Paul McCartney Said 1 Lyric From The Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper’ Is ‘Pathetic’
Paul McCartney said the lyrics of his solo songs contain a “schoolboy prank.” In addition, he said the lyrics of The Beatles‘ “Day Tripper” are similar. Notably, “Day Tripper” was a hit twice in the United Kingdom.
Paul McCartney explained the ambiguous lyrics of 1 of his songs
During a 2018 interview with GQ, Paul discussed the origin of his song “Fuh You.” “This song was coming to a close and we were just getting a bit hysterical in the studio, as you do when you’re locked away for long hours, and I said, ‘Well, I’ll just say, “I just wanna shag you,” he said. “And we had a laugh.”
And I said, ‘No, I’ll tell you what we can do is, I can make it questionable as to what it is I’m singing,'” Paul added. “So the actual lyrics are ‘You make me wanna go out and steal / I just want to f*** you’ or … ‘I just want it for you.‘ It’s a schoolboy prank.”
Paul said “Fuh You” was born out of a libertine approach to songwriting. “I mean, it’s intended as a popular song,” he said. “So you don’t feel like you’ve got to adhere to any rules.”
Paul McCartney compared ‘Fuh You’ to The Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper’
He compared “Fuh You” to three Beatles songs. “And then you do ‘Why don’t we do it in the road?’ ‘tit-tit-tit-tit-tit-tit,’ ‘She’s a p**** teaser,'” he said. For context, “Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?” is a track from The White Album and “tit-tit-tit-tit-tit-tit” is a line from “Girl.” According to the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, the line “She’s a good teaser” from “Day Tripper” was supposed to mean “She’s a p**** teaser.”
In GQ, Paul discussed the aforementioned sexual lyrics. “It’s kind of pathetic, but actually a great thing in its pathos because it’s something that makes you laugh,” he said.
How The Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper’ performed on the pop charts in the United States and the United Kingdom
“Day Tripper” was a hit in the United States. The track hit No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, lasting 10 weeks on the chart. The tune appeared on the compilation 1962-1966, which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200. It lasted 175 weeks on the chart.
The Official Charts Company reports “Day Tripper” hit No. 1 for five weeks in the 1960s, staying on the chart for 12 weeks in total. In 1985, the track charted at No. 79 and lasted on the chart for three weeks. Meanwhile, 1962-1966 hit No. 3 and stayed on the U.K. chart for 167 weeks.
“Day Tripper” was a popular song — even if Paul said it had a “pathetic” lyric.
