John Lennon Revealed Which of The Beatles’ Songs Actually Meant Something to Him
TL;DR:
- John Lennon was told some of The Beatles’ songs embodied him.
- John named the band’s songs that really meant something to him.
- He also named the tracks that reminded him of Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.
A journalist told John Lennon some of The Beatles’ songs embodied the singer. John said he wasn’t sure if one of the songs mentioned meant anything to him. Subsequently, he named a handful of Fab Four songs that mattered to him.
John Lennon wasn’t a big fan of ‘Hide Your Love Away’
The book The Beatles: Paperback Writer includes an interview with Jonathan Cott from 1968. In it, Cott discussed The Beatles’ music.
“I’ve listed a group of songs that I associate with you, in terms of what you are or what you were, songs that struck me as embodying you a little bit: ‘You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away,’ ‘Strawberry Fields [Forever],’ ‘It’s Only Love,’ ‘She Said She Said,’ ‘Lucy in the Sky [With Diamonds],’ ‘I’m Only Sleeping,’ ‘Run for Your Life,’ ‘I Am the Walrus,’ ‘All You Need Is Love,’ ‘Rain,’ ‘Girl,'” he said.
John replied. “The ones that really meant something to me,” he said, pausing. “Look, I don’t know about ‘Hide Your Love Away,’ that’s so long ago.”
John Lennon said some of The Beatles’ songs were ‘moods or moments’
John went on to mention the songs that mattered to him. “Probably ‘Strawberry Fields [Forever],’ ‘She Said,’ ‘Walrus,’ ‘Rain,’ ‘Girl,’ there are just one or two others, ‘Day Tripper,’ ‘Paperback Writer,’ even,” he said.
‘Ticket To Ride’ was one more, I remember that,” he added. “It was a definite sort of change. ‘Norwegian Wood’ … that was the sitar bit. Definitely, I consider them moods or moments.”
He named his favorite Beatles songs that he associated with Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr
The book Lennon On Lennon: Conversations with John Lennon features a quotation from 1973. In it, he said the two best Beatles songs he wrote were “I Am the Walrus” and “Strawberry Fields Forever,” while Paul McCartney’s best was “Here, There and Everywhere.”
He said George Harrison’s best Beatles song was “Within You Without You” and Ringo Starr’s best Beatles song was “Honey Don’t.” Notably, Ringo sang “Honey Don’t” but he didn’t write it. The song was actually a cover of a song by Carl Perkins, who is most known for writing and performing the original version of Elvis Presley’s “Blue Suede Shoes.” John also praised “Eleanor Rigby” and “For No One” without attributing them to specific members of The Beatles.
The Beatles’ songs meant a lot to many people and some of The Beatles’ songs meant something to John.
