Ask anyone to name the most influential band of all time, and there’s a good chance they’ll say The Beatles. The Fab Four burst onto the scene in the early 1960s, quickly spawning the never-before-seen phenomenon known as Beatlemania. People went crazy for the band, with audiences screaming so loud at their performances that you could barely hear the music being played.
While The Beatles could’ve faded out after a few albums of easily digestible pop songs and rhythm and blues covers, the teen heartthrobs soon proved their status as a group of innovative musicians with 1965’s Rubber Soul. Released two years after their debut, Please Please Me, Rubber Soul was the band’s sixth album and marked a significant development in the members’ songwriting skills. Influences from non-Western genres became apparent, which the band expanded upon with their next record, Revolver.
By the time The Beatles split in 1970, they had an experimental back catalogue which completely revolutionised the music industry. While Ringo Starr and George Harrison made important contributions, Paul McCartney and John Lennon penned most of the band’s hits. As one of music’s most indomitable writing duos, Lennon-McCartney were responsible for creating many number-one hits, cementing The Beatles as one of the biggest bands of all time.
However, after The Beatles disbanded, Lennon continued to make music, earning several number ones as a solo artist. Lennon’s first number one in the United Kingdom was ‘From Me To You’, co-written with McCartney. It was the band’s third single, and despite its success on home turf, the song didn’t fare as well across the pond.
Lennon also scored number one singles with ‘She Loves You’, ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ and ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, which remain some of the band’s most recognisable hits. As The Beatles’ career progressed, Lennon was also responsible for number-one songs such as ‘All You Need Is Love’ and ‘The Ballad of John and Yoko’.
As a solo artist, Lennon scored three UK number ones, although he only lived to see one hit the charts, 1975’s ‘Imagine’. The other two, ‘(Just Like) Starting Over’ and ‘Woman’, each took the top spot after his murder in 1980. Lennon also achieved one chart-topper in the United States – ‘Whatever Gets You Thru the Night’, which featured Elton John’s backing vocals and piano accompaniment.
Discover the complete list of Lennon’s US and UK number ones below, including those credited to Lennon-McCartney despite being primarily written by McCartney.
Every number one song written by John Lennon:
‘From Me To You’
‘She Loves You’
‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’
‘Can’t Buy Me Love’
‘A Hard Day’s Night’
‘I Feel Fine’
‘Ticket to Ride’
‘Help!’
‘Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out’
‘Paperback Writer’
‘Eleanor Rigby/Yellow Submarine’
‘All You Need Is Love’
‘Hello, Goodbye’
‘Lady Madonna’
‘Hey Jude’
‘Get Back’
‘The Ballad of John and Yoko’
‘Imagine’
‘(Just Like) Starting Over’
‘Woman’
US-only number ones:
‘Whatever Gets You thru the Night’
‘Love Me Do’
‘We Can Work It Out’
‘Eight Days A Week’
‘The Long and Winding Road’
‘Penny Lane’
‘Come Together’ / ‘Something’
‘Yesterday’
