The Liverpool, England-born rock band The Beatles remains perhaps both the best and most compelling rock group of all time. Not only were their songs incredible, but they also went through several creative evolutions over the decade of the 1960s. But perhaps even more than that, what people loved about the band is their many personalities.
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From the bright and melodic Paul McCartney to the imaginative and strange John Lennon, the group was comprised of characters. Here, we wanted to explore a trio of songs from Lennon that display his psychedelic side. Indeed, these are three psychedelic John Lennon songs with lyrics very much worth dissecting.
“Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” from ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ (1967)
As the story goes, this song was inspired when Lennon saw his nursery school-aged son’s hand-drawn picture of a girl floating in the sky. His son titled the image “Lucy in the sky with diamonds.” Boom! Instant song! But that doesn’t always satisfy Beatles fans wearing their conspiratorial hats. Some believe that the song was inspired by drugs, specifically LSD. L for Lucy, S for sky, and D for diamonds. But no matter the origin of the tune, it’s certainly one where the lyrics are fun to dissect. Lennon sings, almost dream-like,
Picture yourself on a train in a station
With plasticine porters with looking glass ties
Suddenly, someone is there at the turnstile
The girl with kaleidoscope eyes.
“Strawberry Fields Forever” (Single, 1967)
When you hear someone sing the following, what are you supposed to think? “Let me take you down / ‘Cause I’m going to strawberry fields / Nothing is real / And nothing to get hung about / Strawberry fields forever.” However, that’s likely the point. You’re not supposed to think about anything. You’re supposed to think whatever you want. It’s like looking at modern art. It’s all up for interpretation. John Lennon was a master of that, of presenting a song as a canvas for you to interpret. And perhaps example No. 1 of that is the 1967 single, “Strawberry Fields Forever”.
“Across The Universe” from ‘No One’s Gonna Change Our World’ (1969)
As with the other two songs above, this 1969 track from the mind of Lennon creates a space where you can consider stream-of-consciousness lyrics that both sound pleasant and mean, well, nothing. Or do they mean everything? That is the beauty that is in your ear to behold. Indeed, Lennon opens this lovely, acoustic-driven song by singing the following. What does it mean? You tell us!
Words are flowing out
Like endless rain into a paper cup
They slither while they pass
They slip away across the universe
Pools of sorrow, waves of joy
Are drifting through my opened mind
Possessing and caressing me.
Photo by ITV/Shutterstock
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