3 Solo Songs From John Lennon That Feel Like The Beatles Were Holding Him Back

John Lennon‘s solo music had inklings of the songs he wrote for The Beatles, but there was a noticeable departure in themes and edge. Once he got out on his own, Lennon took off any remaining filter and let it all fly. The three songs below speak to the notion that The Beatles were holding Lennon back by the end. He needed to set off on his own to be his truest self as an artist.

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“Working Class Hero”

The Beatles had their fair share of cultural commentaries and even protest-adjacent songs, but compared to their peers, they kept relatively quiet about the world around them. While many other musicians of their era were laying it all on the table, they always maintained some semblance of universality in their lyrics. Lennon’s solo career was not like that. Take “Working Class Hero” for example.

“As soon as you’re born, they make you feel small / By giving you no time instead of it all / Till the pain is so big you feel nothing at all,” the lyrics read. Lennon takes on capitalism and the plight of the everyman in this song. It’s uber political and pulls no punches. This song likely wouldn’t have flown with The Beatles, but it worked wonders in his solo career.

“God”

Speaking of pulling no punches, next up we have “God”. This track paints a portrait of Lennon as an apathetic, apolitical atheist, whether that was completely true or not. “I don’t believe in yoga / I don’t believe in kings / I don’t believe in Elvis / I don’t believe in Zimmerman / I don’t believe in Beatles,” the lyrics read. Throughout the song, he covers pretty much every base, rejecting every religion, pop culture icon, dictator, and even his former bandmates.

This song would never have been released under the Beatles banner, but it’s important to Lennon’s legacy. This song is basically his thesis statement and helped define who he was when he was left to his own devices.

“Beautiful Boy”

But Lennon’s solo career wasn’t just doom and gloom; he also dared to get really intimate. “Beautiful Boy” is one of Lennon’s most tender tracks as he sings about the love of his child and his parental duties.

“Before you go to sleep / Say a little prayer / Every day, in every way / It’s getting better and better,” a selection of the lyrics reads. Lennon famously rejected the idea of being soppy while with The Beatles, giving songs of this nature to his bandmates to sing. In his solo career, with no safety net, he proved he could do it all, even unbridled and charming love songs.

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