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Cover of Double Fantasy by John Lennon
Cover: Double Fantasy

Song · John Lennon

“Watching the Wheels” by John Lennon

From the album Double Fantasy (1980)

“Watching the Wheels” by John Lennon appears on 33 radio countdowns from 14 stations between 1982 and 2025. It was first released in 1980 on the album Double Fantasy. Its best result is #65 on the WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #918 indie & aaa song of all time.

33countdowns
14stations
#65best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1982–2025years charted

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WATCHING THE WHEELS. (Ultimate Mix, 2020) - John Lennon (official music video HD)

Video from YouTube (johnlennon). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Watching the Wheels" is John Lennon's answer to everyone who couldn't understand why he walked away. It comes from Double Fantasy, the 1980 album he made with Yoko Ono, and it looks back on his househusband years, 1975 to 1980, when he stepped out of the music business to raise his son Sean with Ono.

It rolls along on piano, and the shimmer on top comes from a hammered dulcimer: Lennon asked producer Jack Douglas for a circular feel, the Musicians' Union had no dulcimer players on its books, so Douglas brought in Matthew Cunningham, a busker he had heard playing on the streets of New York. Lennon, Ono and Douglas produced it together. It became the album's third and last single in 1981, released after Lennon's murder, with Ono's "Yes, I'm Your Angel" on the B-side, and went to number 10 on the Hot 100.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

All Rock Formats

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1982 114 95.5 KLOS KLOS Memorial Day 500 (1982) 499
1996 398 WNEW-FM WNEW Firecracker 500 (1996) 500
1997 479 104.5 KZEP KZEP Memorial Weekend Top 500 (1997) 500
2001 1236 WFPK WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time 2000
2002 524 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2002) 923
2002 106 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (2002) 500
2004 504 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2007 206 WTMD WTMD Top 897 Songs of All Time 897
2009 628 WXPN WXPN 885 Desert Island Songs (2009) 885
2010 360 WXPN WXPN 885 Ultimate Road Trip Songs (2010) 885
2011 456 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 372 WYEP WYEP Top 500 Songs Countdown 500
2012 460 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2013 324 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2013) 500
2013 392 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2014 386 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2015 392 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2015 258 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2015) 500
2016 730 WYEP WYEP 913 Countdown 2016 913
2016 161 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2016 364 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2016) 500
2019 77 102.5 KZOK KZOK Top 1025 of 2019 1025
2020 926 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2020) 1025
2020 945 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2021 743 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2022 966 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2022) 1025
2022 478 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) 1043
2022 343 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022) 500
2023 656 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 850 Songs of the 1980s 850
2023 717 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2024 65 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049
2024 612 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2024) 1043
2025 454 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043

Also listed as: Watching The Wheels; Watching the wheels.

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