13 Times The Beatles Wrote Songs About Their Homes
In and out of the group, The Beatles wrote many songs about home, whether where they grew up, a house they once lived in, or the city they resided in. Here’s a list of 13 times the Fab Four wrote about home.
13. ‘I’ll Follow the Sun’
The Beatles’ “I’ll Follow the Sun” doesn’t seem like a song about home, but it is. In his book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, Paul McCartney wrote that the tune is a “Leaving of Liverpool song.” He explained that the lyrics say, “I’m leaving this rainy northern town for someplace where more is happening.” Paul and The Beatles did leave Liverpool to start a better life.
12. ‘In My Life’
“In My Life” was John Lennon’s first song where he spoke about his own life. He called it his “first real major piece of work.” He takes the listener on a trip through memory lane, remembering all the people and places from childhood and growing up in Liverpool.
11. ‘Penny Lane’
The lane in “Penny Lane” is physical and metaphorical. Paul is going down memory lane as he sings about an actual street in Liverpool that The Beatles all used to travel down growing up. He explains all the shops on the road. It’s all he can think of: “Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes.”
10. ‘Strawberry Fields Forever’
After “In My Life,” John wrote more songs about his life, including another related to growing up in Liverpool, “Strawberry Fields Forever.” He based the song on his childhood memories of playing in Strawberry Field, a Salvation Army children’s home in Liverpool. John possibly never forgot the place because he could’ve stayed there as a child if his Aunt Mimi hadn’t taken him in after his parents abandoned him.
9. ‘The Long and Winding Road’
Like The Beatles’ “I’ll Follow The Sun,” “The Long and Winding Road” doesn’t seem like a song about home. However, it is. Paul wrote it after he looked outside a window of his Scottish farm, High Park Farm, to see the road that led to town. The long and winding road seemed like a perfect way to explain the road The Beatles had traveled on during their time together, which was coming to an end.
8. ‘New York City’
Outside of The Beatles, John wrote a song about his second home, New York City. John moved to the Big Apple in the early 1970s and stayed there until Mark David Chapman shot him dead in 1980. New York City was like Liverpool, and John could easily come and go without being recognized. The song is an ode to life in the city.
7. ‘Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)’
George Harrison’s “Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)” is indirectly related to his home, Friar Park. The guitarist bought the massive dilapidated neo-Gothic mansion in Henley-on-Thames in 1970 from some nuns living there. The original owner was Sir Frank Crisp. He lived there from 1889 until he died in 1919. George paid homage to the eccentric man in “Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll).”
6. ‘Crackerbox Palace’
George’s “Crackerbox Palace” is also indirectly related to his mansion. The “Something” singer met the manager of comedian Lord Buckley, George Greif, in 1975. George loved Lord Buckley and knew he lived in an old beaten-up house in LA, which he called “Crackerbox Palace.” The guitarist liked the name and turned it into a song. However, Friar Park is “Crackerbox Palace” in the song’s music video. Eventually, George began referring to his home as such.
5. ‘Country Dreamer’
Paul based his song “Country Dreamer” on his life at High Park Farm. In The Lyrics, Paul wrote that the song’s opening line, “I’d like to walk in a field with you/ Take my hat and my boots off too,” was very much what he and his family were doing on a daily basis there. Paul loved country living.
4. ‘Eat at Home’
Paul’s wife Linda and their life at High Park Farm inspired “Eat at Home.” While they were living peaceful secluded lives in Scotland, Linda took up cooking. The family turned vegetarian at this time, and she was experimenting with dishes. Soon, Linda started writing cookbooks. The song reflects the McCartneys’ joy in eating at home.
3. ‘Junior’s Farm’
“Junior’s Farm” is another song Paul wrote about life on the farm. The tune reflects Paul’s choice to flee London after The Beatles’ split for a calmer, quieter sanctuary at High Park Farm. It’s all in the lyric, “Down to Junior’s Farm where I want to lay low.” Laying low was all Paul wanted to do in the early 1970s.
2. ‘Mull of Kintyre’
“Mull of Kintyre” is another ode to High Park Farm and Scotland as a whole. However, the “Jet” singer’s farm was in Kintyre, but not on the Mull of Kintyre. The song features bagpipes played by the Campbeltown Pipe Band. In The Lyrics, Paul explained it was hard getting the pipe band into the little recording studio where they were recording the tune.
1. ‘In Liverpool’
In Ringo Starr’s song “In Liverpool,” he recalls walking into Liverpool’s Iron Door club to play with his first band, Rory Storm and The Hurricanes. It’s almost like “Penny Lane,” where he’s singing about being back at a place from long ago. The tune is an ode to Ringo’s hometown, where he established his early career years before he joined The Beatles.
None of The Beatles went back home to Liverpool much, but they loved it deep down, just like their second homes around the world. That’s their roots, and it crept into their songs many times.
