The songs John Lennon wrote for The Beatles that he grew to hate
During his time in the Beatles, John Lennon penned the most amount of songs for the band, coming close to writing almost 100 tracks in less than a decade. Amongst them, there are some of the most timelessly beloved songs ever written, but there are also songs that the musician wished he could delete from history as he grew to hate or be embarrassed of some of his creations.
For an artist that prolific, it’s inevitable. When The Beatles first broke out, the band were barely adults. They were still in their infancy as songwriters learning the ropes of how to write a great song. From the moment they hit the big time, they began developing at hyper speed. In only just over seven years, they morphed from the classic rock and rollers they started out as, through an interest in more folk sounds, psychedelic elements, heavier rock and into their final form as a unique amalgamation of several different genres and influences.
With each passing year or album era, they were changing. And just like anyone growing up and reflecting on their old selves, Lennon heard his old songs as often embarrassing reflections of his young days as if they were the sonic equivalent of an old photo.
However, as Lennon shared his insights in interviews, discussing his feelings towards old songs, they seemed to split into two distinct categories, being disliked for two opposing reasons.
The first were the songs that Lennon felt he’d put too much effort into. In particular, these were generally songs written early on in their career as the band seemed to be trying to write hits. ‘It Won’t Be Long’ was one of them, as Lennon declared, “It was my attempt at writing another single.” On songs, he seemed to be able to sense that mission to make a successful chart-topper, but he grew to hate them. ‘I Should Have Known Better’ was another, saying it “doesn’t mean a damn thing”, seeing it only as an inauthentic bid for a hit. The same goes for ‘It’s Only Love’ as he stated, “I always thought it was a lousy song.”
‘Run For Your Life’ is tarnished by that same brush as his attempt to write an Elvis Presley-inspired hit ended up feeling unimaginative and uninteresting in time as he said it was “a throw-away song of mine that I never thought much of.” But later down the line, the feeling switched. In the band’s later years, when Lennon was checking out of his interest in the group, he began to look back and hate songs simply because he was putting no effort in.
He called these songs “throwaways”, with ‘Good Morning, Good Morning’ being a perfect example of one of them. “I always had the TV on very low in the background when I was writing, and it came over, and then I wrote the song,” he said, taking to literally writing songs with one eye on the music and the other on the television.
He began to see a lot of his later work as half-baked. ‘Cry Baby Cry’ was one of those throwaway, almost unfinished tracks as he called it “a piece of rubbish”, while ‘Mean Mr. Mustard’ got a similar label as a “piece of garbage.”
While Lennon loved some of his work for The Beatles, time and his complex feelings towards the group after their split meant that many of his creations grew sour in his mind, either for their overt effort or their lazy finish.
The Beatles songs John Lennon grew to hate:
- ‘It Won’t Be Long’
- ‘I Should Have Known Better’
- ‘It’s Only Love’
- ‘Run For Your Life’
- ‘And Your Bird Can Sing’
- ‘Good Morning, Good Morning’
- ‘Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds’
- ‘Cry Baby Cry’
- ‘Mean Mr Mustard’
- ‘Dig A Pony’
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