John Lennon tribute show to feature Steven Tyler, Willie Nelson

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John Lennon Tribute Show to Feature Steven Tyler, Willie Nelson
Eric Church, Brandon Flowers, Tom Morello, Sheryl Crow and others also set to perform
BY KORY GROW 
November 13, 2015


Steven Tyler, Willie Nelson, Tom Morelo, Eric Church and others will perform at a John Lennon tribute show that will be televised David Redfern/Redferns/Getty

An impressive collection of John Lennon's fans and peers will gather to celebrate what would have been the singer-songwriter's 75th birthday this year with a star-studded tribute concert. Willie Nelson, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, the Killers' Brandon Flowers, Sheryl Crow and Eric Church will all perform at New York City's Theater at Madison Square Garden on December 5th to honor the former Beatle in a program titled Imagine: John Lennon 75th Birthday Concert. The show will be broadcast on AMC on December 19th at 9 p.m. EST.



Other performers include Peter Frampton, Kris Kristofferson, Tom Morello, Aloe Blacc, Juanes, Train's Pat Monahan, Chris Stapleton and the Roots. The show's producers will announce more performers prior to the concert.

"It's beautiful to see so many wonderful and talented musicians come together for this special show to celebrate John's birthday," Yoko Ono said in a statement. "John's art continues to give hope, light and happiness to generations of people everywhere. His belief that each of us can change the world continues to inspire the human race to believe in themselves, and his influence is everlasting in everyone's hearts as we all share in the possibilities and power of music."



The event's musical directors are Rolling Stones producer Don Was, who also worked on the TV tribute The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to the Beatles, and Michael Jackson keyboardist Greg Phillinganes, who worked on Stevie Wonder: Songs in the Key of Life: An All-Star Grammy Salute. Gregg Gelfand, who directed the Beatles special Was participated in, will helm the celebration.

Tickets to the event go on sale on November 17th via Ticketmaster. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Robin Hood, a New York–based organization fighting poverty.