later and with a new set of lyrics it became ‘Jealous Guy’.
Paul had always been a lover of the countryside and when he wrote ‘Mother Nature’s Son’ he had in mind a song he had heard when he was younger called ‘Nature Boy’ (1947) , made popular by Nat ‘King’ Cole. Although the song was started in India it was completed at his father’s house.
EVERYBODY’S GOT SOMETHING TO HIDE EXCEPT ME AND MY MONKEY
Initially known as ‘Come On, Come On’, the song was built up from its title. John said it was a clear reference to his relationship with Yoko. “That was just a nice line which I made into a song,” he said. “Everybody seemed to be paranoid except for us two, who were in the glow of love…everybody was sort of tense around us.”
It wasn’t until his return from India that the friendship turned into an affair and Cynthia knew what was happening. Yoko started to attend recording sessions for the new album, much to the annoyance of the other Beatles. The British press also found it difficult to accept Yoko and this irked John and was to play a part in his eventual move to America. “In England, they think I’m someone who has won the pools and gone off with a Japanese Princess,” he once said. “In America, they treat her with respect. They treat her as the serious artist she is.”
The rapid ‘ Come on, come on, come on…’ chorus sounds similar to what became known as the ‘gobble chorus’ section of the Fugs’ track ‘Virgin Forest’ that appeared on The Fugs’ Second Album (1966). Barry Miles, then running the Indica Bookshop, supplied the Beatles with the latest underground releases from America, including work by The Fugs.
SEXY SADIE
‘Sexy Sadie’ appears to be a song about a girl who leads men on, only to make fools of them, but was written about the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, after John had become disillusioned with him. Knowing that he could never record a potentially libellous song called Maharishi, he titled it ‘Sexy Sadie’, but on the demo recording of the track he let rip with a string of obscenities directed towards his real quarry.
There were two reasons why the Beatles decided to leave Rishikesh. They had been told that the Maharishi was only after their money and a rumour suggested he had made a sexual advance to a women on the course. It unnerved them and the three Beatles told the guru they were leaving. Pressed to explain their decision, John reportedly said, “Well, if you’re so cosmic, you’ll know why.”
Paul Horn, who remembers them leaving, believes the fall-out was inevitable: “These courses were designed for people who had a solid background in meditation. The Beatles didn’t have the experience and I think they were expecting miracles. George was really interested but Ringo wasn’t into Eastern philosophy at all. John was and always sceptical about anything until it had been proven to him. Paul was easy-going and could have gone either way.
“The big fuss came because there were some people there who were more interested in the Beatles than learning to meditate and they became hangers-on. One woman was really into the Beatles and started all this crap about the Maharishi making passes at her. There were a lot of rumours, jealousies and triangles going on and she got back at the Beatles through saying this about the Maharishi. The bottom line, though, is that it was time for them to go home. This was just the catalyst.”
HELTER SKELTER
The concept for ‘Helter Skelter’ came from a music paper’s rave review of a new single by the Who. Paul didn’t think the single matched the hyperbole and set himself the challenge of writing something that could legitimately be described in that language.
The single, ‘I Can See For Miles’, was released in October 1967 and reviewed by Chris Welch in Melody Maker. “Forget Happy Jack sitting in sand on the Isle of Man,” wrote Welch. “This marathon epic of swearing cymbals and cursing guitars
Paul had always been a lover of the countryside and when he wrote ‘Mother Nature’s Son’ he had in mind a song he had heard when he was younger called ‘Nature Boy’ (1947) , made popular by Nat ‘King’ Cole. Although the song was started in India it was completed at his father’s house.
EVERYBODY’S GOT SOMETHING TO HIDE EXCEPT ME AND MY MONKEY
Initially known as ‘Come On, Come On’, the song was built up from its title. John said it was a clear reference to his relationship with Yoko. “That was just a nice line which I made into a song,” he said. “Everybody seemed to be paranoid except for us two, who were in the glow of love…everybody was sort of tense around us.”
It wasn’t until his return from India that the friendship turned into an affair and Cynthia knew what was happening. Yoko started to attend recording sessions for the new album, much to the annoyance of the other Beatles. The British press also found it difficult to accept Yoko and this irked John and was to play a part in his eventual move to America. “In England, they think I’m someone who has won the pools and gone off with a Japanese Princess,” he once said. “In America, they treat her with respect. They treat her as the serious artist she is.”
The rapid ‘ Come on, come on, come on…’ chorus sounds similar to what became known as the ‘gobble chorus’ section of the Fugs’ track ‘Virgin Forest’ that appeared on The Fugs’ Second Album (1966). Barry Miles, then running the Indica Bookshop, supplied the Beatles with the latest underground releases from America, including work by The Fugs.
SEXY SADIE
‘Sexy Sadie’ appears to be a song about a girl who leads men on, only to make fools of them, but was written about the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, after John had become disillusioned with him. Knowing that he could never record a potentially libellous song called Maharishi, he titled it ‘Sexy Sadie’, but on the demo recording of the track he let rip with a string of obscenities directed towards his real quarry.
There were two reasons why the Beatles decided to leave Rishikesh. They had been told that the Maharishi was only after their money and a rumour suggested he had made a sexual advance to a women on the course. It unnerved them and the three Beatles told the guru they were leaving. Pressed to explain their decision, John reportedly said, “Well, if you’re so cosmic, you’ll know why.”
Paul Horn, who remembers them leaving, believes the fall-out was inevitable: “These courses were designed for people who had a solid background in meditation. The Beatles didn’t have the experience and I think they were expecting miracles. George was really interested but Ringo wasn’t into Eastern philosophy at all. John was and always sceptical about anything until it had been proven to him. Paul was easy-going and could have gone either way.
“The big fuss came because there were some people there who were more interested in the Beatles than learning to meditate and they became hangers-on. One woman was really into the Beatles and started all this crap about the Maharishi making passes at her. There were a lot of rumours, jealousies and triangles going on and she got back at the Beatles through saying this about the Maharishi. The bottom line, though, is that it was time for them to go home. This was just the catalyst.”
HELTER SKELTER
The concept for ‘Helter Skelter’ came from a music paper’s rave review of a new single by the Who. Paul didn’t think the single matched the hyperbole and set himself the challenge of writing something that could legitimately be described in that language.
The single, ‘I Can See For Miles’, was released in October 1967 and reviewed by Chris Welch in Melody Maker. “Forget Happy Jack sitting in sand on the Isle of Man,” wrote Welch. “This marathon epic of swearing cymbals and cursing guitars
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