How a John Lennon Song Inspired Lana Del Rey’s ‘Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd’

Lana Del Rey was inspired by a song John Lennon produced for another rock star. John was a big part of this rock star’s marketing campaign. Del Rey’s tune was also influenced by an interesting place in Long Beach. 

Lana Del Rey once listened to many songs by an artist John Lennon produced

John produced Harry Nilsson’s album Pussy Cats. That record includes several covers of popular 1960s songs as well as new compositions by Nilsson, such as “Don’t Forget Me.” The cover of Pussy Cats depicts both Nilsson and John. It’s unusual for a producer to appear on an album cover, but when the producer is a former Beatle, it might be a good idea to advertise his involvement.

Del Rey referenced “Don’t Forget Me” in the lyrics of her song “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.” During a 2023 Interview article, she discussed the origin of the track. “Mike Hermosa and I, the first song we wrote was, ‘Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd,'” she said. “I was spending a lot of time in Long Beach and I had read that there was a tunnel sealed up under the Jergins [Trust] Building. All of the mosaic ceilings were still perfectly preserved, but no one could get in.

“I had also been listening to a lot of Harry Nilsson,” she added. “He has this song called ‘Don’t Forget Me.’ That sentiment plus this man-made tunnel that was sealed up but was so beautiful, I liked the idea of putting them together. I knew right off the bat that that was going to be the title.”

Lana Del Rey almost ditched the song title as her album title

Del Rey gave artist Neil Krug another title at one point. “I went to Neil’s house and said, ‘I know this is f***** up, but I’ve changed the title. It’s going to now be called, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd Pearl Watch Me on Ring a Bell Psycho Lifeguard,” she recalled. “He was like, ‘What the f***?'”

Ultimately she decided that title was too much. It wouldn’t be the longest album title elver. Regardless, that’s quite the mouthful.

How John Lennon’s Harry Nilsson collaboration performed

“Don’t Forget Me” was never a single. It appeared on Nilsson’s album Pussy Cats, which charted at No. 60 on the Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for 12 weeks. While Pussy Cats wasn’t a juggernaut, it inspired a cover called “Pussy Cats” Starring the Walkmen by the indie rock band The Walkmen.

While “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” was a single, the tune did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100 either. Del Rey included the track on the album of the same title. The album Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd climbed to No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and lasted on the chart for 27 weeks. Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd is one of Del Rey’s highest-charting records to date.

John’s work with Nilsson did not yield great commercial success but it went on to inspire one of the great songwriters of our time.