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Tell me that you got everything you want and your bird can sing, but you don’t get me
Caught up in thinking about this song that we have conflicting reports and opinions on what it’s actually about and ready to present my thoughts.
TLDR: And Your Bird Can Sing is about a cycle of torment (or cycle of abuse, but I prefer to be careful with usage of that word for various obvious reasons).
Disclaimer: It is not my intention for my take to be seen as the ultimate reading, you can agree or disagree and I will be happy to discuss!
WARNING: THIS IS GONNA BE LONG!
INSPIRATION
First person to claim they served as an inspiration for this piece is Marianne Faithful in her relationship to Mick Jagger (sorry Marianne, the song can’t be inspired by you, you and Mick weren’t even together when it was written - AYBCS was recorded in April 1966 and written probably earlier, Marianne and Mick got together in November 1966. That does not mean that she cannot identify with something in it though).
Then we have Cynthia who said it’s about a golden bird cage that she says she gifted to John and while this seems a bit absurd as Cynthia does not appear to match the person addressed in the song, I wouldn’t be quick to disregard her as a partial inspiration for this song. I will talk about it later when applying a plausible autobiographical reading.
There’s also a theory that it’s actually inspired by an interview with Frank Sinatra and his criticism of The Beatles. We know that there was some sort of a rivalry going on between him and the band, a representation of a generational clash between the old world and the new. I actually like this interpretation and as Paul once said, “most of our songs start as a newspaper article”. I do think that this news piece probably inspired some lines and in a way, it is also about that - you can actually view the lyrics that way - remember that a song can be about multiple things at once. But I don’t think this is the ultimate reading.
More under the cut.
THE LYRICS
First of all, let’s forget all about the supposed inspiration and take a look at who’s who in these lyrics.
We have what looks like three characters in the song: the narrator, the ‘you’ that’s being addressed and a bird that seems to belong to the ‘you’.
Over the course of the song, the character of the narrator is chastising the ‘you’ character for manifesting several unflattering character traits akin to narcissism and not understanding them.
The ‘you’ person is:
materialistic (prized possessions, got everything they want)
sort of know-it-all (they claim to have seen seven wonders and heard every sound there is)
yet they don’t get the narrator (to “not get” can either mean “not possess” or “not understand”, I assume it’s supposed to be both)
don’t see them and don’t hear them (therefore they don’t understand them or completely miss them and their point).
Now, let’s take a look at the ‘bird’ character that belongs to the ‘you’ (I assume that I don’t have to remind Beatles fans that ‘bird’ can be synonymous to ‘woman’).
The bird:
can sing (which could mean this person is literally a singer or they are capable in doing something else, anything they are supposed to do), important takeaway - it makes noise that can be heard
is green (green is usually synonymous with jealous/envious or alternatively inexperienced, although I don’t think the latter makes sense for this song in particular. It can also be something else as ‘green bird’ is a recurring character in the lennon/mccartney-verse - hello, chica ferdi/Sun King), important takeaway - by being colored green the bird makes a visual impression that can be seen
can swing (the most puzzling part, I saw people interpret this in connection to the swinging London in the 60s and maybe), important takeaway - the bird can move independently to its ‘you’ """"owner""""
Now, I’m going to propose something a bit out there. The bird and the narrator could be (but also don’t have to be at the same time) interpreted as the same person.
Considering the important takeaways from the ‘bird’ character section:
your bird can sing (you can’t hear me)
your bird is green (you can’t see me)
your bird can swing (you don’t get/own me)
The narrator further complains:
When your prized posessions
Start to weigh you down
Look in my direction
I’ll be ‘round, I’ll be ‘round
The narrator worries that the ‘you’ prefers money/material things over them (and their spiritual experiences). But once they decide that the narrator means more than the prized possessions, they can come around. The narrator will be waiting.
When your bird is broken
Will it bring you down
You may be awoken
I’ll be ‘round, I’ll be ‘round
This gets a bit dark, I must admit, but it reads to me like the narrator is imposing some emotional manipulation here (either they are straight up threatening with self-harm or not so subtly reminding to the ‘you’ that their mental well-being is dependent on them and if they won’t clean up their behavior and wake up, shit will go down, yet the narrator doesn’t intend to leave). But the narrator is also doubtful that the ‘you’ will care - will it [even] bring you down?
This song is thematically very reminiscent of two particular songs on the preceding album Rubber Soul:
Girl - where the narrator also describes a person with narcissistic traits that they cannot leave and Nowhere Man (he’s as blind as he can be/can you see me at all?) about two lost characters who don’t understand each other. And Your Bird Can Sing is like these two songs were combined together but the stakes are higher.
AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL READING
First of all, I want to say that not every song has to be based on the author’s life. And if it is, maybe it’s a metaphor or an exaggeration due to poetic license. That said, let’s take a look at two likely subjects in John Lennon’s life and his relationship to them that could have inspired him to write this because I think it’s easier to understand the song that way. Also if you are uncomfortable discussing real life relationships in this way, I guess it's time to quit reading now.
CYNTHIA
Yes, Cynthia herself suggested that this song is about her. But how could that be? It doesn’t seem like her to be chasing prized possessions and ignoring John in the process and I don’t get the vibe that she would be emotionally manipulative like that though of course, we don’t know the reality. And I doubt she would have claimed to see “seven wonders”, even if it is a hyperbole.
What I think is more likely is that if Cynthia, in her relationship to John, is someone in this song, it’s the bird trapped in her golden cage (that she literally gave him or… he metaphorically gave her in some way?) and John is the ‘you’ who treats her poorly as well as he is the narrator. He is chastising himself for how he treats her. He knows he hurts her. He understands that she’s her own person who is strong and can do her own thing without him (sing, swing). And he doesn’t like it. He understands that he will break her if they will go on like this (when your bird is broken, will it bring you down?).
For this interpretation to be true, it requires a great deal of self awareness but also inability and/or lack of willingness to change and put his words into action. In my opinion, that tracks perfectly with what he said about himself in the interviews over the time. It’s cruel but also kind of soul crushing and difficult to live with, if he felt guilty about the situation at all (I want to say he probably did).
Cynthia is kind of a satisfactory answer for the second character casting in this song, although I don’t think this is all there is to it. And the second subject that likely had influence on this song is…
PAUL
Unpredictably. Now, I feel like I will get stormed by both skeptics (not every song has to be about Paul!) and Paul fans (he wouldn’t treat John like this!) for what I’m insinuating here. But give me a chance to explain.
Well first of all, John is the POV, feelings are subjective and the narrator, real or fictional, is not always reliable. It might as well be that the harm that is being inflicted on John is only perceived that way by himself because of his own issues which I won’t be getting into here. But also maybe not? Or not fully (something about the intent).
That said, the narcissistic traits described in the lyrics of both this song and the song Girl match up with traits John would later ascribe to Paul and explain John’s own Jealous Guy (green guy, hah) sort of behavior. It is not far-fetched to me to hypothetically assume this is how he could feel about him. Give it a couple years of bottled up hurt, some sort of a ‘final straw’ kind of action (not only leaving the Beatles but John flipping about Paul buying the prized possessions Northern Songs shares to "one up" him, something happening in India or whatever), a questionable primal scream therapy or whatever else went down and you might as well get resentful 70s Lennon.
If this is indeed about Paul, then I think John sees himself as the narrator and the bird. Paul is the ‘you’ in that case, just to be clear.
One more thing I want to propose as a part of their lyrical dialogue, let’s say, is the connection to another Rubber Soul special, I’m Looking Through You, a song largely recognized as a piece depicting a quarrel between Paul himself and his girlfriend, Jane Asher. I am not disputing that at all (as well as I’m not disputing Cynthia being an inspiration for this song), but a song can be about more things at the same time (let’s say, in this case, Paul’s general attitude towards people he loves but who in his opinion also mistreat him).
I’m looking through you, where did you go?
You can’t see me
I thought I knew you, what did I know?
You don’t get me
Your lips are moving, I cannot hear
You can’t hear me
Funny how that works, eh? And then you have this.
You’re thinking of me the same old way,
You were above me but not today,
The only difference is you’re down there,
I’m looking through you and you’re nowhere
Because he's a real nowhere man, sitting in his nowhere land.
(And I’m Looking Through You is also about perceived harm - why did you not treat me right? - caused by the subject of the song, it’s a cycle of… miscommunication and vindication, I hurt you, you hurt me, you won’t be above me, i won’t give you the pleasure, I won’t resign myself to you). It’s like a game of pride. Who’s going to give in first? Who will be the first one to be broken (or break the cycle)?
I also think it’s interesting, assuming I got things correct, to contrast how John views Paul and Cynthia as different characters in his inner world/the song, Paul views John and Jane as the same character.
IT'S ABOUT BOTH...
…and that’s the crux of my thesis. The song is, in my opinion, about both John’s relationship with Cynthia and with Paul. But whereas in his relationship to Cynthia, John sees himself as the tormentor but he also doesn’t want to let her go, in his relationship to Paul he sees himself as the person who’s being harmed but cannot make himself leave. (There’s three characters in this play after all). And my interpretation of Girl is similar, although it’s thematically a bit different as it concerns torment and desire (Girl is how John sees Paul but Girl is also a part of John’s personality who mistreats people).
(There’s also a part of me who believes that John on some level wanted his dream girl to treat him like that due to his self-deprecating turn on connected to oedipus' complex and him sort of fancying being a tortured artist but that would also make for a separate post).
Pain will lead to pleasure.
It’s a vicious cycle that repeats itself not only vertically within John and Paul’s relationship (and to them from their parental figures’ mistreatment). But also horizontally as it spreads from them to their respective partners (or rather from John to Cynthia - from his own POV, we don’t know much about Paul’s relationship with Jane and I am not insinuating he abused her!!! but if I’m Looking Through You is about her as well, he was looking through her, just like he was looking through John - he was ignoring them in a way - passive aggressive way - to feel in control - rather than facing the issue head on) and perhaps others (enter annoyed George). (I also think ILTY is meant to mirror Paul’s behavior with a behavior of his father Jim towards himself when he was younger based on the information available where Jim would be the emotionally unavailable character that also doesn’t treat Paul right - love has a nasty habit of disappearing overnight).
I want to also go back to the theory about Frank Sinatra as a representative of the old generation and generational abuse inflicted by parents on their children because I do think ultimately think the song is about that too. We are at the cusp of summer of love and the new generation that the Beatles represented is about to start a revolution - a fight for liberty of all kinds and freeing themselves of the old established rules. I already mentioned John’s abandonment issues but maybe he’s also being more general? Maybe he feels like the old conservative world is hurting him (and other young people) for whatever reason.
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE GIGGLING TAKE?
You know, fair question… The easiest explanation is that they just got high and forgot about their problems for a moment, it was not all dire (just like it wasn’t between John and Cynthia) - to paraphrase John, sometimes it was fun and sometimes it was not.
Maybe the autobiographical reading is not as biographical as we are lead to believe. Or it’s highly dramatized. Maybe it has nothing to do with real life J&P, really. Maybe they are just projecting their struggles with their girlfriends on each other in their made up fantasy world. I mean, who knows? Plausible explanations are many. It is not my goal to give an interpretation of their relationship as my take on the lyrics applies to many possibilities, in my opinion. Though I think it's meant to be connected like I suggested.
THAT'S ALL FOLKS
What do you think? And have you ever noticed something about Revolver and cycles?
Hi @therealsaintscully! As requested, an explanation:
In AHDN, John has spent the whole damn day working and he is exhausted (valid). He earns money to buys things for his beloved, but then he comes home and receives his compensation. All that labor is bearable bc love gives him a reason to endure it. And although love and labor are entwined here, the dynamic isn’t cold or transactional — working is a way of proving devotion (*Girl plays ominously from the not-so-distant future*). In essence: I do all this shit, but it’s worth it bc it’s all for you. I’ll keep doing whatever it takes to give you what you want bc you give me what I want.
CBML, on the other hand, kind of pushes back against that logic. It’s not exactly a refusal of the terms set by AHDN, but it definitely renders the terms irrelevant. Right away, Paul makes it clear that the money and the things that John works to provide in exchange for love don’t matter to him. To prove he’s not in it for the stuff, HE will buy his “friend” a diamond ring, HE will give all he’s got to give, so long as he receives love in return. Does this sound familiar?
The crucial condition of both songs is mutual affection: love me too, and the rest becomes secondary. You don’t have to earn what’s already being freely returned.
I say (lots) more on the subject of love over labor in this essay for @wontyoucomeouttoplay <3
I think there is a lot going on in these songs to on-the-fly reconfigure the definition of "success" at a time of disorienting personal fame. They had to make new terms up as they went along. These songs are very spontaneously produced. I hear uncertainty and caution in addition to enthusiasm.
"IF you say you'll love me too." In "Can't Buy Me Love," the singer has the unusual power of having an endless supply of financial resources to impress his 'friend,' yet also, paradoxically, "may not have a lot to give." There is a wedding-ceremony quality that sneaks its way into "Can't Buy Me Love." For richer, for poorer…with this (diamond) ring…. Just how, exactly, does the exchange of gifts in order to hear the beloved say "I love you" display how love cannot be bought? This is not success defined by a Genghis Khan style conquest: the endless string of casual sexual partners. Surprisingly, this is success grounded in intimacy.
"Everything SEEMS to be right"
Is working "like a dog" becoming only a means to an end, as long as the "end" is the beloved waiting devotedly at home to provide some holding tight, doing those things that make you feel alright? For most people work can become that way, unless work itself is a place of joy (a 'home'). So in some senses yes "A Hard Day's Night" can indeed be seen as a plea to avoid a very real potential 'alienation of work.' I'm fascinated by the way Paul ends up inserting himself into the place where the beloved could have responded to the 'workin' man' singer as a duet. He focuses only on the loving part, playing the "girl's role" in the gender politics of the day. The surprise this provides is gently provocative.
I somehow missed the lyrics video last month and I watched it for the first time right now and I'm shook. When I think about this in the context of Paul, because let's face it, this is Paul's handiwork through and through, he had someone working on this one year after the original video came out. He's not done with Now and Then. He's still thinking about it, creating with it, revisiting it.
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I’ll admit I had low expectations for the new album but I’ve been incredibly impressed with the musicality and production of The Boys of Dungeon Lane. I’m in awe of Paul’s ability to pluck these melodies out of thin air, and after a listen or two, feel as if they have been in the McCartney catalog for decades. How can he hitting this great stride at 83 years old? It illustrates that getting older doesn’t mean you stop growing or that creativity dies. I hope all of us will be this lucky.
I’m really into a lot of songs on this record but I wanted to talk about Never Know because, not only is it my favorite, but a lyric triggered a connection that’s worth exploring, so here we go…
First, this song feels heavily inspired by past musical Beatle business (tape loops, close harmonies, mellotron, electric piano, recorder à la Fool on the Hill) but the lyrics feel placed in the early 70s timeline of the breakup and escape to Scotland. Let’s take a look:
I want to be the one | That's rooting for you | Lying in the sun again | I want to feel your touch | The things that you do | Have always meant so much to me
I don’t think he’s literally talking about lying in the sun (although he’s likely using a double meaning here), I read this as John being the sun. ☀️ The charismatic genius he bet his life on. When all is right with the world, he’s typically basking in John’s glow. Almost all of John’s attention and warmth, creatively and personally, has been on Paul up to this point. But now the sun shines on Yoko and he’s longing to be the partner who is John’s main support and focus again.
I want some love and peace | We need it right now | Your wonders never cease to be
At this point in time, John and Yoko are heavily engaged in their Peace activities. And Paul seems to be saying: okay, so you’re promoting a facade of love and peace to the world but, to me, you’re attacking my whole existence. Don’t I deserve love and peace right now too?
I love you, but you know | My heart is breaking over you | When you got me on the run | My body's shaking, oh, oh, oh | My mind is black and blue | I love you, but I never know
Here’s where this song took at turn that, in my mind, made me more certain that this is a “John Song.” The lyric “you got me on the run” alludes to his and Linda’s escape to Scotland to spin out, mourn, and heal in private. And the reason I think that is because of the line “my body’s shaking,” which instantly reminded me of the quote below from the book Wings: the Story of a Band on the Run
And this interview from All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words calls out shaking a little later in the timeline.
I'm gonna take the time | To prove that I care | Don't mind as long as I'm with you | I've got to make you see | I'll always be there | I only want to be with you
Following the story laid out in the previous lyrics, this last verse seems to be present day Paul being ever so self-aware that one of his greatest weaknesses is not being able to show/tell people that he loves them or that they are important to him. And he’s come to the understanding that this is what John needed to hear/know to believe that Paul never stopped loving him, knew a good thing when he saw it (warts and all), and was still committed to their partnership. So this song is just another one of those attempts to make John (somewhere across the universe) see that Paul “will always be there.”
WE two boys together clinging,
One the other never leaving,
Up and down the roads going—North and South excursions making,
Power enjoying—elbows stretching—fingers clutching,
Arm'd and fearless—eating, drinking, sleeping, loving,
No law less than ourselves owning—sailing, soldiering, thieving,
threatening,
Misers, menials, priests alarming—air breathing, water drinking, on
the turf or the sea-beach dancing,
Cities wrenching, ease scorning, statutes mocking, feebleness
chasing,
Fulfilling our foray.
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My insane analysis on like the most important McLennon moment ever caught on film
IN THIS ANALYSIS, I will compare the original 1969 footage of the Beatles discussing India with the edited footage of the same moment in the 2021 “The Beatles: Get Back” documentary.
The original footage has significant historical relevance, where Lennon makes explicit references to the Bob Wooler incident and the holiday with Epstein in Spain. What’s more is, he does this after Epstein’s death. It’s a risky thing to hint at in casual conversation, and that’s knowing that they’re being filmed.
In mentioning these two incidents, Lennon simultaneously alludes to an, ahem, moment between him and McCartney in India.
Of course, the remarks Lennon makes could be ironic, self-sardonic witticisms - he was wont to make those.
But I find it interesting that exactly these remarks have been so heavily edited and / or entirely omitted. To me, this signals that the documentarists were aware that what Lennon said, if heard in its entirety, would lead to serious speculation.
Throughout the transcript below, there are some highlights to showcase where the documentary deviates from the original recording. I will explain these highlights:
Blue is when original audio has been left in, but as voiceover, meaning original visual footage is left out
Green means original footage has been moved and edited around
Red means original footage has been left out completely
The amount of highlights give a sense of how insanely heavily edited this moment is.
The 1970 documentary “Let It Be” is also guilty of this, but to avoid confusion, I only directly compare this transcript with the 2021 documentary.
If you watch the documentary, additional footage has also been added to the original recording. I don’t include these additions since this is a transcript of the original conversation, but I do point to moments where significant additions have been made in the footnotes.
Beatles transcript, original India discussion, Jan 25th, 1969, compared with the 2021 “The Beatles: Get Back” documentary:
Paul, John, George and Ringo are rehearsing, surrounded by sound- and film-crew. Paul is having an inaudible conversation with Ringo.
JOHN: (singing, unintelligible)
PAUL: Oh, I saw that film last night.
JOHN: What?
PAUL: Of us at the Maharishi’s - I’ve got all the film of it-
JOHN: Oh, yeah.
PAUL: And we all saw them(?) together. Incredible. It’s just got a great opening. (Nods at something) Yeah, (inaudible).
JOHN: The helicopter one, up in the sky.
PAUL: Yeah, I noticed you taking it, so I thought, “oh, I’ll get that.”
JOHN: Well that was the idea, you know, ‘cause you said you were making a film.
PAUL: Yeah. But it’s incredible - the opening is great, it’s just(inaudible) (1)
Paul goes on to talk with the others a bit - it’s mainly inaudible. Meanwhile, John talks about the reels.
JOHN: And on each of my two reels, “by John Lennon - Productions” written on those two reels.
SOMEONE: (Inaudible).
JOHN: I’ve had it - he’s got a few reels, too. But these are(?) my reels, luv, “By John Lennon” all through ‘em, with like subtitles. John Lennon’s reel.
SOMEONE (Paul?): (Laughing) Shut up, John. (2)
GEORGE(?): Here’s a little bit, it’s (inaudible) together, and they make a great… (?)
PAUL: Yeah, sure.
SOMEONE: So, uh… Great-
PAUL: (Talks about the film again, directed at John) It’s incredible, you know, to just sorta(?) see us. What we’re doing. It’s unbelievable.
GEORGE: What were you doing?
JOHN: (Teasingly) Yes, what were we doing?
Paul scratches his head and combs his fingers through his hair.
PAUL: Well, uh- I don’t really know, you know, but it’s like- we totally sort of put our own personalities under, for the sake of it, and you’d(?) really see, you know-
Paul pantomimes a stereotypical obedient school-boy.
JOHN: Who was that writing all them songs?
PAUL: (taken out of it) Oh that was uh- that was probably (inaudible)-
JOHN: In your room…
PAUL: Yeah, right. (Laughs and nods at John) I remember, yeah. (Serious again) But just sort of, uh- there’s a shot- there’s a long shot of you walking (points at John)-
GEORGE: (To Paul) Do you regret having gone there?
PAUL: No, no. Oh, no, no. I mean, you know-
GEORGE: Well, I feel as though I (inaudible).
PAUL: No, I just think what we did there-
JOHN: I don’t regret anything, ever… Not even Bob Wooler. (3)
PAUL: (Facing George but looking at John) No, I just think what we did there- we did, we uh, we didn’t take-
Close-up of John - he looks directly at Paul while he begins to fellate the microphone lewdly. (4)
PAUL: We weren’t sort of really truthful. You know. I mean, we could’ve, I mean- Rishikesh(?), you know there’s things like sneaking behind his back and sorta saying, “it’s a bit like school, isn’t it?” But you can see on the film that it is very like school, and that really we shoulda sorta said-
JOHN: (stops mouthing the mic) You wanna call it-
PAUL: Like we needed(?)-
JOHN: You wanna call it, “what we did on our holidays”. (5)
PAUL: (Glances at camera) Well, you know.
JOHN: (Laughs) I bet you’d love(?) (inaudible) to get it over(?).
PAUL: (Looking away) Yup, yeah… (At John again) But it is very like- there’s a long shot of you sort of walking with him, and it’s just not you, you know-
John also pantomimes an obedient school-boy.
PAUL: It’s just- (laughs) Yeah! Sort of all, “tell me, O’ master.” And that-
JOHN: (Amused) “Tell me, old master.”
PAUL: And that thing- Linda remembered that thing you said the other night as well (laughs) about when you went in the helicopter with him- you just thought he might slip you the answer.
They all laugh.
JOHN: I thought he might fly home.
(1) In the 2021 doc, at this point, additional footage is included, where we see the film from the reels with a voiceover of Paul describing them in greater detail.
(2) They’re saying that Paul didn’t film, so John thought to do it instead. At some point, Paul noticed John filming during a helicopter ride and decided to keep the tapes. Someone is confused and asks John whose tapes they were; he then goes on to clarify that they both used the camera, but jokes about his proprietary rights of the bits he filmed.
(3) The incident at Paul’s 21st birthday party, where John beat Bob Wooler in a drunken fit of rage over Wooler insinuating John and Epstein had had an affair on their holiday in Spain - John apologised for it but despite this, it still made the press. In 71, Lennon said this about the incident: “[...] obviously I must have been frightened of the fag in me to get so angry. You know, when you’re twenty-one, you want to be a man, and all that. If somebody said it now, I wouldn’t give a shit. [...]”
(4) In the 1971 film “Let It Be”, this footage is replaced with another clip of Lennon, where he wears a multi-coloured striped shirt - a shirt he did not wear on January the 25th and does not wear in any of the other clips from this conversation (instead, he wears a white t-shirt and vest). The audio has not been replaced, though, and one can still hear him mouthing at the microphone. The original footage is first included in the 2021 documentary series, where you can see from all the highlights that most of the actual conversation that took place is either edited out or moved around. This is significant, because in both films, at this moment, where Lennon refers to the Bob Wooler incident and then fellates the mic, he is directly referring to a significant historical incident in Beatles history - and yet both films choose to reframe this moment to obscure what Lennon is hinting at.
(5) It is interesting that the 2021 doc leaves this innuendo and the fellatio in, a clear reference to what Lennon and Epstein allegedly did on their holiday in Spain (and a potential double-meaning of what he and Paul did on their holiday in India), yet the mention of the Bob Wooler incident is removed. Was it an attempt to find a middle-ground, where they could include some reference to the alleged affair and simultaneously obscure it? There must have been discussions about what to include and what to leave out, and one can only wonder what the reasoning behind the final end result must have been (and who may have had final authority in the editing room…)
Fran Drescher wearing a rainbow turtleneck, The Nanny, S2 E20 'Lamb Chop's On the Menu', 1995
VS
Alessandro Mendini wearing 'Sentirsi un Arcobaleno Addosso' by Franco Summa, 1975
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Fine, Fiona i need you to tell me what you think about every song on the album, your theories, and what you think every little thing means based on your own interpretation.
I don't feel like I have a Grand Take on every single song but let me try.
As You Lie There:
No huge ~theory, but I too am now in love with Jasmine. This song makes me feel things kind of like Layla does (it's not quite on Layla's level, on the other hand, I don't exactly relate to Layla) but it's helpful Paul isn't Eric Clapton.
I don't know if I've ever felt like Paul was making me see what he sees, feel what he feels in a love song, as opposed to being endeared to the way he described his feelings/his love interest. It's also probably related to where I'm at in my life these days.
I just love the dichotomy of it – the romantic and the erotic. There's an argument for this being the most quintessentially Paul song, specifically for embodying both of these sides at once. But I also think the combination heightens it to something more than either part separately. It's gorgeously human.
I was unsure about the spoken part on first listen, but actually I'm obsessed now. It's musical theatre-y the way he first speaks "Do I ever cross your mind?" and then sings it.
The way it just cuts back to the calm part at the end. *chef's kiss*
Lost Horizon
This song appeals to me as a Lover Of Memory™. I like how it's specifically about the feeling of being suddenly reminded of things (prompted by sounds – a lovely motif) which you didn't even remember you remembered.
And I love how Paul uses these memories to remind himself that every moment counts: even if you think this might be forgotten, it isn't necessarily! You shouldn't assume any moment is lost forever!
It may be Beatles-inspired. "Where every memory we shared / Brought us closer together" certainly fits how Paul tends to talk about the early Beatles period, though it's of course applicable to many different situations. It connects to Down South, the idea of key moments and shared experiences bonding you to someone.
The song itself was forgotten by Paul, rediscovered by his engineer on a cassette, which is wildly fitting and perfect. I also feel like it echoes the sentiment of Paul revising his breakup memories via Get Back, or finding that old Lennon-McCartney lyric sheet when putting together The Lyrics, or, my personal favourite, while talking about one of the Eyes Of The Storm pictures of John, he mentioned it was nice to rediscover that photo, because he had forgotten that John used to chew on his knuckles in the way he does on the picture. Memory is fleeting and fragile, but there are ways to retrieve it.
Lastly, I like how it's not completely positive: "That sound / Can do my head in."
Days We Lost Behind
I wrote a lot about this one on release, but it's interesting as a reflection extending from the previous track, like Paul is now processing these newly discovered memories ("Looking back at white and black reminders of my past") and it's quite bittersweet.
Ripples in a Pond
This one reminds me musically of Get Started off the Explorer's Edition of Egypt Station.
It's got a few lyrics that irk me: "If you say that I've been through worse / I'll have to say that's something that I couldn't deny" sorry could he not have rewritten that second part lmao.
That being said, the bridge bit elevates it so much musically.
I really like the central imagery: "Let's carry on making ripples in a pond / Let's see how far it goes" is fire.
Mountain Top
I love when this song gets dark, that descending guitar line is by far the best part
Tangential, but pumpkin pie is the best kind of pie. So yay.
Also
@ people who have an official lyric sheet: Chat Is This Real? If so, DIED 1986 BORN 2026 WELCOME BACK OKLAHOMA WAS NEVER LIKE THIS
Uh. it could be about John, but I sort of have no deeper thoughts related to that. Like, yeah they did drop acid together. It's not really a romantic song, though, so IDK why he would feel the need to bury the lead on the inspiration by making the main character a girl, if it was about John.
On that note, there's something interesting about how Paul doesn't have to hide that this is a drug song, unlike during his 60s psychedelic phase. I feel like that gives this song a distinctly modern feel, like it really is about some teenaged girl in the 2020s.
The song is 95% vibes anyways. I like the tempo change.
Down South
Unfortunately this song kind of disappointed me lol. Mostly cause I don't love this type of guitar song from Paul (I'm also not huge on Confidant, for example). It's kinda basic and because I know the story he's telling well, I don't get a ton out of it. But it's cool that we have a George song :)
We Two
The music is growing on me, the slightly strange, restrained optimism with a sliver of melancholy in the melody and chords is appealing. Still love the tape noises at the end.
Maybe it's about John, I certainly wouldn't rule that out, but the lyrics just kind of bore me. TBH. I don't want to expend much time thinking about it. I actually lowkey suspect it's in fact about no one lol, it mostly feels like platitudes.
Come Inside
Hot take: this one's got more gay potential than We Two. The double entendre of "Come inside my mind" is right there + you could argue it's about mind melding which is of course a core McLennon activity
That being said, I think the most natural reading is that this a reflection on Paul interacting with his audience. It's a strange position for him to take, given his infamous guardedness. That being said, "All my life's an open book" well. I literally own like 20 books about him, so did he lie?
You could read it as perhaps a reflection on being "proven right" about many aspects of Beatles history. Sort of a "I've been saying all of this from the start – are you finally ready to listen?"
Never Know
I've said it all
Actual new GOAT in the discog. Crazy.
I made my best friend listen to the instrumental break and the Strawberry Fields Forever Take 1 outro one after the other to make sure I wasn't crazy.
Home To Us
Previous thoughts
Absolutely not the intention of the song, but given the previous song, reading Liverpool as a stand-in for John and this song being Paul and Ringo defending him despite his rough sides tickles my brain a lot.
Joy <3
Life Can Be Hard
I like that you can read this as a love song about someone who makes life easier or as a love song to life. Life calls Paul on and he's enchanted by her beauty.
"I can see when there's no food in the larder / I know that she wouldn't care" quite immediately pinged as a callback to My Love ("And when the cupboard's bare / I'll still find something there with my love"), which, being Paul's favourite Wings song and his longtime tribute to Linda, feels both heavy and lovely, especially in a song about love helping Paul push through the hardships of life. It's also very Chaos & Creations-coded.
So pretty. The lyrics of the bridge are so fun, beautiful imagery.
First Star of the Night
This one's been the biggest grower for me. It's soooooo warm and delightful.
The spoken "Raining in Costa Rica" intro, followed by the opening line "Even when it's raining inside / Something tells me it's alright" appears to be a callback to My Valentine ("What if it rained? We didn't care" + the way Paul introduces the song on tour)
I love how Paul is actually subtly calling the subject of the song the first star of the night – Venus of course, goddess of beauty and love. It's deeply romantic and elegant. On Letting Go, Paul invoked the planet Venus with the line "Like a Lucifer she'll always shine", making this another Linda comparison, in a way? I'm thinking about the fact Nancy met Linda and, when she told Paul this, it made him feel more certain about this new relationship, like they were both aligned I suppose. It's lovely to see him being able to reconcile them with each other, not make them compete.
Salesman Saint
The 4/4 trumpets over the 3/4 song: so cool.
"They couldn't take any more / But they had to carry on" is actually soooooo Too Much Rain-coded ("It's too much for anyone […] You've gotta learn to laugh").
The "So they learned to carry on" bridge bit works so well, it raises the tension so well, makes you agree: You just have to carry on.
Momma Gets By
I do suspect this is to some extent inspired by Paul's parents and perhaps a reflection on Linda in the early period of her marriage to him (over which I do believe he feels some guilt), as well as his general observation of women which he's been doing his entire career, reaching all the way back to Suicide.
The instrumental is so gorgeous.
Also the "She loves him, she loves him" bit immediately made me think of On My Own from Les Mis. I don't know if that was on purpose but it's a depressing song to invoke while describing a marriage.
The fact it's from the child's perspective is quite interesting. In a way, the album begins and ends with a young perspective, while a lot of it is aged.
dededos
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snowghoul
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