 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
|
|
The Beatles Lyrics, album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"
More about the album -
Listen the album
 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Paul McCartney) (Officially – John Lennon and Paul McCartney) It was twenty years ago today Sergeant Pepper taught the band to play They've been going in and out of style But they're guaranteed to raise a smile So may I introduce to you The act you've known for all these years? Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandWe're Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band We hope you will enjoy the show We're Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Sit back and let the evening go Sergeant Pepper's lonely, Sgt. Pepper's lonely Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandIt's wonderful to be here It's certainly a thrill You're such a lovely audience We'd like to take you home with us We'd love to take you homeI don't really want to stop the show But I thought that you might like to know That the singer's going to sing a song And he wants you all to sing along So let me introduce to you The one and only Billy Shears And Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, yeah JOHN 1970: 'Paul had the line about 'a little help from my friends.' He had some kind of structure for it, and we wrote it pretty well fifty-fifty from his original idea.'JOHN 1980: 'That's Paul, with a little help from me. 'What do you see when you turn out the light/ I can't tell you but I know it's mine' is mine.'PAUL circa-1994: 'This was written out at John's house in Weybridge for Ringo… I think that was probably the best of our songs that we wrote for Ringo actually. I remember giggling with John as we wrote the lines, 'What do you see when you turn out the light/ I can't tell you but I know it's mine.' It could have been him playing with his willie under the covers, or it could have been taken on a deeper level. This is what it meant but it was a nice way to say it – a very non-specific way to say it. I always liked that.' Billy ShearsWhat would you think if I sang out of tune Would you stand up and walk out on me? Lend me your ears and I'll sing you a song And I'll try not to sing out of key Oh I get by with a little help from my friends Mm I get high with a little help from my friends Mm gonna try with a little help from my friendsWhat do I do when my love is away? (Does it worry you to be alone?) How do I feel by the end of the day? (Are you sad because you're on your own?) No I get by with a little help from my friends Mm I get high with a little help from my friends Mm gonna try with a little help from my friends(Do you need anybody?) I need somebody to love (Could it be anybody?) I want somebody to love(Would you believe in a love at first sight?) Yes I'm certain that it happens all the time (What do you see when you turn out the light?) I can't tell you, but I know it's mine Oh I get by with a little help from my friends Mm I get high with a little help from my friends Oh I'm gonna try with a little help from my friends(Do you need anybody?) I just need someone to love (Could it be anybody?) I want somebody to loveOh I get by with a little help from my friends Mm gonna try with a little help from my friends Oh I get high with a little help from my friends Yes I get by with a little help from my friends With a little help from my friends JOHN 1980: 'My son Julian came in one day with a picture he painted about a school friend of his named Lucy. He had sketched in some stars in the sky and called it 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,' Simple. The images were from 'Alice in Wonderland.' 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. There was also the image of the female who would someday come save me… a 'girl with kaleidoscope eyes' who would come out of the sky. It turned out to be Yoko, though I hadn't met Yoko yet. So maybe it should be 'Yoko in the Sky with Diamonds.' It was purely unconscious that it came out to be LSD. Until somebody pointed it out, I never even thought it, I mean, who would ever bother to look at initials of a title? It's NOT an acid song. The imagery was Alice in the boat and also the image of this female who would come and save me – this secret love that was going to come one day. So it turned out to be Yoko… and I hadn't met Yoko then. But she was my imaginary girl that we all have.'PAUL circa-1994: 'I went up to John's house in Weybridge. When I arrived we were having a cup of tea, and he said, 'Look at this great drawing Julian's done. Look at the title!' So I said, 'What's that mean?' thinking Wow, fantastic title! John said, 'It's Lucy, a freind of his from school. And she's in the sky.' …so we went upstairs and started writing it. People later thought 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds' was LSD. I swear – we didn't notice that when it first came out.' Picture yourself in a boat on a river With tangerine trees and marmalade skies Somebody calls you, you answer quite slowly A girl with kaleidoscope eyesCellophane flowers of yellow and green Towering over your head Look for the girl with the sun in her eyes And she's goneLucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Aaaaahhhhh...Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain Where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers That grow so incredibly highNewspaper taxis appear on the shore Waiting to take you away Climb in the back with your head in the clouds And you're goneLucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Aaaaahhhhh...Picture yourself on a train in a station With plasticine porters with looking glass ties Suddenly someone is there at the turnstile The girl with the kaleidoscope eyesLucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Aaaaahhhhh... Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Aaaaahhhhh... Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds Lucy in the sky with diamonds [fade out] JOHN 1980: 'It is a diary form of writing. All that 'I used to be cruel to my woman, I beat her and kept her apart from the things that she loved' was me. I used to be cruel to my woman, and physically… any woman. I was a hitter. I couldn't express myself and I hit. I fought men and I hit women. That is why I am always on about peace, you see. It is the most violent people who go for love and peace. Everything's the opposite. But I sincerely believe in love and peace. I am a violent man who has learned not to be violent and regrets his violence. I will have to be a lot older before I can face in public how I treated women as a youngster.'PAUL 1984: 'Wrote that at my house in St. John's Wood. All I remember is that I said, 'It's getting better all the time,' and John contributed the legendary line 'It couldn't get much worse.' Which I thought was very good. Against the spirit of that song, which was all super-optimistic… then there's that lovely little sardonic line. Typical John.' It's getting better all the timeI used to get mad at my school (No I can't complain) The teachers who taught me weren't cool (No I can't complain) You're holding me down (Oh), turning me round (Oh) Filling me up with your rules (Foolish rules)I've got to admit it's getting better (Better) A little better all the time (It can't get no worse) I have to admit it's getting better (Better) It's getting better since you've been mineMe used to be angry young man Me hiding me head in the sand You gave me the word, I finally heard I'm doing the best that I canI've got to admit it's getting better (Better) A little better all the time (It can't get no worse) I have to admit it's getting better (Better) It's getting better since you've been mine Getting so much better all the time It's getting better all the time Better, better, better It's getting better all the time Better, better, betterI used to be cruel to my woman I beat her and kept her apart from the things that she loved Man I was mean but I'm changing my scene And I'm doing the best that I can (Ooh)I admit it's getting better (Better) A little better all the time (It can't get no worse) Yes I admit it's getting better (Better) It's getting better since you've been mine Getting so much better all the time It's getting better all the time Better, better, better It's getting better all the time Better, better, better Getting so much better all the time PAUL 1967: 'It's really about the fans who hang around outside your door day and night. 'See the people standing there/ They worry me, and never win/ And wonder why they don't get in my door.' If they only knew the best way to get in is not to do that, because obviously anyone who is going to be straight and be like a real friend is going to get in… but they simply stand there and give off the impression, 'Dont let us in.' I actually do enjoy having them in. I used to do it more, but I don't as much now because I invited one in once and the next day she was in The Daily Mirror with her mother saying we were going to get married.'JOHN 1980: 'That's Paul… again writing a good lyric.'PAUL 1984: 'Yeah, I wrote that. I liked that one. Strange story, though. The night we went to record that, a guy turned up at my house who announced himself as Jesus. So I took him to the session. You know – couldn't harm, I thought. Introduced Jesus to the guys. Quite reasonable about it. But that was it. Last we ever saw of Jesus.' I'm fixing a hole where the rain gets in And stops my mind from wandering Where it will goI'm filling the cracks that ran through the door And kept my mind from wandering Where it will goAnd it really doesn't matter if I'm wrong I'm right Where I belong I'm right Where I belong See the people standing there Who disagree and never win And wonder why they don't get in my doorI'm painting my room in the colourful way And when my mind is wandering There I will go Ooh ooh ooh ah ah Hey, hey, hey, heyAnd it really doesn't matter if I'm wrong I'm right Where I belong I'm right Where I belong Silly people run around They worry me and never ask me Why they don't get past my doorI'm taking the time for a number of things That weren't important yesterday And I still go Ooh ooh ooh ah ahI'm fixing a hole where the rain gets in Stops my mind from wandering Where it will go oh Where it will go ohI'm fixing a hole where the rain gets in And stops my mind from wandering Where it will go (fade out) PAUL 1984: 'I wrote that. My kind of ballad from that period. One of my daughters likes that. Still works. The other thing I remember is that George Martin was offended that I used another arranger. He was busy and I was itching to get on with it; I was inspired. I think George had a lot of difficulty forgiving me for that. It hurt him; I didn't mean to.' Wednesday morning at five o'clock as the day begins Silently closing her bedroom door Leaving the note that she hoped would say more She goes downstairs to the kitchen clutching her handkerchief Quietly turning the backdoor key Stepping outside she is freeShe (We gave her most of our lives) Is leaving (Sacrificed most of our lives) Home (We gave her everything money could buy) She's leaving home after living alone For so many years (Bye bye)Father snores as his wife gets into her dressing gown Picks up the letter that's lying there Standing alone at the top of the stairs She breaks down and cries to her husband "Daddy our baby's gone Why would she treat us so thoughtlessly? How could she do this to me?"She (We never thought of ourselves) Is leaving (Never a thought for ourselves) Home (We struggled hard all our lives to get by) She's leaving home after living alone For so many years (Bye bye)Friday morning at nine o'clock she is far away Waiting to keep the appointment she made Meeting a man from the motor tradeShe (What did we do that was wrong) Is having (We didn't know it was wrong) Fun (Fun is the one thing that money can't buy) Something inside that was always denied For so many years (Bye bye)She's leaving home Bye bye JOHN 1968: ''Mr. Kite' was a straight lift. I had all the words staring me in the face one day when I was looking for a song. It was from this old poster I'd bought at an antique shop. We'd been down to Surrey or somewhere filming a piece. There was a break, and I went into this shop and bought an old poster advertising a variety show which starred Mr. Kite. It said the Henderson's would also be there, late of Pablo Fanques Fair. There would be hoops and horses and someone going through a hogs head of real fire. Then there was Henry the Horse. The band would start at ten to six. All at Bishopsgate. Look, there's the bill – with Mr. Kite topping it. I hardly made up a word, just connecting the lists together. Word for word, really.'JOHN 1972: 'The story that Henry the Horse meant 'heroin' was rubbish.'JOHN 1980: 'It's all just from that poster. The song is pure, like a painting. A pure watercolor.' For the benefit of Mr. Kite, There will be a show tonight On trampoline.The Hendersons will all be there. Late of Pablo Fanque's Fair. What a scene!Over men and horses, hoops and garters, Lastly through a hogshead of real fire! In this way Mr. K. Will challenge the world!The celebrated Mr. K. Performs his feat on Saturday At Bishopsgate.The Hendersons will dance and sing As Mr. Kite flies through the ring. Don't be late!Messrs. K. and H. assure the public Their production will be second to none. And of course Henry the Horse Dances the waltz!The band begins at ten to six, When Mr. K. performs his tricks Without a sound.And Mr. H. will demonstrate Ten summersets he'll undertake On solid ground.Having been some days in preparation, A splendid time is guaranteed for all. And tonight Mr. Kite Is topping the bill! Within You Without You (George Harrison) GEORGE 1967: 'I'm writing more songs now that we're not touring. The words are always a bit of a hangup for me. I'm not very poetic. 'Within You Without You' was written after dinner one night at Klaus Voorman's house. He had a harmonium, which I hadn't played before. I was doodling on it when the tune started to come. The first sentence came out of what we'd been doing that evening… 'We were talking.' That's as far as I got that night. I finished the rest of the words later at home.'JOHN 1967: 'George has done a great indian one. We came along one night and he had about 400 indian fellas playing, and it was a great swinging event, as they say.'JOHN 1980: 'One of George's best songs. One of my favorites of his, too. He's clear on that song. His mind and his music are clear. There is his innate talent. He brought that sound together.' We were talking about the space between us all And the people who hide themselves behind a wall of illusion Never glimpse the truth, then it's far too late, when they pass away We were talking about the love we all could share When we find it, to try our best to hold it there with our love With our love, we could save the world, if they only knewTry to realise it's all within yourself No one else can make you change And to see you're really only very small And life flows on within you and without youWe were talking about the love that's gone so cold And the people who gain the world and lose their soul They don't know, they can't see, are you one of them?When you've seen beyond yourself then you may find Peace of mind is waiting there And the time will come when you see we're all one And life flows on within you and without you JOHN 1967: ''When I'm Sixty Four' was something Paul wrote in the Cavern days. We just stuck in a few more words, like 'grandchildren on your knee,' and 'Vera Chuck and Dave.' It was just one of those ones that he'd had, that we've all got, really – half a song. And this was just one of those that was quite a hit with us. We used to do it when the amps broke down, just sing it on the piano.'JOHN 1972: 'I think I helped Paul with some of the words.'JOHN 1980: 'Paul's, completely. I would never dream of writing a song like that. There's some things I never think about, and that's one of them.PAUL 1984: 'I wrote the tune when I was about 15, I think, on the piano at home, before I moved from Liverpool. It was kind of a cabaret tune. Then, years later, I put words to it.'PAUL circa-1994: 'I thought it was a good little tune but it was too vaudvillian, so I had to get some cod lines to take the sting out of it, and put the tongue very firmly in cheek.' When I get older losing my hair Many years from now Will you still be sending me a valentine Birthday greetings, bottle of wine? If I'd been out till quarter to three Would you lock the door? Will you still need me, will you still feed me When I'm sixty four?You'll be older too And if you say the word I could stay with youI could be handy, mending a fuse When your lights have gone You can knit a sweater by the fireside Sunday mornings go for a ride Doing the garden, digging the weeds Who could ask for more? Will you still need me, will you still feed me When I'm sixty four?Every summer we can rent a cottage in the Isle of Wight If it's not too dear We shall scrimp and save Grandchildren on your knee Vera, Chuck and DaveSend me a postcard, drop me a line Stating point of view Indicate precisely what you mean to say Yours sincerely, wasting away Give me your answer, fill in a form Mine forevermore Will you still need me, will you still feed me When I'm sixty four? Ho! JOHN 1980: 'That's Paul writing a pop song. He makes 'em up like a novelist. You hear lots of McCartney-influenced songs on the radio now. These stories about boring people doing boring things – being postmen and secretaries and writing home. I'm not interested in writing third-party songs. I like to write about me, 'cuz I know me.'PAUL 1984: 'Yeah, that was mine. It was based on the American meter maid. And I got the idea to just… you know, so many of my things, like 'When I'm Sixty-Four' and those, they're tongue in cheek! But they get taken for real! And similarly with 'Lovely Rita' – the idea of a parking-meter attendant's being sexy was tongue in cheek at the time.' Aaaahhh...Lovely Rita meter maid Lovely Rita meter maidLovely Rita meter maid Nothing can come between us When it gets dark I tow your heart away Standing by a parking meter When I caught a glimpse of Rita Filling in a ticket in her little white book In a cap she looked much older And the bag across her shoulder Made her look a little like a military manLovely Rita meter maid May I inquire discreetly (Lovely Rita) When are you free to take some tea with me? (Lovely Rita, maid, ah) Rita!Took her out and tried to win her Had a laugh and over dinner Told her I would really like to see her again Got the bill and Rita paid it Took her home I nearly made it Sitting on the sofa with a sister or twoOh, lovely Rita meter maid Where would I be without you Give us a wink and make me think of you (Lovely Rita meter maid) Lovely Rita meter maid, Rita meter maid (Lovely Rita meter maid) Oh Lovely Rita meter meter maid (Lovely Rita meter maid) Ah da, ah da (Lovely Rita meter maid)[Leave it.] JOHN 1967: 'I often sit at the piano, working at songs with the television on low in the background. If I'm a bit low and not getting much done, the words from the telly come through. That's when I heard the words, 'Good Morning Good Morning.''JOHN 1968: 'We write about our past. 'Good Morning, Good Morning,' I was never proud of it. I just knocked it off to do a song. But it was writing about my past so it does get the kids because it was me at school, my whole bit.'JOHN 1972: 'A bit of gobbledygook, but nice words.'PAUL 1984: ''Good Morning' – John's. That was our first major use of sound effects, I think. We had horses and chickens and dogs and all sorts running through it.' Good morning, good morning Good morning, good morning Good morning ahNothing to do to save his life call his wife in Nothing to say but what a day how's your boy been Nothing to do it's up to you I've got nothing to say but it's OKGood morning, good morning Good morning ahGoing to work don't want to go feeling low down Heading for home you start to roam then you're in town Everybody knows there's nothing doing Everything is closed it's like a ruin Everyone you see is half asleep And you're on your own you're in the streetAfter a while you start to smile now you feel cool Then you decide to take a walk by the old school Nothing is changed it's still the same I've got nothing to say but it's OKGood morning, good morning Good morning ahPeople running round it's five o'clock Everywhere in town is getting dark Everyone you see is full of life It's time for tea and meet the wifeSomebody needs to know the time, glad that I'm here Watching the skirts you start to flirt now you're in gear Go to a show you hope she goes I've got nothing to say but it's OKGood morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Good morning, good morning, good Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Paul McCartney) (Officially – John Lennon and Paul McCartney) It was twenty years ago today Sergeant Pepper taught the band to play They've been going in and out of style But they're guaranteed to raise a smile So may I introduce to you The act you've known for all these years? Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandWe're Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band We hope you will enjoy the show We're Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band Sit back and let the evening go Sergeant Pepper's lonely, Sgt. Pepper's lonely Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club BandIt's wonderful to be here It's certainly a thrill You're such a lovely audience We'd like to take you home with us We'd love to take you homeI don't really want to stop the show But I thought that you might like to know That the singer's going to sing a song And he wants you all to sing along So let me introduce to you The one and only Billy Shears And Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, yeah JOHN 1967: 'I was writing the song with the 'Daily Mail' propped up in front of me on the piano. I had it open to the 'News In Brief' or whatever they call it. There was a paragraph about four thousand holes being discovered in Blackburn Lancashire. And when we came to record the song there was still one word missing from that verse… I knew the line had to go, 'Now they know how many holes it takes to – something – the Albert Hall.' For some reason I couldn't think of the verb. What did the holes do to the Albert Hall? It was Terry Doran who said 'fill' the Albert Hall. And that was it. Then we thought we wanted a growing noise to lead back into the first bit. We wanted to think of a good end and we had to decide what sort of backing and instruments would sound good. Like all our songs, they never become an entity until the very end. They are developed all the time as we go along.'JOHN 1968: ''A Day in the Life' – that was something. I dug it. It was a good piece of work between Paul and me. I had the 'I read the news today' bit, and it turned Paul on. Now and then we really turn each other on with a bit of song, and he just said 'yeah' – bang bang, like that. It just sort of happened beautifully, and we arranged it and rehearsed it, which we don't often do, the afternoon before. So we all knew what we were playing, we all got into it. It was a real groove, the whole scene on that one. Paul sang half of it and I sang half. I needed a middle-eight for it, but Paul already had one there.'JOHN 1980: 'Just as it sounds: I was reading the paper one day and I noticed two stories. One was the Guinness heir who killed himself in a car. That was the main headline story. He died in London in a car crash. On the next page was a story about 4000 holes in Blackburn, Lancashire. In the streets, that is. They were going to fill them all. Paul's contribution was the beautiful little lick in the song 'I'd love to turn you on.' I had the bulk of the song and the words, but he contributed this little lick floating around in his head that he couldn't use for anything. I thought it was a damn good piece of work.'PAUL 1984: 'That was mainly John's, I think. I remember being very conscious of the words 'I'd love to turn you on' and thinking, Well, that's about as risque as we dare get at this point. Well, the BBC banned it. It said, 'Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall' or something. But I mean that there was nothing vaguely rude or naughty in any of that. 'I'd love to turn you on' was the rudest line in the whole thing. But that was one of John's very good ones. I wrote… that was co-written. The orchestra crescendo and that was based on some of the ideas I'd been getting from Stockhausen and people like that, which is more abstract. So we told the orchestra members to just start on their lowest note and end on their highest note and go in their own time… which orchestras are frightened to do. That's not the tradition. But we got 'em to do it.'PAUL 1988: 'Then I went around to all the trumpet players and said, 'Look all you've got to do is start at the beginning of the 24 bars and go through all the notes on your instrument from the lowest to the highest – and the highest has to happen on that 24th bar, that's all. So you can blow 'em all in that first thing and then rest, then play the top one there if you want, or you can steady them out.' And it was interesting because I saw the orchestra's characters. The strings were like sheep – they all looked at each other: 'Are you going up? I am!' and they'd all go up together, the leader would take them all up. The trumpeters were much wilder.' I read the news today, oh boy About a lucky man who made the grade And though the news was rather sad Well, I just had to laugh I saw the photographHe blew his mind out in a car; He didn't notice that the lights had changed A crowd of people stood and stared They'd seen his face before Nobody was really sure if he was from the House of LordsI saw a film today, oh boy; The English army had just won the war A crowd of people turned away But I just had to look Having read the bookI'd love to turn you onWoke up, fell out of bed Dragged a comb across my head Found my way downstairs and drank a cup And looking up, I noticed I was lateFound my coat and grabbed my hat Made the bus in seconds flat Found my way upstairs and had a smoke And somebody spoke and I went into a dreamAh I read the news today, oh boy Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire And though the holes were rather small They had to count them all Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert HallI'd love to turn you on |
The Beatles Official
Listen The Beatles here
Beatles radio
Beatles pictures
Beatles and films
Beatles geography
Calendar
By dates
By events
By people
By geography
Songs of Beatles
Discography
Box-sets
Songs list
Song writers
Solo
John Lennon
John Discography
John pictures
Paul McCartney
Paul Discography
Paul pictures
George Harrison
George Discography
George pictures
Ringo Starr
Ringo Discography
Ringo pictures
|