The worst aspect of The Beatles, according to John Lydon
Voicing your dislike for The Beatles is a bold decision. If you throw criticism towards the Liverpudlian Fab Four, you can expect seven decades-worth of fans to be ready and waiting to defend them, but John Lydon has never been afraid of a little backlash. In fact, he based an entire persona on it, forging the foul-mouthed joker-like Johnny Rotten while fronting the Sex Pistols in the late 1970s.
Since then, his fearlessness surrounding the opinions of his peers and the public only seems to have strengthened with the decades. Over the course of a lengthy career, he’s declared his loathing for everyone from Green Day to Guns ‘N Roses, and even the biggest band of all time aren’t exempt from his wrath.
Back in the early 2000s, the punk rocker turned post-punk vocalist divulged his thoughts on a certain member of The Beatles during a conversation with Q Magazine. He compared his former bandmate, Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock, to Beatles bassist Paul McCartney, prompting him to share his thoughts on the legendary songwriter.
Perhaps unexpectedly, Lydon was brimming over with compliments for the Beatle when it came to his personality behind the scenes. He explained that he had met McCartney several times, finding him to be much more likeable off-camera, and noted that the pair had even traded tapes. Still, he was far less commendatory when it came to sharing his thoughts on McCartney’s music.
“I’ve never liked his aspect of The Beatles,” he admitted, though he acknowledged that it could be due to overexposure to their music as a kid courtesy of mum and dad. But even if his opinion does stem from the constant presence of The Beatles’ discography in his youth, it’s a statement that would still be considered blasphemous by Beatlemaniacs and more casual fans alike.
In stark contrast with Lydon’s opinion, most people would consider McCartney’s contributions to The Beatles to be absolutely essential to their sound and success. Beyond his masterful bass playing, he formed one-half of the songwriting duo at the centre of the band alongside John Lennon. Their work together, and alone, would win them both permanent places on lists of the greatest songwriters of all time.
McCartney contributed countless hits and classics to the band, from the reflective and regretful ‘Yesterday’ to the calming ‘Hey Jude’ to the playful ‘Yellow Submarine’. He could pen catchy hits just as well as melancholic ballads, creating lyrics and melodies that had a truly universal appeal. Even now, six decades after the inception of The Beatles, they still maintain that quality.
That universal appeal didn’t quite extend to Lydon, though. Perhaps it was a form of rebellion against his parents for playing so much Beatles music in his youth, or perhaps it was merely his tendency towards controversy and outspokenness. Perhaps it was his own markedly different songwriting style, the punk rock sound he honed with the Sex Pistols in the 1970s or the new wavey genre experimentation of Public Image Ltd that stood in stark contrast with McCartney’s melodies.
Whatever the reason, Lydon was not taken by McCartney’s music as he was by his personality. Fortunately, McCartney has no shortage of admirers of his musical output, and he still managed to win the Sex Pistols singer over behind-the-scenes.
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