John Lennon Said 1 Song From The Beatles’ ‘Abbey Road’ Was About Sex in a Bag
The Beatles‘ Abbey Road includes a number of unusual songs. For example, John Lennon said one of the tracks from the album was about sex in a bag. Notably, Paul McCartney said the song was inspired by an actual woman.
John Lennon said 1 of his ‘amazing memories’ inspired a song from The Beatles’ ‘Abbey Road’
According to the book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono, John was asked about “Polythene Pam” in 1980. “That was me, remembering a little event with a woman in Jersey, and a man who was England‘s answer to Allen Ginsberg, who gave us our first exposure — this is so long — you can’t deal with all this,” he said. “You see, everything triggers amazing memories.”
John gave fans more insight into the man he mentioned. “I met him when we were on tour and he took me back to his apartment and I had a girl and he had one he wanted me to meet,” he said. “He said she dressed up in polythene, which she did.” For context, polythene is a common type of plastic.
Paul McCartney revealed more about the sexual escapade that inspired John Lennon to write The Beatles’ ‘Polythene Pam’
Subsequently, John said the meaning of “Polythene Pam” was very sexual. “She didn’t wear jackboots and kilts, I just sort of elaborated,” he said. “Perverted sex in a polythene bag. Just looking for something to write about.”
In the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Paul McCartney revealed the man John mentioned was Royston Ellis, a Beat poet. “John, being Royston’s friend, went out to dinner with him and got pissed and stuff and they ended up back at his apartment with a girl who dressed herself in polythene for John’s amusement, so it was a little kinky scene,” he revealed. “She became Polythene Pam. She was a real character.”
How ‘Polythene Pan’ and ‘Abbey Road’ performed on the charts in the United States and the United Kingdom
“Polythene Pam” was never a hit in the United States because it was never a single. The track appeared on The Beatles’ Abbey Road. The album became the group’s most successful studio album on the Billboard 200, reaching No. 1 for 11 of its 470 weeks on the chart.
The Official Charts Company reports “Polythene Pam” did not chart in the United Kingdom either. Meanwhile, Abbey Road became a massive hit there. It reached No. 1 for 17 weeks in the U.K., remaining on the chart for 97 weeks in total. Booker T. & the M.G.’s covered the song on the album McLemore Avenue. The album’s cover art parodies that of Abbey Road.
“Polythene Pam” is not one of The Beatles’ more famous songs but it has a unique origin story.
