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TL;DR:

  • John Lennon’s “Imagine” and George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” are two famous soft-rock songs.
  • They have different attitudes toward religion.
  • “My Sweet Lord” is better and became a much bigger hit.
"Imagine" singer John Lennon wearing glasses
John Lennon | George Stroud / Stringer

John Lennon‘s “Imagine” and George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” are two of the most famous songs by former Beatles. The tunes have some minor similarities. Despite this, they are almost opposites.

John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ and George Harrison’s ‘My Sweet Lord’ both talk about religion

“Imagine” might be John’s most famous solo song and “My Sweet Lord” might be George’s most famous solo song. Both tracks are part of the 1970s soft-rock trend that gave us artists like The Carpenters and Barry Manilow. However, “Imagine” and “My Sweet Lord” and distinguish themselves from their peers by discussing big issues.

However, the two songs promote wildly different philosophies. “Imagine” is a utopian song that advocates a world without possessions, violence, countries, and religion. On the other hand, “My Sweet Lord” is about wanting to get closer to God.

It’s incredible to think that after The Beatles broke up, George went on to promote spirituality with hits like “My Sweet Lord” and “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth),” while John promoted secularism in tunes like “Imagine,” “God,” and “Working Class Hero.”

George Harrison and John Lennon have different visions but they both want unity

“Imagine” is probably the more famous of the two songs today but “My Sweet Lord” might be the better composition. “Imagine” is a little too slow for its own good. It has a brilliant lyrical conceit, but the pillowy production softens the tune’s radical sentiments to the point where a lot of listeners ignore them.

On the other hand, “My Sweet Lord” has a great mid-tempo groove. Of course, it’s a groove that George supposedly took from The Chiffon’s “He’s So Fine,” but it’s a great groove nonetheless. While the two songs have radically different visions, they both advocate for unity. John wants us to come together regardless of class or nationality. On the other hand, George uses a mix of Christian and Hindu terms in his song. He wants us to worship God, whether that God is Jesus Christ or Krishna.

Related

George Harrison Explained Why John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ Wasn’t a Beatles Song

How ‘Imagine’ and ‘My Sweet Lord’ performed on the pop charts in the United States

“Imagine” peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for nine weeks. The tune appeared on the album Imagine, which topped the Billboard 200 for a week and stayed on the chart for 47 weeks.

“My Sweet Lord” was a much bigger hit. The tune topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks, remaining on the chart for 14 weeks. It stayed atop the chart longer than any of George’s other singles. The tune appeared on the album All Things Must Pass. That album was No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for seven weeks. All Things Must Pass spent a total of 41 weeks on the chart.

“Imagine” and “My Sweet Lord” are irreconcilable yet they both long for people to be closer to one another.

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