"Woman" is a song written and performed by John Lennon from his 1980 album Double Fantasy. The track was chosen by Lennon to be the second single released from the Double Fantasy album, and it was the first Lennon single issued after his murder on 8 December 1980. The B-side of the single is Ono's song "Beautiful Boys". Lennon wrote "Woman" as an ode to his wife Yoko Ono, and to all women. The track begins with Lennon whispering, "For the other half of the sky...", a paraphrase of a Chinese proverb, once used by Mao Zedong.
Background
In an interview for Rolling Stone magazine on 5 December 1980, John Lennon said that the song "came about because, one sunny afternoon in Bermuda, it suddenly hit me what women do for us. Not just what my Yoko does for me, although I was thinking in those personal terms... but any truth is universal. What dawned on me was everything I was taking for granted. Women really are the other half of the sky, as I whisper at the beginning of the song. It's a 'we' or it ain't anything." In that same interview, Lennon continued that "Woman" was his most Beatlesque song on Double Fantasy, and that the track is a "grown-up version" of his Beatles song "Girl." This is the only song title for which John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote separate songs. In 1966, McCartney wrote a song of the same title using the pseudonym Bernard Webb. On 5 June 1981, Geffen re-released "Woman" as a single as part of their "Back to Back Hits" series, with the B-side " Starting Over". In the United Kingdom, "Woman" replaced Lennon's 1971 track "Imagine" at #1. This was the first time an artist replaced himself at #1 in the country since The Beatles did it in 1963 with "She Loves You" and "I Want To Hold Your Hand." A promotional film for the song was created by Yoko Ono in January 1981. Throughout most of the video, Lennon and Ono are seen walking through Central Park near what would become Strawberry Fields across from The Dakota. This footage was directed by photographer Ethan Russell on 26 November 1980. Other footage of Ono alone, along with photos and newspaper coverage of Lennon's murder, were also included. The word "woman" begins each verse, but it doesn't show up in the chorus.
Chart performance
The single debuted at number 3 in Lennon's native UK, then moving to number 2 and finally reaching number 1, where it spent two weeks, knocking off the top spot his own re-released "Imagine". In the US the single peaked at number 2 on BillboardHot 100 while reaching number 1 on the Cashbox Top 100.
did an instrumental version as a medley with "Imagine" in 1981. Pop groupBrotherhood of Man recorded a version in 1981, which was featured on their album 20 Love Songs. Ozzy Osbourne recorded this song on his 2005 Under Cover album. In 2007, Ben Jelen's version appeared on as an iTunes exclusive bonus track.
