The Bet Elton John Made With John Lennon

In September 1974, "Whatever Gets You Thru The Night" was released in the US as the lead single from Lennon's forthcoming Walls and Bridges album, and went promptly to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, according to Stereo Gum.

Lennon was true to his word. Live performances had become a rarity for the ex-Beatle — the world's biggest group had quit giving live shows in 1966, and Lennon had remained somewhat averse to the long haul touring that dominated the early years of his musical career, but he agreed to join Elton John on stage for his enormous Thanksgiving Day performance at Madison Square Garden in November 1974. In an interview with Lennon's son, Sean, Elton described how the writer of "Imagine" was a bag of nerves before the show. "He was terrified," Elton said, per the NME. "I can tell you he was physically sick before the show, absolutely physically sick.

""When he came on stage he was fine because of the reception that he got ... I've never heard a noise, a roar like it ... we all get goosebumps thinking about it." The pair played through their recent joint hit, a version of Lennon's "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds," as well as the early Beatles hit "When I Saw her Standing There." Lennon's appearance was a triumph.

It was backstage after the concert that Lennon finally reconnected with Yoko Ono, with whom he would remain until his death in 1980.

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