Did you know John Lennon’s last concert was with Elton John + Muscle Shoals Horns?

Did you know John Lennon’s last live concert in a big arena was held in Madison Square Garden on Thanksgiving Day 1974 alongside Elton John and Alabama’s own Muscle Shoals Horns?

This weekend, Charles Rose—a longtime member of the Muscle Shoals Horns—provided music lovers with a special treat: a post with photos of Lennon and Elton John playing three songs:

• Lucy in the Skies with Diamonds
• I Saw Her Standing There
• Whatever Gets You Through the Night

Below is the Facebook post by Charles Rose of that Madison Square Garden concert.

Meeting John Lennon and rehearsing

We reached out to Rose, who lives in Sheffield, Alabama, about what it was like meeting Lennon and the rehearsal leading up to the concert:

“Elton previously sang backing vocals for Lennon’s ‘Whatever Gets You Thru the Night,’ and bet a doubtful Lennon that it would be a #1 hit, getting Lennon to agree that if it reached #1, Lennon had to come sit in at one of Elton’s shows. 

It did indeed reach the #1 spot, the only one of Lennon’s singles to ever do so.

Several days before the Thanksgiving show we rehearsed with Lennon at the Record Plant studio in NYC. To do so, the Muscle Shoals Horns had to turn down an invitation from Atlantic Records’ Jerry Wexler, to have dinner with him, Paul Simon and the Swampers!

We arrived at the Record Plant a little before Elton and the band. I was the first one through the door into the studio room and there was Lennon and several studio techs, just standing around waiting.

As I approached, John said, “Here’s the horns.” Then he extended his hand and said, “Hi, I’m John Lennon,” to which I replied, “I was pretty sure that was you!”

After the others arrived we got to rehearsing. It was a given that we would play “Whatever Get You Thru the Night” and “Lucy in the Skies with Diamonds,”  which Elton had recorded and which we were performing on the tour already.

For the third song, Elton wanted John to sing “Imagine,” but John didn’t want to. Elton then asked him what he would like to sing, but John couldn’t think of anything. 

At this point I realized how much of a Beatles fan Elton was, for he launched into a barrage of various Beatles songs, singing and playing each one until John would shake his head no. 

Elton must have sung 10-15 songs until he got to “I Saw Her Standing There,” to which Lennon said, “Yeah, I remember that one. Let’s do it!.”

Although Lennon and McCartney are credited on that song, it was actually a 100% McCartney effort, but Lennon didn’t seem to care.

At the Madison Square Garden gig, Lennon introduced the song as “a number by an old estranged fiancé of mine called Paul.”

According to Rose, who is the last of the original members still performing in the section, the Muscle Shoals Horns still play today with a revolving cast of musicians.

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