Another member of Lennon and Ono's Montreal Bed-in For Peace has died: Tommy Smothers
With the death of Tom Smothers at age 86, another piece of Montreal history has left as well.
One half of the socially conscious and groundbreaking comedy duo the Smothers Brothers, Tom was among those crowding John Lennon and Yoko Ono's bed-in for peace on May 26, 1969 at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel in the heart of the city.
Tom and his brother Dick produced The Smothers Brother Comedy Hour and fought censors as they railed against the Vietnam War and included references to drugs, sex and other things deemed inappropriate at the time.
"Tommy" Smothers sang along with Lennon and Ono to "Give Peace A Chance," recorded by Quebec music producer Andre Perry on June 1, 1969.
"Everybody's talking about John and Yoko, Timmy Leary, Rosemary, Tommy Smothers, Bobby Dylan, Tommy Cooper, Derek Taylor, Norman Mailer, Allen Ginsberg, Hare Krishna, Hare, Hare Krishna," sings Lennon.
Smothers is one of the dwindling number of musicians, journalists, artists, and activists who were part of the iconic bed-in.
Other invitees included poet Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997), activist and comedian Dick Gregory (1932-2017), and LSD advocate Timothy Leary (1920-1996).
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