“Songwriting is about getting the demon out of me. It’s like being possessed. You try to go to sleep, but the song won’t let you. So you have to get up and make it into something, and then you’re allowed to sleep.”
— John Lennon
John Lennon is one of the most revered songwriters in rock ‘n’ roll history. His compositions, both alone and as part of the legendary Lennon-McCartney team, have cemented his place in the pantheon of modern songwriting giants. To celebrate what would have been John’s 78th birthday, Sweetwater is going to delve into a few of his songwriting techniques and explore how you can apply them to your own songwriting. We’ll do this by analyzing some of his demos and comparing them to finished releases, as well as referencing interviews with Paul McCartney and John himself.
All the Pieces Come Together
John’s songs possess a deeply cohesive quality. But while they give you the impression that he wrote them in one magical surge of inspiration, that’s not always the case. If you listen to his home-recorded demos, it’s clear that many of his songs were pieced together from fragments that he brainstormed at different times. For example, “Real Love” (released as part of The Beatles Anthology) and “I’m Stepping Out” (from John’s Milk & Honey album) were derived from three different compositions with shared elements. Snippets of “Isolation” (from John’s Plastic Ono Band) and an unreleased song called “Let It Go, Let It Go” were also present in early revisions. John would move choruses, verses, and bridges around until he found a combination that worked for him. Believe it or not, the chorus to “Real Love” was the verse to a primitive version of “I’m Stepping Out”! Modern songwriters can learn a lot from this. Make sure that you capture your random tidbits of inspiration, even if they don’t fit the song you’re working on. One of these little nuggets might just be part of what you need for your next opus!
Sometimes You Need a Little Help from Your Friends
John also used this piecemeal approach to songwriting during the Lennon-McCartney years. But instead of relying on himself to piece together the song fragments, he’d use Paul as a sounding board. John would bring a sketch or song fragment to Paul (or vice versa). Together, they would use the assembly-line technique described above, finishing and improving upon the original idea. Frequently, two incomplete songs or ideas that each had worked on independently would be combined into a complete song. During a 2018 interview, when Paul was asked to highlight this methodology, he said, “When we worked together on something, often what would happen is that whoever would be the creator of this song would bring in the first verse and then we’d sit down and we’d take it from there.” So what’s the point here? Simple — sometimes finding a collaborator is the best way to up your creativity or even overcome writer’s block.
Was Magic in the Air?
While many of John’s compositions were written piece by piece, there were times when he composed songs from beginning to end, often after a single burst of creativity. During a 1968 interview, John recalled that he started writing “Strawberry Fields Forever” (from the Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour) on a beach in Almeria, Spain, and finished it after returning to England. Inspired by memories of John’s childhood, the song’s lyrics have been dissected to death, and there are endless interpretations. But what does the song actually mean? During a 1968 interview, John indicated that even he wasn’t always sure during the writing process, stating, “I write lyrics that you don’t realize what they mean till after.” John further compared this type of writing to abstract art, saying, “It’s just that when you have to think about it to write it, it just means that you labored at it. But when you just say it, man, you know you’re saying it, it’s a continuous flow.” So what can we learn from this? Easy. Embrace your inspiration — you can always make sense of it later.
Just Give Me Some Truth
If we were to generalize, we could say that John’s songs employ simple, shouted melodies, along with philosophical lyrics that focus on isolation, pain, sex, and politics. During an interview in 1980, John joked about the lack of melodicism in his compositions, although he also acknowledged that he could “[write a] melody with the best of them” when he wanted to. Lyrically, John often addressed his audience in the first person using plain language, such as on Plastic Ono Band‘s “Working Class Hero,” which expresses his feelings on the struggle between social classes. That said, on other occasions he wrote obliquely, such as “I Am the Walrus” from the Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour, which, according to the same 1980 interview, uses its fantastical characters, literary references, and drug-inspired imagery to condemn blind faith and idolatry. One thing’s for sure: whether he wrote directly or emblematically, John’s rebellious nature and acerbic wit always took center stage. And the same rings true for any songwriter: when you’re composing, be sure that your personality shines through — that’s what separates your music from everybody else’s.
You Got to Serve Yourself (and the Song)
When he was a Beatle, John’s songwriting was often overshadowed by producer George Martin’s larger-than-life arrangements. But as songs like “Julia” (from The Beatles) and “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away” (from Help!) demonstrate, his compositions didn’t need complex arrangements and over-the-top production to be effective and engaging. The comparatively stripped-down vibe that permeates his solo material further reinforces this. John was a competent guitarist and pianist, but he was far from a virtuoso. That said, even in their raw, demo form, accompanied only by his guitar or piano, John’s songs resonate with a quality that only a master craftsman can deliver. This is a great takeaway for aspiring songwriters — if your song can’t stand on its own, excessive production won’t make it a good song.
“Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.
— John Lennon
We hope you enjoyed this trip through John Lennon’s incredible catalog of songs, and that you learned a thing or two about songwriting from one of the most revered composers in modern history. What’s your favorite John Lennon song? How did it inspire you to become a better songwriter?
