainment and puts a modern spin on the situation through showing the 1960s
teenagers new-age ways of interacting with the music. This places a comedic aspect to
the music video.
When the song comes to a close, he opens his eyes to uncover he is back in the same
room in his 21st century life.
This story line is signatory of the new remix track as it depicts the feeling of being taken
aback to the time the original was created, however with a modern twist. It puts the
main character in a position of story-telling and compares how times have changed, yet
still stayed the same in certain aspects.
CURRENT AFFAIRS/
STAFF PICKS
‘Staff Picks’ PLAYLIST
OCTOBER TOP 1O ‘2010’
‣Just A Dream - Usher
‣Just The Way You Are - Bruno Mars
‣Bottoms Up - Trey Songz
‣ Grenade - Bruno Mars
‣ Stay Up - George Nozuka
‣ Vanilla Twilight - Owl City
‣ Let It Be - The Beatles
‣ Fall For You - Secondhand Serenade
‣ The Man Who Can’t Be Moved - The Script
‣ Already Taken - Trey Songz
UPCOMING events
‣Animal - Neon Trees
‣Like A G6 - Far East Movement
‣Dynamite - Taio Cruz
‣DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love Again - Usher
‣Only Girl - Rihanna
‣Lucky - Glee Cast
‣I Like It - Enrique Iglesias
‣Mumford & Sons
OCTOBER TOP 1O ‘2000’
‣The Script
‣U2
‣The Eagles
‣Big Day Out
‣Soundwave
‣Bluesfest
‣Rufus Wainwright
‣You Am I
‣Say My Name - Destiny’s Child
‣What A Girl Wants - Christina Aguilera
‣Breathe - Faith Hill
‣Smooth - Samantha Ft. Rob THomas
‣Amazed - Lone star
‣Higher - Creed
‣There You Go - Pink
‣Maria Maria - Santana Ft. The Product
‣Incomplete - Sisqo
‣Back Here - BBMak
CREDITS
ECHO Magazine
• Emma Williams (Head Editor/Writer)
In My Life (John Lennon) Feature Article
Editorial
• Christine - Ann Tecson (Art Director/Writer)
John Lennon Cover
U2 ‘STILL THE ONE’ News Article
Lords Of Liverpool Advertisement
Urban Outfitters Advertisement
• Natalie Rous (Guest/Winner/Reader)
Winning Entry of MV Competition Plot (Narrative)
Letter To The Editor (Negative)
• Jayne Martin (Entertainment Director/Reader)
The Script CD Advertisement
Current Affairs
Letter To The Editor (Positive)