Lennon’s recording of “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” for his “Walls And Bridges” LP had featured Elton John on harmony vocals and piano, and while in the studio, Elton bet Lennon that the song would become a #1 hit. Lennon, who was the only former Beatle not to have had a chart-topper, was skeptical and promised to appear on stage at one of John’s performances should the record indeed hit #1. “He sang harmony on it and he really did a damn good job,” Lennon told David Sheff in 1980. “So, I sort of halfheartedly promised that if ‘Whatever Gets You Thru the Night’ became #1, which I had no reason to expect, I’d do Madison Square Garden with him. So one day Elton called and said, ‘Remember when you promised…’” It would be the only #1 hit of Lennon’s solo career during his lifetime.
November 28, 1974 – John Lennon performed onstage with Elton John at Madison Square Garden
