5 Best Beatles Songs Without John Lennon

While John Lennon was a crucial member of The Beatles, there are several classic songs by the band that he didn’t appear on. Sometimes it was his choice to skip out on a track, while other times were due to conditions outside of his control. Here are five Beatles songs without John Lennon. 

‘I Me Mine’

“I Me Mine” was written by George Harrison and is from 1970’s Let it Be. The inspiration for the song came after an acid trip where he became upset about his ego and other turmoil and business issues within the group. Footage from The Beatles: Get Back shows Harrison pitching the song to The Beatles with John Lennon and Yoko Ono sharing a dance while he’s playing.

Lennon wasn’t a fan of the song, mocking it by saying it belonged on a “playlist for a Spanish waltz.” He joked that “a collection of freaks can dance along with George’s waltz.” The band was already falling apart during the Let it Be sessions, and Lennon was already mentally checked out on whatever the group was doing. 

‘Martha My Dear’

“Martha My Dear” is a song from 1968’s The White Album. John Lennon’s absence here is more because it’s a solo song by Paul McCartney. McCartney wrote the song and played all of the instruments himself. Many fans have interpreted this song to be addressed to his ex-girlfriend, actor Jane Asher, but it was actually about his sheepdog, Martha, who he says brought Lennon out of his shell. 

“Anyhow, I got Martha, and she was a lovely little dog. I just adored her. One of the unlikely side effects was that John became very sympathetic towards me,” McCartney said in Many Years From Now. “When he came round and saw me playing with Martha, I could tell that he liked her. John was a very guarded person, which was partly where all his wit came from… Seeing me with Martha, with my guard down, all of a sudden he started warming to me. And so he let his guard down too.”

‘Here Comes the Sun’

“Here Comes the Sun” is one of the Beatles’ biggest hits written by Harrison. It’s another track from Harrison written to vent his frustrations with Apple, but it was also about the sun emerging after London’s lengthy winters. Unfortunately, John Lennon could not participate in the recording session for this Abbey Road song as he was recovering from a car accident. 

Lennon was a notoriously bad driver and crashed his car while vacationing in Scotland with Ono, her daughter, Kyoko, and his son, Julian. Fortunately, everyone made it out with minor injuries, but it did land Lennon in the hospital for five days. The Beatles did record a few songs without him, but he returned shortly after. 

‘Blackbird’

“Blackbird” is a song that Paul McCartney performed as an acoustic solo. John Lennon wasn’t included, but neither were the other members of The Beatles. It’s one of the more political songs by the band, despite the message being more subtle. 

McCartney wrote the song in response to racial tensions in the U.S. Civil Rights movement during the 1960s. He was inspired by the footage of the Little Rock Nine, a group of black students escorted into an Arkansas school that had been recently desegregated. He saw a little girl in the group and based the title on her. 

‘Yesterday’

“Yesterday” is one of the biggest singles released by The Beatles. Written and performed by McCartney, it’s the most covered song of all time, with various covers coming from Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, and Ray Charles. In a 1980 interview, John Lennon said “Yesterday” has good lyrics but isn’t cohesive. 

“Paul wrote the lyrics to ‘Yesterday’,” Lennon shared. “Although the lyrics don’t resolve into any sense, they’re good lines. They certainly work, you know what I mean? They’re good, but if you read the whole song, it doesn’t say anything; you don’t know what happened. She left, and he wishes it were yesterday – that much you get – but it doesn’t really resolve. So, mine didn’t used to either. I have had so much accolade for ‘Yesterday.’ That’s Paul’s song, and Paul’s baby. Well done. Beautiful—and I never wished I’d written it.”

Several Beatles songs don’t include other members of The Beatles, but Lennon did miss out on some classics.