John Lennon’s murder 40 years ago. 80 years after his birth.

John Lennon was killed, shot four times point blank with a .38, on Dec. 8, 1980. Forty years ago.

Music fans in New York City and around the world are marking what would have been John Lennon's 80th birthday.

He was killed nearly 40 years ago, but his music and his message as a peace activist continue to entertain and inspire the masses.

On Thursday night, the Empire State Building showed sky blue lights with a peace sign on its mast to honor Lennon.

Mark Chapman, then 25, had traveled from Hawaii and had got Lennon to sign his copy of the British singer’s latest album, “Double Fantasy”, earlier that day as Lennon left the building.

Then U.S. president-elect Ronald Reagan — who would later survive an assassination attempt himself — called the killing a “great tragedy” as thousands of mourners gathered outside the building where Lennon had lived with Ono and their son, Sean.

Ono announced there would be no public funeral. Instead she sent word to fans singing outside her window to gather at an amphitheater in nearby Central Park that Sunday to honor her late husband.

The day after Lennon's death, Yoko Ono issued a statement: "There is no funeral for John. John loved and prayed for the human race.

"Please do the same for him. Love, Yoko and Sean."

His remains were cremated at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, Westchester County, New York.

On December 14, millions of people around the world did justs that. They paused for ten minutes of silence to remember Lennon. 30,000 gathered in Lennon's hometown of Liverpool, and the largest group - over 225,000 - did so at Central Park. For those ten minutes, every radio station in New York City also went off air.

It was Ono's dream to transform part of Central Park and make it a living tribute in honor of her late husband. She donated $1,000,000 to the project and said Strawberry Fields is a gift of life.

More than 120 countries from around the world donated trees and plants as offerings of peace.

"This garden is a result of all of us dreaming together, it is our way of taking a sad song and making it better," Ono said in 1985.

Central Park officials said they believe Lennon's vision of a world living in harmony was translated faithfully into a garden of peace.

John Lennon, of course, was half of the most important songwriting team ever. He was an extraordinary musician and singer. He was a cultural icon.

Rolls Royce rebel

For all the nostalgia, Lennon was a divisive and contradictory figure. Sceptics questioned his status as a counterculture icon and the sincerity of his positions on gender equality and capitalism.

"Lennon had a 'teddy boy' side to him," said Stan Cuesta, author of a book about The Beatles, referring to the Liverpool musician's slick-haired, working class rebel beginnings. "He once had a Rolls Royce. He was complex."

It only took one session to record "Imagine"

Lennon composed the song in one session, sitting at his white grand piano in his Tittenhurst Park estate in England in May 1971. His wife, Yoko Ono, watched him as he played the melody and wrote most of the lyrics. He recorded it in his home studio with help from musicians Alan White, longtime Beatle friend (and artist behind the cover of the Revolver album) Klaus Voorman, Nicky Hopkins, and producer Phil Spector, who uncharacteristically kept the track fairly simple. They experimented, at one point having Hopkins play on the same piano as Lennon, but on a higher octave. The more they added, the more they ended up stripping away.

His famous festive song 'Happy Xmas (War is Over)'.

Was reissued and went to number 4 the following week, and in the first week of January 1981.

Lennon's holiday perennial started life as an anti-war song, but over the years it's become a Christmas classic. The message of peace and love works either way. Recorded over a couple of days with session musicians and the Harlem Community Choir, "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" was an extension of Lennon and Ono's peace campaign. The hopeful "war is over" refrain may seem a bit premature, but it's a lovely sentiment nonetheless.

A re-released 'Imagine' went to number one for five weeks.

Lennon acknowledges upfront that 'Imagine,' his bestselling and most popular solo song, is a bit naive: "You may say I'm a dreamer," he sings. But that doesn't take away any of the power it's packed over the past 40 years. As long as the planet continues to destroy itself, and as long as there are wars, the song's message will never go out of style. 'Imagine' has been covered by tons of artists over the years, but no version comes close to Lennon's stripped-down musings over graceful piano and strings, which earn it the top spot in our list of the Top 10 John Lennon Songs. It's a great song, as majestic as it is timeless.

Of course, there were also barely listenable excursions into noise- and art-rock. Had the Beatles continued to make music in the '70s, the tracks on our list of the Top 10 John Lennon Songs would undoubtedly be among the highlights.