10 January 1981
‘(Just Like) Starting Over’, the first single off John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s ‘comeback’ album Double Fantasy, went top ten in Ireland and the UK in November 1980. Into the following month it was still at number four in the Irish singles chart, but had dropped outside the top twenty of the UK charts of 7 December. The following night, Lennon was dead.
I was only four in December 1980 so I have no memory of the global reaction to John Lennon’s sudden brutal murder. It means I can take ‘(Just Like) Starting Over’ on its merits; it understandably went back up the charts to number one, but it had been a genuine hit before that. His death has given the track’s wistful, escapist opening added poignancy. The rest of the song is also nostalgia-laden: a ’50s doo-wop/rock n’roll flashback to Lennon’s pre-Beatles youth, so fans of Grease and Happy Days might have liked it too.
It’s probably an opportune moment for me to admit that when it comes to Lennon’s solo material, I’m not a fan. Unfortunately, I have two further opportunities to elaborate on this. The best I can say about ‘(Just Like) Starting Over’ is that, of the three number ones in the aftermath of his death, it is the least worst.
