John Lennon wrote the song “Imagine” in 1971. He composed it at his home, Tittenhurst Park, in Ascot, Berkshire, during an intense period of solo creativity after the Beatles had broken up.
Lennon developed the melody, chord structure, and most of the lyrics at a piano in early 1971. Yoko Ono was an important creative influence, and Lennon later acknowledged that the song’s ideas were substantially connected to her writing and worldview. In 2017, Ono was officially added as a co-writer.
The recording became the title track of Lennon’s second solo studio album, “Imagine,” released in September 1971. The single followed in October and became the best-selling single of Lennon’s solo career. Its deliberately simple piano arrangement supports lyrics imagining a world without national borders, material divisions, or religious conflict. The song is often confused with Lennon’s later solo work, but both its writing and original release belong firmly to 1971.