Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
The 1996 US jukebox single release of the song, backed with "When I'm Sixty-Four"
Song by the Beatles
from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Published Northern Songs
Released 26 May 1967[1]
Recorded 1 March 1967
Studio EMI Studios, London
Genre Psychedelic rock, psychedelic pop
Length 3:28
Label Parlophone (R6022)
Songwriter(s) Lennon–McCartney
Producer(s) George Martin
Audio sample
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"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership.[2] Lennon's son Julian inspired the song with a nursery school drawing he called "Lucy – in the sky with diamonds". Shortly after the song's release, speculation arose that the first letter of each of the title nouns intentionally spelled "LSD".[3] Lennon repeatedly denied that he had intended it as a drug song,[3][4] insisting that its fantastical imagery was inspired by Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland books,[3] a claim that has been confirmed by Paul McCartney.[5][6][7]

Composition

Most of the song is in simple triple metre (3
4 time), but the chorus is in 4
4 time. The song modulates between musical keys, using the key of A major for verses, B♭ major for the pre-chorus, and G major for the chorus.[8] It is sung by Lennon over an increasingly complicated underlying arrangement which features a tamboura, played by George Harrison, lead electric guitar put through a Leslie speaker, played by Harrison, and a counter melody on Lowrey organ played by McCartney and taped with a special organ stop sounding "not unlike a celeste".[9][10] Session tapes from the initial 1 March 1967 recording of this song reveal Lennon originally sang the line "Cellophane flowers of yellow and green" as a broken phrase, but McCartney suggested that he sing it more fluidly to improve the song.[11]

Recording

The recording of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" began with rehearsals in Studio 2 at Abbey Road on 28 February 1967.[12] The instrumental backing was finished the following evening. On the first take, track one of the four-track tape contained acoustic guitar and piano, track two McCartney's Lowrey organ, track three Starr's drums, and track four a guide vocal by Lennon during the verses. Take eight replaced the guide vocal with Harrison's tamboura. The four tracks of this take were then mixed together and recorded on the first track of a second four-track tape.[12] On 2 March, Lennon's double-tracked vocals, accompanied by McCartney on the choruses, were recorded to tracks two and three. McCartney's bass and Harrison's lead guitar occupied track four.[13] Eleven mono mixes of the song were made at the 2 March session, but they were rejected in favour of the final mono mix created on 3 March. A stereo mix was made on 7 April.[13]

Outtakes from the recording sessions have been officially released. The Beatles' Anthology 2, released in 1996, contained a composite remix, with ingredients from takes six, seven, and eight, while the first take of the song was featured on the two-disc and six-disc versions of the 50th-anniversary edition of Sgt. Pepper in 2017.[14] The six-disc collection also included take five and the last of the eleven mono mixes made on 2 March 1967.[15]

Origin

Julian Lennon's drawing

Lennon's inspiration for the song came when his son, Julian, showed him a nursery school drawing he called "Lucy—in the Sky with Diamonds",[4] depicting his classmate Lucy O'Donnell (later Lucy Vodden). Julian Lennon said, "I don't know why I called it that or why it stood out from all my other drawings, but I obviously had an affection for Lucy at that age. I used to show Dad everything I'd built or painted at school, and this one sparked off the idea ..."[16][17][18]

According to both Lennon and Ringo Starr, who witnessed the moment, Julian first uttered the song's title upon returning home from nursery school.[4][6][19] Lennon later recalled of the painting and the phrase, "I thought that [it was] beautiful. I immediately wrote a song about it."[4]

LSD rumours

Rumours of the connection between the title of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and the initialism "LSD" began circulating shortly after the release of the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band LP in June 1967.[20][21] Paul McCartney gave two interviews that same month admitting to having taken the drug.[22][23] Lennon later said he was surprised at the idea the song title was a hidden reference to LSD,[3] countering the song "wasn't about that at all",[4] and it "was purely unconscious that it came out to be LSD. Until someone pointed it out, I never even thought of it. I mean, who would ever bother to look at initials of a title? ... It's not an acid song."[3]

Paul McCartney confirmed Lennon's claim on several occasions,[6][7] the earliest in 1968:

When you write a song and you mean it one way, and someone comes up and says something about it that you didn't think of—you can't deny it. Like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," people came up and said, cunningly, "Right, I get it. L-S-D," and it was when [news]papers were talking about LSD, but we never thought about it.[5]

McCartney further rebuffed the claims in a 1997 BBC Radio interview with Michael Parkinson by saying, "It wasn't about LSD. Because otherwise it would have been called 'LITSWD.' Because the initials aren't 'LSD.' Lucy in the sky with diamonds is more like that."[7]

In a 2004 interview with Uncut magazine, McCartney confirmed it was "pretty obvious" drugs did influence some of the group's compositions at that time, including "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", though he tempered this analysis by adding, "[I]t's easy to overestimate the influence of drugs on the Beatles' music."[24]

In 2017, the first take of the song was issued leading up to the release of the 50th anniversary special edition of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band; the story about Julian's painting was confirmed as the inspiration of the song, as opposed to the LSD reference.[25]

Alice In Wonderland

According to both Lennon and McCartney, the lyrics were largely derived from the literary style of Alice In Wonderland.[3][5] Lennon had read and admired the works of Lewis Carroll, and the title of Julian's drawing reminded him of the "Which Dreamed it?" chapter of Through the Looking Glass in which Alice floats in a "boat beneath a sunny sky":[26]

It was Alice in the boat. She is buying an egg and it turns into Humpty-Dumpty. The woman serving in the shop turns into a sheep and the next minute they are rowing in a rowing boat somewhere and I was visualizing that.[3]

McCartney remembered of the song's composition, "We did the whole thing like an Alice In Wonderland idea, being in a boat on the river ... Every so often it broke off and you saw Lucy in the sky with diamonds all over the sky. This Lucy was God, the Big Figure, the White Rabbit."[5] He later recalled helping Lennon finish the song at Lennon's Kenwood home, specifically claiming he contributed the "newspaper taxis" and "cellophane flowers" lyrics;[6][7] Lennon's 1968 interview with Rolling Stone magazine confirmed McCartney's contribution.[27]

Lennon's original handwritten lyrics sold at auction in 2011 for $230,000.[28]

Reception

Rolling Stone magazine described the song as "Lennon's lavish daydream"[29] and music critic Richie Unterberger said "'Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds' was one of the best songs on the Beatles' famous Sgt. Pepper album, and one of the classic songs of psychedelia as a whole. There are few other songs that so successfully evoke a dream world, in both the sonic textures and words."[30] In a review for the BBC, Chris Jones described the track as "nursery rhyme surrealism" that contributed to Sgt. Pepper's "revolutionary ... sonic carpet that enveloped the ears and sent the listener spinning into other realms."[31] Hilary Saunders of Paste called the song "a perfectly indulgent introduction to psych-rock".[32]

In later interviews, Lennon expressed disappointment with the Beatles' arrangement of the recording, complaining inadequate time was taken to fully develop his initial idea for the song. He also said he had not sung it very well. "I was so nervous I couldn't sing," he told journalist Ray Connolly, "but I like the lyrics."[33]

The song was banned from the BBC for references to drugs in 1967.[34][35]

Personnel

According to authors Kevin Ryan and Brian Kehew,[10] and John Winn:[36]

Legacy

Lennon mentioned "Lucy in the Sky" in the Beatles' song "I Am the Walrus".

A 3.2-million-year-old, 40% complete fossil skeleton of an Australopithecus afarensis specimen discovered in 1974 was named "Lucy" because the Beatles song was being played loudly and repeatedly on a tape recorder in the camp. The phrase "Lucy in the sky" became "Lucy in disguise" to the anthropologists, because they initially did not understand the impact of their discovery.[38]

Elton John version

"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
Single by Elton John
from the album Elton John's Greatest Hits Volume II
B-side "One Day (At a Time)"
Released 18 November 1974
Recorded Summer 1974
Length
  • 6:16
  • 5:54 (7" version)
Label
Songwriter(s) Lennon–McCartney
Producer(s) Gus Dudgeon
Elton John singles chronology
"The Bitch Is Back"
(1974)		 "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
(1974)		 "Philadelphia Freedom"
(1975)

In 1974, Elton John released a cover version as a single. Recorded at the Caribou Ranch, it featured backing vocals and guitar by John Lennon under the pseudonym Dr. Winston O'Boogie (Winston being Lennon's middle name). The single topped the US Billboard pop charts for two weeks in January 1975 as well as the Canadian RPM national singles chart for four weeks spanning January and February, eventually. The B-side of the single was also a John Lennon composition, "One Day (At a Time)", from Lennon's 1973 album Mind Games. As with the A-side, Lennon appears on the B-side, playing guitar.

Development and release

In the US it was certified Gold on 29 January 1975 by the RIAA.[39] During their collaboration, Elton John appeared on John Lennon's song "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night". Lennon promised to appear live with Elton at Madison Square Garden if "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" became a #1 single.[40] It did, and on Thanksgiving Night, 28 November 1974, Lennon kept his promise. They performed "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", "Whatever Gets You thru the Night", and "I Saw Her Standing There".

In introducing "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", Elton John said he believed it to be "one of the best songs ever written." The Lennon-sung "I Saw Her Standing There" (credited to the Elton John Band featuring John Lennon) was originally released in 1975 on the B-side of Elton John's "Philadelphia Freedom" single. In 1981, all three live songs were issued on 28th November 1974, an Elton John EP.[41] In 1990, the three songs were made available on the Lennon box set. In 1996, they were also included on the remastered edition of Elton John's Here and There album. Elton John once stated that "'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' is a song that I never do in a set at a concert simply because it reminds me too much of John Lennon. This is the same with 'Empty Garden'." It was a part of his standard repertoire from 1974 until 1976, and sporadically until 1998. It also appeared in the 1976 musical documentary All This and World War II.

Personnel

Chart history

The Flaming Lips version

"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
Single by The Flaming Lips featuring Miley Cyrus and Moby
from the album With a Little Help from My Fwends
Released 18 May 2014 (2014-05-18)
Format Digital download
Length 5:47
Label Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s) Lennon-McCartney
The Flaming Lips singles chronology
"Love the World You Find"
(2007)		 "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
(2014)		 "We a Famly"
(2017)
Miley Cyrus singles chronology
"Adore You"
(2013)		 "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
(2014)		 "Teardrop"
(2016)
Moby singles chronology
"A Case for Shame"
(2013)		 "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
(2014)		 "Rio"
(2014)

A cover version by the Flaming Lips was included on their album With a Little Help from My Fwends, released on Warner Bros.[51] The song, featuring vocals from Miley Cyrus and Moby, was released as official single on 18 May 2014.[52] All proceeds from record sales go to the Bella Foundation, an organisation in Oklahoma City that helps provide veterinary care to needy pet owners.[53]

Other versions

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Everett 1999, p. 123. "In the United Kingdom Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ... was rush-released six days ahead of its official date, June 1."
  2. ↑ Compton 2017, p. 180.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Sheff 2000, p. 182.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Lennon, John (8 September 1971). "The Dick Cavett Show" (Interview). Interviewed by Dick Cavett. New York: ABC.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Aldridge, Alan (14 January 1968). "Paul McCartney's Guide to the Beatles' Songbook". Los Angeles Times Magazine. Los Angeles. pp. 19–24.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Beatles, The (2000). The Beatles Anthology. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. p. 242. ISBN 0-8118-2684-8.
  7. 1 2 3 4 McCartney, Paul (12 October 1997). "Sunday Supplement" (Interview). Interviewed by Michael Parkinson. London: BBC Radio Two.
  8. ↑ Hal Leonard 1993, pp. 646–650.
  9. ↑ Lewisohn 1998, pp. 100–101.
  10. 1 2 Ryan & Kehew 2006.
  11. ↑ Lewisohn 1998, p. 100.
  12. 1 2 Winn 2009, p. 91.
  13. 1 2 Winn 2009, p. 92.
  14. ↑ Howlett, Kevin (2017). Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Super Deluxe Edition (booklet). The Beatles. London: Apple Records. p. 55.
  15. ↑ Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Super Deluxe Edition (CD sleeve). The Beatles. London: Apple Records. 2017.
  16. ↑ The Guardian 2009.
  17. ↑ Kral 2009.
  18. ↑ BBC Radio 2, Sounds of the 60s, 2 February 2008
  19. ↑ Starr, Ringo (25 June 1983). "Ringo's Yellow Submarine" (Interview). Interviewed by Jim Ladd. Los Angeles: ABC Radio Network.
  20. ↑ Davies, Hunter (1968). The Beatles. London: William Heinemann. p. 530. ISBN 0-393-33874-6.
  21. ↑ Hicks, Michael (2000). Sixties Rock: Garage, Psychedelic and Other Satisfactions. University of Illinois Press. p. 63.
  22. ↑ Thompson, Thomas (16 June 1967). "The New Far-Out Beatles". Life. Chicago: Time Inc. p. 101. Retrieved 8 Dec 2016.
  23. ↑ McCartney, Paul (19 June 1967). "Interview with Paul McCartney". ITV Evening News (Interview). London: Independent Television News.
  24. ↑ "McCartney: Of Course Those Songs Were About Drugs". Washington Post. Washington, D.C. Associated Press. 3 June 2004. p. C02.
  25. ↑ "The Beatles' First Take Of 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds'". NPR.org. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  26. ↑ Everett, Walter. The Beatles as Musicians: Revolver through the Anthology. Oxford University Press, USA, 1999, p. 104
  27. ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/john-lennon-the-rolling-stone-interview-19681123?page=2
  28. ↑ Morgan, David. "Lennon's "Lucy in the Sky" lyrics sell for $230K". CBS News. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
  29. ↑ Rolling Stone 2003.
  30. ↑ Unterberger 2009.
  31. ↑ Jones 2007.
  32. ↑ Saunders, Hilary (28 August 2015). "The 50 Best Beatles Songs". Paste. Retrieved 23 July 2016.
  33. ↑ songfacts.com.
  34. ↑ "The day the BBC banned The Beatles for saying 'knickers'". International Business Times UK. 2017-11-22. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
  35. ↑ Dawson, Ashley (2013). The Routledge Concise History of Twentieth-century British Literature. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-57245-3.
  36. ↑ Winn 2009, pp. 91–92.
  37. ↑ "Ultimate Classic Rock". Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  38. ↑ Johanson & Edey 1981, p. 22.
  39. ↑ "RIAA – Searchable Database: Elton John". Retrieved 30 July 2014.
  40. ↑ Sheff 2000, p. 31.
  41. ↑ "Elton John Band Featuring John Lennon And Muscle Shoals Horns, The* - 28th November, 1974 at Discogs". Discogs.com. 28 November 1974. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
  42. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (doc)|format= requires |url= (help). Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  43. ↑ "Lucy in the sky with diamonds in Canadian Top Singles Chart". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  44. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Elton John – Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  45. ↑ "Charts.nz – Elton John – Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds". Top 40 Singles.
  46. ↑ "1974 Top 40 Official UK Singles Archive - 14 December 1974". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  47. ↑ "Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  48. ↑ Australian-charts.com
  49. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca.
  50. ↑ Musicoutfitters.com
  51. ↑ "The Flaming Lips Announce Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Tribute Album Release Date". Pitchfork. 16 May 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  52. ↑ "Flaming Lips' 'Sgt. Peppers' Tribute Album Out this Fall". Rolling Stone. 16 May 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  53. ↑ "First Listen: The Flaming Lips, 'With A Little Help From My Fwends'". NPR.org. 19 October 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  54. ↑ "HMV Planet Japan: Dr Jan Guru".
  55. ↑ Flávio Ricco (15 July 2014). "Globo escala The Beatles para tema de abertura de "Império"". UOL.
  56. ↑ G1 (21 July 2014). "Dan Torres canta 'Lucy in the sky with diamonds' na abertura de 'Império'". G1 - Música.
  57. ↑ "Pink Sings the Beatles Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds".

Bibliography

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  • The Beatles - Complete Scores. Milwaukee: Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation. 1993. ISBN 0-7935-1832-6.
  • "Beatles song 'inspiration' dies". BBC News. 28 September 2009.
  • "The Beatles' Lucy in the Sky dies, aged 46". The Guardian. London. 28 September 2009. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  • The Beatles (2000). The Beatles Anthology. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-2684-8.
  • Brooks, Richard (7 June 2009). "Julian Lennon comforts ailing Lucy in the sky". The Times. London.
  • Compton, Todd (2017). Who Wrote the Beatle Songs? A History of Lennon-McCartney. San Jose: Pahreah Press. ISBN 978-0-9988997-0-1.
  • Everett, Walter (1999). The Beatles as Musicians: Revolver Through the Anthology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-512941-0.
  • Hoyle, Ben (28 September 2009). "Real-life 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' dies at 46". The Times. London.
  • Johanson, Donald Carl; Edey, Maitland (1981). Lucy, the Beginnings of Humankind. St Albans: Granada. ISBN 0-586-08437-1.
  • Jones, Chris (2007). "Review of The Beatles Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". BBC News. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
  • Shriver, Jerry (23 November 2009). "Julian Lennon, Decade Later, Back in Music Biz With 'Lucy'". USA Today. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  • Kral, Georgia (9 June 2009). "Julian Lennon Aids Real-Life 'Lucy'". Spinner.
  • Kung, Michelle (28 September 2009). "Lucy Vodden, of "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" Song Fame, Dies". The Wall Street Journal.
  • Lewisohn, Mark (1988). The Beatles Recording Sessions. New York: Harmony Books. ISBN 0-517-57066-1.
  • "Lucy In The Sky with Diamonds Songfacts".
  • MacDonald, Ian (2005). Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties (Second Revised ed.). London: Pimlico (Rand). ISBN 1-84413-828-3.
  • Miles, Barry (1997). Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now. New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 0-8050-5249-6.
  • Ryan, Kevin; Kehew, Brian (2006). Recording The Beatles. Curvebender Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9785200-0-7.
  • Sheff, David (2000). All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-25464-4.
  • Sherwin, Adam (1 June 2007). "Housewife Lucy, formerly in the sky with diamonds". The Australian.
  • "Sir Paul Reveals Beatles' Drug Use". BBC News. 2 June 2004.
  • Unterberger, Richie (2009). "Review of 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds'". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
  • Winn, John C. (2009). That Magic Feeling: The Beatles' Recorded Legacy, Volume Two, 1966–1970. New York, NY: Three Rivers Press. ISBN 978-0-307-45239-9.
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