The John Lennon Penned Song He Likened to Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone”

It’s no secret that John Lennon was an admirer of Bob Dylan’s work. He routinely commented on the folk icon’s genius. While one might think that would make him shy away from comparing his work to his hero’s, think again…Lennon once compared a song he penned to one of Dylan’s most famed efforts. Read more on the comparison below.

The Song John-Lennon Penned Song He Likened to “Like a Rolling Stone”

So Sgt. Pepper took you by surprise
You better see right through that mother’s eye
Those freaks was right when they said you was dead
The one mistake you made was in your head

Oh, how do you sleep
Oh, how do you sleep at night

Lennon unleashed all of his negative energy towards his former bandmate, Paul McCartney, on a song called “How Do You Sleep”. From the title alone, one could guess this track is a scathing dressing down. According to Lennon, he mustered up the courage to sing about such things from Dylan’s timeless “Like a Rolling Stone.”

“Like a Rolling Stone” is one of Dylan’s calling cards. It was a transformative track that set folk on a new path in the mid-’60s. Though Lennon didn’t likely think his song was a one-to-one comparison with Dylan’s anthem, it has the same aggrieved sentiment.

“Well, it was like Dylan doing ‘Like A Rolling Stone’, one of his nasty songs,” Lennon once said. “It’s using somebody as an object to create something. I wasn’t really feeling that vicious at the time, but I was using my resentment towards Paul to create a song. Let’s put it that way.”

Though this song has long been associated with McCartney and his falling out with Lennon post-Beatles, Lennon did put their beef to bed after releasing this track.

“It’s not about Paul, it’s about me,” he added. “I’m really attacking myself. But I regret the association, well, what’s to regret? He lived through it. The only thing that matters is how he and I feel about these things and not what the writer or commentator thinks about it. Him and me are okay.”

Revisit “How Do You Sleep,” below.

Oh, how do you sleep
Oh, how do you sleep at night

You live with straights who tell you, you was king
Jump when your momma tell you anything
The only thing you done was yesterday
And since you’re gone you’re just another day

(Photo by Jan Olofsson/Redferns)