" The Late Great Johnny Ace " was interrupted when an audience member ran to the stage and shouted at Simon : " I need to talk to you ! " The man was carried away by security , and Simon finished the song . The incident provoked associations to the song 's lyrics , in which Simon speaks as a first-person narrator concerning the deaths of Johnny Ace , John F. Kennedy and John Lennon . Lennon 's murder by an obsessed fan had taken place less than a year previously , not far from the concert site . Despite this association , Simon said that he was not afraid of any on-stage incidents . In May 1982 as a guest on '' Late Night with David Letterman '' , he explained that while it is not unusual for fans , for example , to jump onto the stage with flowers , this action was new to him , but also felt that the man simply appeared intoxicated . His greater concern was that the song 's premiere was ruined
Lennon 's murder
Murder of John Lennon
The Concert in Central Park