SUNDAY MAIL
DECEMBER 4, 2005 Thanks to Tammy for typing up and scanning this article that was in the Brisbane Sunday Mail

Sunday Mail - December 4, 2005
Musicians pay tribute to Lennon by Ritchie Yorke.

Leading rock music artists have joined in a chorus of acclaim for John Lennon, who was gunned down outside his New York home 25 years ago. The anniversary of his death will be on Thursday.

"John Lennon continues to hugely inspire me as a songwriter," said Darren Hayes, the former Logan City lad and ex-Savage Garden singer who now lives in London.

He explained that his new hit single, So Beautiful, was directly linked to his listening to John and Yoko Lennon's final album, Double Fantasy.

"John was such a delightful contradiction," the 33-year-old said. "On one hand he was a crusader for peace and on the other hand, he was this storm brewing. On the day John died, I remember being in the back of my parents' station wagon in Brisbane. It was a cold and rainy day and we were on the freeway. I couldn't understand why my mother and my sister were crying, because I didn't really know a lot about John as a child."

"Years later as an adult, watching that film Gimme Some Truth, I cried. There was just something so naive about him. I can't say enough beautiful things about him. I love him."

Tim Farriss, 48, of INXS, says Lennon's music has played a huge part in his life. "We were brought up with the Beatles and John Lennon," he said. "John's contributions to pop culture in general were phenomenal - probably the most significant of any pop artist."

According to actor Russell Crowe, 41, who is promoting a new album and a new band, Lennon was "an extremely inspirational figure, but I didn't discover the depth of his solo work until after he he was killed."