Tributes are to be paid to former Beatle John Lennon later to mark the 30th anniversary of his murder.
Fans will gather at a memorial garden in Central Park, New York, opposite the apartment block where he was shot dead.
A vigil will also be held in Liverpool at a monument dedicated to the singer where fans will light candles and sing his songs.
Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, has urged people to remember him with "deep love and respect".
She said: "On this tragic anniversary, please join me in remembering John.
"In his short-lived life of 40 years, he has given so much to the world. The world was lucky to have known him. We still learn so much from him today."
Ono was with Lennon when he was killed by crazed fan Mark Chapman outside the Dakota building in Manhattan, where the couple lived.
Ono will lead the tributes at a charity concert she has organised in Japan called Dream Power John Lennon Super Live, which raises money for schools for deprived children all over the world.
Events will also take place across Liverpool - Lennon's home city - to remember the singer.
Pat Simpson, from Blackpool, was among those who made the pilgrimage to the city's Cavern Club on the anniversary.
"I remember I was on my way to work when I heard," she recalled of 9 December 1980, the morning after Lennon was shot. "I can remember sitting on the bus and had tears rolling down my cheeks.
"Somebody had a radio and it was announced that he had died."
Another fan, Jim Collins, from Liverpool, said: "It was a bit like the night we found out Kennedy had been shot, the same sort of experience in terms of shock.
"Like all the Beatles, he made us proud to be Liverpudlians at a bad time for Liverpool in terms of depression and everything. But not only that, I think everybody loves his music."
A vigil will be held in the city's Chavasse Park on Wednesday.
On Thursday, charity concert Lennon Remembered - The 9 Faces of John will feature the Liverpudlian's friends and bandmates from his first band, The Quarrymen, performing his most famous songs.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11947118
