The Beatles were no strangers to getting banned by the BBC. In fact, quite a few of their later-career songs were banned by the organization for everything from illicit references to brand namedrops. It’s not exactly surprising that one of their 1967 tunes would get banned on this very day. However, the line that resulted in the ban is quite tame, at least to modern-day listeners.
Videos by American Songwriter
The BBC banned The Beatles’ hit 1967 song “A Day In The Life” over just one lyric. That lyric was “I’d love to turn you on.” You might be thinking that the reasoning was because the line was sexual in nature. In 1960s slang, though, that wasn’t the case. Rather, that line was allegedly a reference to drug use.
How about a little historical linguistic lesson? To “turn someone on” in the 1960s, particularly in England, meant that one wanted to give someone a psychedelic substance, notably LSD. Considering the song comes from the Fab Four’s iconic and notably psychedelic album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, it does make sense why the BBC assumed the term was meant to reference the use of acid.
Was “A Day In The Life” Actually About Drug Use?
The offending line was contributed by Paul McCartney, according to John Lennon. Though, the whole of the song was a collaborative effort between McCartney and Lennon. Many music historians believe the lyric was intentional and reflected Lennon’s revelations experienced while experimenting with acid. Though, if you read a 1968 interview with Lennon, his phrasing makes it seem like the line wasn’t wholly about drugs. The “turn on” bit could have been a reference to the two songwriters riffing with one another.
“It was a good piece of work between Paul and me,” said Lennon. “I had the ‘I read the news today’ bit, and it turned Paul on, because now and then we really turn each other on with a bit of song, and he just said ‘yeah’ – bang bang, like that.”
However, McCartney later talked about that particular line and how it was inspired by Timothy Leary, a man considered by many to be the most well-known advocate of acid in the 20th century.
“This was the time of Tim Leary’s ‘Turn on, tune in, drop out’ and we wrote, ‘I’d love to turn you on,’” said McCartney. “John and I gave each other a knowing look: ‘Uh-huh, it’s a drug song. You know that, don’t you?’”
So, in the end, the BBC was right for censoring the tune at the time. However, the BBC would later lift the ban in 1972.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.