On this day in 1974, John Lennon received his only solo number one hit in the US

After the breakup of The Beatles in 1970 Lennon had started his solo career tumultuously, with two relatively successful solo albums ahead of a period of wild partying and heavy drinking known as “the lost weekend”. As this time came to an end, Lennon settled down in New York to continue working on music, producing for Harry Nilsson and Mick Jagger before deciding to continue with his own material.

The idea for Whatever Gets You thru the Night came from a late night tv show. Lennon loved channel-surfing at night and picked up phrases and ideas from what he saw. On this occasion he was watching an evangelist named Reverend Ike, who said “Let me tell you guys, it doesn’t matter, it’s whatever gets you through the night.” Lennon loved the phrase and wrote it down on a notepad he kept beside his bed.

The music for the song was reportedly inspired by the current number one at the time, Rock Your Baby by George McCrae. This was hard to tell from the released single but became apparent with the later release of an alternative version recorded first on John Lennon Anthology. The more widely released version that appeared on the 1974 album Walls and Bridges also benefited from piano and harmony vocals from none other than Elton John. While in the studio with Lennon, he bet that the song would top the charts, and a skeptical Lennon replied that if it did he would appear on stage with Elton. This led to Lennon’s appearance at John’s Thanksgiving performance at Madison Square Garden on the 28th of November, which would be Lennon’s last major concert appearance.

While Whatever Gets You thru the Night wasn’t Lennon’s first choice for a single, it was immensely popular upon its release on 23 September. It surged up the charts to number 36 in the UK and number one on all three US record charts: the Billboard Hot 100, Record World and Cashbox, giving Lennon his first and only solo number one hit.