John Lenon -Watching The Wheels

Acoustic Version

John Lennon - Watching The Wheels

Watching The Wheels Lyric

People say I'm crazy doing what I'm doing
Well they give me all kinds of warnings to save me from ruin
When I say that I'm o.k. well they look at me kind of strange
Surely you're not happy now you no longer play the game

People say I'm lazy dreaming my life away
Well they give me all kinds of advice designed to enlighten me
When I tell them that I'm doing fine watching shadows on the wall
Don't you miss the big time boy you're no longer on the ball

I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round
I really love to watch them roll
No longer riding on the merry-go-round
I just had to let it go

Ah, people asking questions lost in confusion
Well I tell them there's no problem, only solutions
Well they shake their heads and they look at me as if I've lost my mind
I tell them there's no hurry
I'm just sitting here doing time

I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round
I really love to watch them roll
No longer riding on the merry-go-round
I just had to let it go
I just had to let it go
I just had to let it go

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this to explain what he was up to in the last 6 years. Until Double Fantasy, his last album was Walls And Bridges, which was released in 1974. He was no longer interested in fame, and dedicated himself to his family - his wife Yoko and young son Sean. The song makes a statement that taking it easy and spending time with loved ones is anything but crazy. Working way too hard in an attempt to be a productive as possible, on the other hand, can be quite unfulfilling in the end"

John Lennon - God

God Lyric

God is a concept
By which we measure
Our pain
I'll say it again
God is a concept
By which we measure
Our pain

I don't believe in magic
I don't believe in I-ching
I don't believe in Bible
I don't believe in tarot
I don't believe in Hitler
I don't believe in Jesus
I don't believe in Kennedy
I don't believe in Buddha
I don't believe in Mantra
I don't believe in Gita
I don't believe in Yoga
I don't believe in kings
I don't believe in Elvis
I don't believe in Zimmerman
I don't believe in Beatles
I just believe in me
Yoko and me
And that's reality

The dream is over
What can I say?
The dream is over
Yesterday
I was the Dreamweaver
But now I'm reborn
I was the Walrus
But now I'm John
And so dear friends
You'll just have to carry on
The dream is over

Song Note : Lennon wrote this about the worship of false idols. He felt organized religion did more harm than good. In "Imagine," he sang about a better world where there was "no religion."

"Lennon was not an atheist, but believed that god was something different to everyone. He also believed that people focus too much on the teacher (God) rather than what is supposed to be taught. In songs like this and "Imagine," Lennon's was trying to send the message that we should not let religion and other things get in the way of how we think life should be lived. In "Imagine," "Living for today" means to live as if there is no afterlife or god and to do the best you can. In this song, "I just believe in me" states his belief in his life regardless of anything else"

"Before recording this album, John and Yoko began "Primal Scream therapy," which was a very emotional time for them. Lennon was dealing with the breakup of The Beatles and the death of his mother"

John Lennon - How Do You Sleep

How Do You Sleep Lyric

So Sgt. Pepper took you by surprise
You better see right through that mother's eyes
Those freaks was right when they said you was dead
The one mistake you made was in your head
Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, 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
Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, how do you sleep at night?

Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, how do you sleep at night?

A pretty face may last a year or two
But pretty soon they'll see what you can do
The sound you make is muzak to my ears
You must have learned something in all those years
Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, how do you sleep at night?

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this at the height of his feud with Paul McCartney after The Beatles broke up. Each line of the song is an attack on some aspect of McCartney's life or music at the time. For instance, the line "Everything you done was yesterday. Since you gone you're just another day" refers to Paul's song "Yesterday" with the Beatles and his first solo single "Another Day." John felt that Paul's greatest work was behind him"

"When the Imagine album was originally released, it contained a postcard of John holding the ears of a large pig. This was making fun of Paul's 1971 album cover for Ram, released before Imagine, where Paul is pictured holding the horns of a ram. On the back of the Ram album, Paul included a picture of two beetles 'screwing,' or saying to John 'screw' you from one Beatle to another"

"The feud between Lennon and McCartney originated after The Beatles manager Brian Epstein passed away. Paul wanted his new father-in-law to manage the group while the other Beatles wanted the notorious Allen Klein"

Some of Lennon's lyrics refer to McCartney's "Too Many People" from his album Ram (Hence the pig postcard). The lyrics from "Too Many People" that referred to Lennon: "Too many people preaching practices" and "You took your lucky break and broke it in two."

John Lennon - Nobady Told Me

Nobody Told Me Lyric

Everybody's talking and no one says a word
Everybody's making love and no one really cares
There's Nazis in the bathroom just below the stairs
Always something happening and nothing going on
There's always something cooking and nothing in the pot
They're starving back in China so finish what you got

Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Strange days indeed -- strange days indeed

Everybody's runnin' and no one makes a move
Everyone's a winner and nothing left to lose
There's a little yellow idol to the north of Katmandu
Everybody's flying and no one leaves the ground
Everybody's crying and no one makes a sound
There's a place for us in the movies you just gotta lay around

Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Strange days indeed -- most peculiar, mama

Everybody's smoking and no one's getting high
Everybody's flying and never touch the sky
There's a UFO over New York and I ain't too surprised

Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Nobody told me there'd be days like these
Strange days indeed -- most peculiar, mama

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this for Ringo's album Stop And Smell The Roses. After John passed away, Ringo didn't have the heart to record it, so Yoko released it on Milk And Honey"

"This song was released more than 2 years after Lennon was killed. The video was made from home movies of John, Yoko, and baby Sean"

The line, "There's a UFO over New York and I ain't too surprised" was taken from an actual incident. In 1974, John and his lover May Pang (during his separation from Yoko) were living in an apartment overlooking New York's East River, when John saw what he thought was a UFO. According to Pang, John yelled out the window "come back - take me!"

John Lennon - Beautiful Boy

Beautiful Boy Lyric

Close your eyes
Have no fear
The monster's gone
He's on the run and your daddy's here

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy

Before you go to sleep
Say a little prayer
Every day in every way
It's getting better and better

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy

Out on the ocean sailing away
I can hardly wait
To see you come awake
But I guess we'll both just have to be patient
'Cause it's a long way to go
A hard row to hold
Yes it's a long way to go
But in the meantime

Before you cross the street
Take my hand
Life is what happens to you
While you're busy making other plans

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy
Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy

Before you go to sleep
Say a little prayer
Every day in every way
It's getting better and better

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful
Beautiful boy (x3)

Darling, darling, darling
Darling Sean

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this for his second son, Sean, who he had with Yoko Ono. Sean was born in 1975"

"The line, "Every day and in every way I am getting better and better" is a self-improvement mantra. It was popularized by a French psychologist named Emile Coue, who made his patients repeat it over and over"

John Lennon - Love

Love Lyric

Love is real, real is love
Love is feeling, feeling love
Love is wanting to be loved

Love is touch, touch is love
Love is reaching, reaching love
Love is asking to be loved

Love is you
You and me
Love is knowing
We can be

Love is free, free is love
Love is living, living love
Love is needing to be loved

Song Note : "Lennon is the only one who plays on this track, performing the piano and vocals."

"Matching the rest of the album, this is a stark and hollow track. Lennon sings about the importance of love, which was a common theme in his songwriting."

John Lennon - Starting Over

Starting Over Lyric

Our life together is so precious together
We have grown, we have grown
Although our love is still special
Let's take a chance and fly away somewhere alone

It's been too long since we took the time
No-one's to blame, I know time flies so quickly
But when I see you darling
It's like we both are falling in love again
It'll be just like starting over, starting over

Everyday we used to make it love
Why can't we be making love nice and easy
It's time to spread our wings and fly
Don't let another day go by my love
It'll be just like starting over, starting over

Why don't we take off alone
Take a trip somewhere far, far away
We'll be together all alone again
Like we used to in the early days
Well, well, well darling

It's been too long since we took the time
No-one's to blame, I know time flies so quickly
But when I see you darling
It's like we both are falling in love again
It'll be just like starting over, starting over

Our life together is so precious together
We have grown, we have grown
Although our love is still special
Let's take a chance and fly away somewhere

Starting over

Song Note : "This was released on October 9, 1980, John Lennon's 40th birthday. It was 1 month before the album was released and 2 months before he was shot by Mark David Chapman."

"Lennon wrote this while vacationing in Bermuda earlier in the year."

"This was the first song Lennon released since 1975."

"This didn't not reach #1 until 3 weeks after Lennon's death."

"This was one of the last songs recorded for the album. Lennon was not sure he should record it, but his producer and session musicians convinced him it would be a hit. It became the first single from Double Fantasy."

"The day this was released, Yoko Ono hired a skywriter to write "Happy Birthday" above New York."

John Lennon - Mother

Mother Lyric

Mother, you had me, but I never had you
I wanted you, you didn't want me
So I, I just got to tell you
Goodbye, goodbye

Father, you left me, but I never left you
I needed you, you didn't need me
So I, I just got to tell you
Goodbye, goodbye

Children, don't do what I have done
I couldn't walk and I tried to run
So I, I just got to tell you
Goodbye, goodbye

Mama don't go
Daddy come home

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this while he was undergoing "Primal Scream" therapy. He was dealing with a lot of issues that were detailed in the lyrics. He lost his mother at a crucial period in his life to a drunk driving off duty policeman who ran her over in a crosswalk and his aunt Mimi raised him, which explains the line, "Mother you had me, but I never had you." His father, a merchant seaman, left him for the sea and work. "I wanted you, you didn't need me" explains his feelings about his dad. A very painful youth, his primal screaming on this song lets you feel his pain."

John Lennon - Jealous Guy

Jealous Guy Lyric

I was dreaming of the past
And my heart was beating fast
I began to lose control
I began to lose control

I didn't mean to hurt you
I'm sorry that I made you cry
Oh no, I didn't want to hurt you
I'm just a jealous guy

I was feeling insecure
You might not love me anymore
I was shivering inside
I was shivering inside

I didn't mean to hurt you
I'm sorry that I made you cry
Oh no, I didn't want to hurt you
I'm just a jealous guy

I didn't mean to hurt you
I'm sorry that I made you cry
Oh no, I didn't want to hurt you
I'm just a jealous guy

I was trying to catch your eyes
Thought that you was trying to hide
I was swallowing my pain
I was swallowing my pain

I didn't mean to hurt you
I'm sorry that I made you cry
Oh no, I didn't want to hurt you
I'm just a jealous guy, watch out
I'm just a jealous guy, look out babe
I'm just a jealous guy

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this when he was in The Beatles. They recorded it as a demo called "Child of Nature," which he'd written about their trip to India to study with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It didn't make it onto any Beatles albums, so Lennon used it on his Imagine album with the lyrics changed to reflect on his relationship with Yoko, and how possessive he became of her while The Beatles were breaking up."

"In 1981 Roxy Music recorded this as a tribute to Lennon, who was murdered on December 9, 1980. Their version went to #1 in the UK. Many other groups have covered it as well, including The Faces and The Black Crowes."

"Klaus Voormann played bass on this. He was an old friend of the Beatles and designed the cover of Revolver. Other musicians were Jim Keltner on drums, Alan White on vibes and John Barham on harmonium."

John Lennon - Woman

Video with Yoko

Woman Lyric

Woman I can hardly express
My mixed emotions at my thoughtlessness
After all I'm forever in your debt
And woman I will try to express
My inner feelings and thankfulness
For showing me the meaning of success

Ooh, well, well
Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo
Ooh, well, well
Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo

Woman I know you understand
The little child inside of the man
Please remember my life is in your hands
And woman hold me close to your heart
However distant don't keep us apart
After all it is written in the stars

Ooh, well, well
Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo
Ooh, well, well
Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo
Well

Woman please let me explain
I never meant to cause you sorrow or pain
So let me tell you again and again and again

I love you, yeah, yeah
Now and forever
I love you, yeah, yeah
Now and forever
I love you, yeah, yeah
Now and forever
I love you, yeah, yeah

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this song as an ode to his wife Yoko Ono. He regarded it as the Beatle track on his Double Fantasy album and he called it the '80s update of "Girl," a track on Rubber Soul."

"This was released as a single in January 1981, about a month after Lennon was murdered."

"In the UK, this replaced Lennon's "Imagine" at #1, which had been reissued following Lennon's death. This was the first time an artist replaced himself at UK #1 since The Beatles did it in 1963 with "She Loves You" and "I Want To Hold Your Hand."

John Lennon - Imagine

Video with Yoko

Imagine Lyric

Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Song Note : "Lennon wrote this on a brown Steinway upright piano. In 2000, George Michael paid over $2 million for the piano that Lennon wrote this on, and then returned it to the Beatles museum in Liverpool."

"Lennon later felt that this song should have been a Lennon/Ono collaboration. He got the idea from Yoko's book Grapefruit, which is a book of instructions, with things like 'Imagine the sky crying...' or 'Imagine you're a cloud'. "

"Some people have wondered if Lennon included a message in the video for this song as well. In the video, Lennon is dressed as a cowboy and Yoko Ono is dressed as an Indian squaw. This could be a kind of message about all cultures getting along."

"This was not released as a single in the UK until 1975, when it hit #6. Shortly after Lennon's death in 1980, it was re-released in the UK and hit #1. It was replaced at #1 by Lennon's 'Woman' "

"Lennon said this song is 'virtually the Communist Manifesto' That's usually the last we see of the quote, but Lennon added: 'even though I am not particularly a communist and I do not belong to any movement'. "

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