StoneMtn Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 C B C . C A A r t s - F u l l S t o r y : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back-of-envelope lyrics for 'Give Peace a Chance' on auction John Lennon and Yoko Ono look-alikes Michael Evans and Tian Yu pose in a bed in suite 1742 of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel. They hold the original lyrics of the song 'Give Peace a Chance,' written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono during their bed-in in the same suite on May 26, 1969. (CP PHOTO/Francois Roy) Last Updated Mon, 24 Oct 2005 19:29:16 EDT CBC Arts The original lyrics of John Lennon's song, Give Peace A Chance, are going up for sale. The lyrics were written on an envelope from Montreal's Queen Elizabeth Hotel in 1969 during his famous "bed-in" with Yoko Ono. They will be auctioned at Bonham's in London on Nov. 16. Bonhams auction house re-enacted the bed-in by Lennon and Ono on Monday at the same Montreal hotel room. Michael Evans, who portrayed the pyjama-clad Lennon during the re-enactment, held the original envelope delicately between very clean fingers. "A lot of it is pretty illegible," he said in an interview with Canadian Press. "Some of the words you can make out — revolution, evolution." His girlfriend, Tian Yu, portrayed the nightie-clad Ono. The original words to the song are on both sides of the envelope, which is creased, but otherwise is in good shape. The envelope has the name of the hotel written in English and French. Lennon and Ono had held a bed-in for peace in Amsterdam and attempted in May of 1969 to resume it in the United States but were prevented from entering the U.S. due to their previous arrest on drug charges. They continued the bed-in in June 1969 in Montreal. The corner suite they took at the hotel is still known as the John Lennon suite and is in demand by hotel customers. Bonhams estimates it will get 175,000-200,000 British pounds ($368,400-$421,000) for the lyrics, written at the height of the Vietnam War and only weeks after Lennon and Ono married. Demand is strong for Beatles memorabilia. Lennon "was one of the most influential political artists, the greatest 20th-century songwriter and singer," Michelle Gonsalves of Bonhams said. It's the first time these lyrics have been seen or auctioned. "We believe it was written in between media events when people were coming into this room. You can see it's a spontaneous piece of work," Gonsalves said, noting "corrections" to the lyrics by Lennon. "It shows his passions." "These lyrics are as relevant now as they were in 1969," she added. "It parallels what is going on in the world today." Copyright ©2005 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - All Rights Reserved Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Evil_Mouse Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 Those sorts of numbers always astound me. Funny what people value. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tooly Posted October 27, 2005 Report Share Posted October 27, 2005 thast what me and the woman are dressing up as for halloweenwe should make those signs tooridiculous amnts of money to pay for somet stuff nowadays, like 4500$ for a cream ticket Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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