John Lennon Was Lucky to Hear the Paul McCartney Song That Made Him Want to Write Music Again
John Lennon and Paul McCartney were one of the most legendary songwriting duos ever. When they put their talents together, the world got tunes like “A Day in the Life,” which might be the greatest John and Paul song. However, the two prodigious talents could hardly stand each other when The Beatles broke up, and they insulted each other’s work on solo albums. However, one Paul song inspired John to start writing music again, and John was lucky to hear the version he did.
John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s relationship hit a rough patch as The Beatles broke up
Paul and John created beautiful music together, but they also competed with each other to see who could write better songs. As their artistic tastes started diverging, their ability to work together suffered.
They almost brawled in the studio while recording The White Album. When they weren’t getting physical with each other, John and Paul called each other childish names when they verbally sparred.
When Paul seemed to call out John on one of his first solo songs (“You took your lucky break / And you broke it in two”), he responded with a truly nasty takedown of his own. Neither seemed to care for the artistic direction the other headed, and they said so. Still, the opinionated John was inspired to write music again after he heard one Paul song on the radio, and he was lucky to hear that version.
John Lennon was luck to hear the Paul tune that inspired him to write music again
When John’s Lost Weekend period ended in the mid-1970s, so did his desire to record music. He released several albums after The Beatles broke up but stopped after 1975’s Rock ‘n’ Roll. His self-imposed retirement lasted until 1980, and a Paul McCartney tune inspired him to write again.
While riding in the car near his Long Island home, John heard a song on the radio that made him sit up and take notice. It was the Paul song “Coming Up,” a new-wave inspired track that hit the airwaves in early 1980.
“F*** a pig! It’s Paul!” John said when he heard the song, reports Salon.
The normally channel-hopping John listened to the whole song, but it wasn’t the version most American listeners heard. The U.S. single of “Coming Up” was a toned-down live version of the song the record label gave to radio stations, believing U.S. audiences would prefer the tamer live version over the studio version, Salon writes. Most radio stations didn’t bother playing the busier studio cut, which Paul created on his own by adding layer upon layer to get to the finished product. Somehow, John tuned in to the right station at the right time with the right DJ working who played the wrong version of the song.
‘Coming Up’ stuck with a reinvigorated John
Only John would know for sure if “Coming Up” was the kick in the pants he needed to start writing music again, but it’s plausible. Paul said as much in an interview with Billboard.
“I heard a story recently from a guy who used to record with John in New York, and he said that John would get lazy — but then he’d hear a song of mine where he thought, ‘Oh, s***, Paul’s putting it in, Paul’s working!’ Apparently [“Coming Up”] was one song that got John recording again. I think John just thought, ‘Uh-oh, I better get working, too.’”
John teamed up with Yoko Ono on Double Fantasy, his final studio album, in November 1980. He and Yoko each composed songs for the album. Her songs sound more directly inspired by the staccato new-wave beats on “Coming Up,” but John turns in some of his best work since the Plastic Ono Band and Imagine days. Songs such as the lead track “(Just Like) Starting Over” as well as “Beautiful Boy” and “Watching the Wheels” are among his best.
Double Fantasy became John Lennon’s biggest hit as a solo artist. He can thank Paul McCartney’s songwriting and an anonymous DJ for giving him the inspiration he needed to make it happen.
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