John Lennon’s Birthday: Watch Him Jam With Clapton and Keith [VIDEO]

Today, John Lennon would have turned 74. In honoring the rock-and-roll genius and outspoken social activist who was cut down by a psycho’s bullet in 1980, there’s no lack of accomplishments from which to choose. It’s pretty much enough to even just say, “Uh, he was in the Beatles.” On Lennon’s birthday, though, let’s shine a light (and maybe light a little something else up) in the direction of the Dirty Mac.
The Dirty Mac was a British supergroup consisting of John Lennon on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones on bass, Eric Clapton playing lead guitar, and Mitch Mitchell of the Jimi Hendrix Experience on drums. It’s the all-time classic rock Murderer’s Row–and they only played one song in public. That was back in 1968, under a big top tent in the company of clowns, jugglers, sideshow performers, and Jethro Tull.
The brainchild of ever-cheeky Lennon, the band’s name is UK slang for an unwashed raincoat–and also parodies England’s then-hottest up-and-coming blues-rock combo. Yeah, that would be Fleetwood Mac. Stevie Nicks wasn’t even on board at that point to fail to get the joke.
The occasion for the Dirty Mac’s assembling was a TV special titled The Rolling Stones’ Rock-and-Roll Circus. As the name implies, the show consisted of traditional circus acts doing their things in three rings in between the hugest rock names of the day, including the Stones, the Who, the aforementioned Jethro Tull, and, last and the opposite of least, the Dirty Mac.
After a big of nonsense with Mick Jagger, Lennon fronts the band and they blaze through the late-era Beatles’ barnstormer, “Yer Blues.” It rocks, it rips, it’s a perfect rare moment to watch and remember John Lennon by today. So put on your filthy rain gear and let’s go…
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=125plZCHt9w&w=560&h=315]