The Paul McCartney Song that Got Banned by the BBC Due to Misheard Lyrics
Many songs by The Beatles were banned by the BBC for various reasons, such as possible allusions to drugs and sexual references. One song by Paul McCartney in his solo career received a BBC ban. However, the ban was primarily due to a misunderstood lyric.
The BBC banned many songs by The Beatles
While The Beatles kept their music relatively tame, the BBC commonly cracked down on any piece they deemed inappropriate. This ranged from explicit sexual references to light allusions to drugs. The Beatles were often associated with drugs due to some of their more psychedelic tracks. However, the BBC often made assumptions about the band’s lyrics without fully understanding them.
Several Beatles songs that received BBC bans include “A Day in the Life,” “I Am the Walrus,” “Happiness is a Warm Gun,” and “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds.” A few of these tracks were not alluding to drugs, even though many believed there were. Many believed “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” referenced LSD, but John Lennon claimed it was based on a drawing by his son.
‘Hi, Hi, Hi’ by Paul McCartney was banned after the song’s lyrics were misheard
In an interview with Barnes & Noble’s James Daunt, Paul McCartney said many of his songs have been misinterpreted because people would mishear the lyrics. One example he gives is 1972’s “Hi, Hi, Hi.” While the song is one of his more perverse tracks, McCartney revealed that a humorous misunderstanding by many led to the song being banned by the BBC.
“It’s not so much the song, it’s lyrics within the song that people have misheard,” McCartney said. “So, in my case, I wrote a song called ‘Hi, Hi, Hi’, which got banned by the BBC, but in it, I say, ‘Lie on the bed and get ready for my Polygon,’ because I’m kind of channeling Jarry, and he uses a polyhedra…Anyway, so I’ve got ‘Lie on the bed and get ready for my polygon,’ and people thought it was ‘body gun…’ which I thought was much better.”
Paul McCartney is embarrassed now by ‘Hi, Hi, Hi’
“Hi, Hi, Hi” is a more crude song from McCartney, and he says it’s somewhat embarrassing now since he has grandkids. In an interview with GQ, McCartney says he believes the references to getting high might not be appropriate for his grandchildren to hear, so he changes the lyrics to something more family-friendly when he performs it live.
“You know, a lot of people were getting high. So, to me, it’s just like a fantasy song.‘Hey girl, c’mon. Let’s get high,’” McCartney explained. “Now, I must admit, it can get a little bit embarrassing ‘cause I’ve got grandkids, and there’s me going, ‘Yeah, let’s everybody get high.’ So, when we’re doing it live, I kinda go, ‘Let’s get high…on life.’ A little bit of a disclaimer there. At the time, it was about the times and multicolored band. It’s very much a period piece, but it goes down well.”
