Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Encyclopedia
"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song written primarily by John Lennon
and credited to Lennon–McCartney, for The Beatles'
1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
. This album became the biggest selling album of the 1960s and remains today the biggest selling studio album in countries as far apart as the UK and India.
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's nouns intentionally spelled LSD
. Although Lennon denied this, the BBC
banned the song.
In a 2004 interview, Paul McCartney said that the song is about LSD, stating, "A song like 'Got to Get You Into My Life
,' that's directly about pot, although everyone missed it at the time." "Day Tripper
," he says, "that's one about acid. 'Lucy in the Sky,' that's pretty obvious. There's others that make subtle hints about drugs, but, you know, it's easy to overestimate the influence of drugs on the Beatles' music."
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. It is sung by Lennon over an increasingly complicated underlying arrangement which features a tamboura, played by George Harrison
, and a counter melody on Lowrey organ
played by McCartney and taped with a special organ stop sounding "not unlike a celeste
".
Session tapes from the initial 1 March 1967 recording of this song reveal that 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.
Vodden died of the immune system disease lupus
in 2009.
magazine described the song as "Lennon's lavish daydream" 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." In a review for the BBC, Chris Jones described the song 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."
In later interviews, Lennon expressed disappointment with The Beatles' arrangement of the recording, complaining that inadequate time was taken to fully develop his initial idea for the song. He also said that he had not sung it very well. "I was so nervous I couldn't sing," he told the journalist Ray Connolly
, "but I like the lyrics."
", released on Magical Mystery Tour at the end of 1967, contains the lyric "see how they fly, like Lucy in the sky, see how they run...".
In November 1967 John Fred and his Playboy Band
released a parody/tribute song called "Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)
" which topped the US Billboard Hot 100
chart for two weeks and reached the number one spot in a number of other countries around the world.
Pink Floyd
namecheck "Lucy in the sky" on "Let There Be More Light", the opening song on A Saucerful Of Secrets
(1968). The lyrics are by Roger Waters
.
Played by the Grateful Dead from 1993, and subsequently played by "The Dead".
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 skies" became "Lucy in disguise" to the anthropologists, because they initially did not understand the impact of their discovery.
The White dwarf
star BPM 37093
, which contains a core of crystallised carbon roughly 4000 km in diameter, is informally named "Lucy" as a tribute to The Beatles' song.
One of the main characters of Hiro Mashima
's manga
Fairy Tail
, Lucy Heartfilia, takes her name from the song.
Jim Carrey
's character in the film Mr. Popper's Penguins
uses the first two lines of the song as a sales pitch to describe the establishment that his company plans on building, to take the place of an old restaurant.
In Runaways
, Karolina Dean
temporarily used Lucy in the Sky as her alias and later on, Xavin tells her that he told the band at their wedding to play "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" because it reminded him of her.
released a cover version as a single. Recorded at the Caribou Ranch
, it featured background 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 overtaken by The Carpenters
's version of the Motown hit "Please Mr. Postman
", a song covered, with Lennon singing the lead vocal, on With the Beatles
in 1963. It also appeared on the 1976 musical documentary, All This and World War II
.
The B-Side of the single was also a John Lennon composition, "One Day (At a Time)," a song from Lennon's 1973 album Mind Games
. As with the A-Side, Lennon appears on the B-Side, playing guitar. In the US it was certified Gold on 29 January 1975 by the RIAA
.
During their collaboration, Elton John appeared on John Lennon's song "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night
". Lennon promised to appear live with John at Madison Square Garden
if "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" became a number 1 single. 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
". 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 "28 November 1974," an Elton John EP. 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 said, "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 Elton John's repertoire until 1976. One notable one-off performance by Elton John took place on 9 October 1988, John Lennon's birthday. It also received a handful of performances in 1998, but has not been played live by Elton John since. Both the single and the B-side were later released on the 1995 re-release of his album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
and appear on various compilations.
It is the only Beatles cover song to reach #1 on the Billboard Chart.
There is also a version floating around obviously recorded for the Yellow Submarine film using the original track by the Beatles with Jeremy Hilary Boob Ph.D. singing the first half of the first verse with completely different lyrics.
The different lyrics are:
"Picture yourself just a nuclear fission with library cards and a metaphor skies. (laughter) Somebody quotes you, you read from the sourcebook, a concept with microphone eyes." (laughter)
It is unknown whether these lyrics were written by John Lennon or not.
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
and credited to Lennon–McCartney, for The Beatles'
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the eighth studio album by the English rock band The Beatles, released on 1 June 1967 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin...
. This album became the biggest selling album of the 1960s and remains today the biggest selling studio album in countries as far apart as the UK and India.
Lennon's son, Julian
Julian Lennon
John Charles Julian Lennon is an English musician, songwriter, actor, and photographer. He is the son of John Lennon and Lennon's first wife, Cynthia Powell. Beatles manager Brian Epstein was his godfather. He has a younger half-brother, Sean Lennon. Lennon was named after his paternal...
, 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's nouns intentionally spelled LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
. Although Lennon denied this, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
banned the song.
In a 2004 interview, Paul McCartney said that the song is about LSD, stating, "A song like 'Got to Get You Into My Life
Got to Get You into My Life
"Got to Get You into My Life" is a song by The Beatles, first released in 1966 on the album Revolver. Written by Paul McCartney , it made prominent use of a brass section...
,' that's directly about pot, although everyone missed it at the time." "Day Tripper
Day Tripper
"Day Tripper" is a song by The Beatles, released as a double A-side single with "We Can Work It Out". Both songs were recorded during the sessions for the Rubber Soul album...
," he says, "that's one about acid. 'Lucy in the Sky,' that's pretty obvious. There's others that make subtle hints about drugs, but, you know, it's easy to overestimate the influence of drugs on the Beatles' music."
Arrangement
Much of the song is in simple triple metre (3/4 time), but the chorusRefrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
is in 4/4 time. The song modulates between musical keys
Key (music)
In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...
, using the key of A major
A major
A major is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps.Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor...
for verses, B♭ major for the pre-chorus
Bridge (music)
In music, especially western popular music, a bridge is a contrasting section which also prepares for the return of the original material section...
, and G major
G major
G major is a major scale based on G, with the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has one sharp, F; in treble-clef key signatures, the sharp-symbol for F is usually placed on the first line from the top, though in some Baroque music it is placed on the first space from the bottom...
for the chorus. It is sung by Lennon over an increasingly complicated underlying arrangement which features a tamboura, played by George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
, and a counter melody on Lowrey organ
Lowrey organ
The Lowrey organ is an electronic organ named after Chicago industrialist Frederick Lowrey.During the 1960s and 1970s, Lowrey was the largest manufacturer of electronic organs in the world. In 1989, the Lowrey Organ Company produced its 1,000,000th organ....
played by McCartney and taped with a special organ stop sounding "not unlike a celeste
Celesta
The celesta or celeste is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. Its appearance is similar to that of an upright piano or of a large wooden music box . The keys are connected to hammers which strike a graduated set of metal plates suspended over wooden resonators...
".
Session tapes from the initial 1 March 1967 recording of this song reveal that Lennon originally sang the line "Cellophane
Cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria and water makes it useful for food packaging...
flowers of yellow and green" as a broken phrase, but McCartney suggested that he sing it more fluidly to improve the song.
Julian'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", depicting his classmate, Lucy O'Donnell. Julian 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..." Lucy Vodden née O'Donnell, in a BBC radio interview in 2007, said, "I remember Julian and I both doing pictures on a double-sided easel, throwing paint at each other, much to the horror of the classroom attendant... Julian had painted a picture and on that particular day his father turned up with the chauffeur to pick him up from school." Lennon said he was surprised at the idea that the song title was a hidden reference to LSD.Vodden died of the immune system disease lupus
Lupus
Lupus most commonly refers to the disease systemic lupus erythematosus.Lupus may also refer to:-Medicine:* Lupus erythematosus, a chronic autoimmune disease with several different forms...
in 2009.
Reviews
Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine described the song as "Lennon's lavish daydream" and music critic Richie Unterberger
Richie Unterberger
Richie Unterberger is a US author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing.-Life and writing:Having worked as a DJ at WXPN in Philadelphia, he started reviewing records for Op magazine in 1983...
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." In a review for the BBC, Chris Jones described the song 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."
In later interviews, Lennon expressed disappointment with The Beatles' arrangement of the recording, complaining that inadequate time was taken to fully develop his initial idea for the song. He also said that he had not sung it very well. "I was so nervous I couldn't sing," he told the journalist Ray Connolly
Ray Connolly
Ray Connolly is an English novelist, screenwriter and journalist.He is perhaps best known for writing the screenplays for the films That’ll Be the Day and the sequel Stardust and for his many interviews with the Beatles...
, "but I like the lyrics."
Legacy
The song has the distinction of being the first Beatles recording to be referenced by the group themselves: the second verse of Lennon's "I Am the WalrusI Am the Walrus
"I Am the Walrus" is a 1967 song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. Lennon claimed he wrote the first two lines on separate acid trips. The song was in the Beatles' 1967 television film and album Magical Mystery Tour, and was the B-side to the #1 hit "Hello,...
", released on Magical Mystery Tour at the end of 1967, contains the lyric "see how they fly, like Lucy in the sky, see how they run...".
In November 1967 John Fred and his Playboy Band
John Fred
John Fred was a blue-eyed soul, Cajun swamp pop and bubble-gum pop performer from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, best known for the song, "Judy in Disguise ".-Career:...
released a parody/tribute song called "Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)
Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)
"Judy in Disguise " is a song that was a hit for the Louisiana-based John Fred and his Playboy Band in early 1968. The song was co-written with bandmate Andrew Bernard. According to The Billboard Book of Number One Hits by Fred Bronson, the song was inspired by Fred's listening to The Beatles' hit,...
" which topped the US Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart for two weeks and reached the number one spot in a number of other countries around the world.
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
namecheck "Lucy in the sky" on "Let There Be More Light", the opening song on A Saucerful Of Secrets
A Saucerful of Secrets
A Saucerful of Secrets is the second studio album by the English rock group Pink Floyd. It was recorded at EMI's Abbey Road Studios on various dates from August 1967 to April 1968...
(1968). The lyrics are by Roger Waters
Roger Waters
George Roger Waters is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. He was a founding member of the progressive rock band Pink Floyd, serving as bassist and co-lead vocalist. Following the departure of bandmate Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became the band's lyricist, principal songwriter...
.
Played by the Grateful Dead from 1993, and subsequently played by "The Dead".
A 3.2 million year-old, 40% complete fossil skeleton
Lucy (Australopithecus)
Lucy is the common name of AL 288-1, several hundred pieces of bone representing about 40% of the skeleton of an individual Australopithecus afarensis. The specimen was discovered in 1974 at Hadar in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar Depression. Lucy is estimated to have lived 3.2 million years...
of an Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus afarensis is an extinct hominid that lived between 3.9 and 2.9 million years ago. A. afarensis was slenderly built, like the younger Australopithecus africanus. It is thought that A...
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 skies" became "Lucy in disguise" to the anthropologists, because they initially did not understand the impact of their discovery.
The White dwarf
White dwarf
A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a small star composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. They are very dense; a white dwarf's mass is comparable to that of the Sun and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth. Its faint luminosity comes from the emission of stored...
star BPM 37093
BPM 37093
BPM 37093 is a variable white dwarf star of the DAV, or ZZ Ceti, type, with a hydrogen atmosphere and an unusually high mass of approximately 1.1 times the Sun's. It is about 50 light-years from Earth, in the constellation Centaurus, and vibrates; these pulsations cause its luminosity to vary...
, which contains a core of crystallised carbon roughly 4000 km in diameter, is informally named "Lucy" as a tribute to The Beatles' song.
One of the main characters of Hiro Mashima
Hiro Mashima
is a Japanese manga artist. He is most known for his fantasy manga Groove Adventure Rave, published by Kodansha's Weekly Shonen Magazine, from 1999 to 2005. The series was later adapted into an anime. However, the anime adaption was cancelled before it could complete the series.In 2003, he...
's manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
Fairy Tail
Fairy Tail
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It has been serialized in Weekly Shōnen Magazine since August 23, 2006, and has been published by Kodansha in 29 tankōbon volumes . An ongoing anime produced by A-1 Pictures and Satelight was released in Japan on October 12, 2009,...
, Lucy Heartfilia, takes her name from the song.
Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey
James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
's character in the film Mr. Popper's Penguins
Mr. Popper's Penguins (film)
Mr. Popper's Penguins is a live-action family comedy film distributed by 20th Century Fox starring Jim Carrey, based on the children's book of the same name. The film was originally slated for a release on August 12, 2011, but was moved up to June 17, 2011....
uses the first two lines of the song as a sales pitch to describe the establishment that his company plans on building, to take the place of an old restaurant.
In Runaways
Runaways (comics)
Runaways is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series features a group of teenagers who discover that their parents are part of an evil crime group called the Pride. Created by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona, the series debuted in April of 2003 as part of Marvel Comics'...
, Karolina Dean
Karolina Dean
Karolina Dean , also briefly known as Lucy in the Sky, is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics award-winning series, Runaways. She was created by author Brian K. Vaughan & artist Adrian Alphona, and debuted in Runaways #1 with most of the other main characters...
temporarily used Lucy in the Sky as her alias and later on, Xavin tells her that he told the band at their wedding to play "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" because it reminded him of her.
Personnel
The persons responsible for the song are as follows.- John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
– pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, double-trackedDoubletrackingDouble tracking is an audio recording technique in which a performer sings or plays along with their own prerecorded performance, usually to produce a stronger or "bigger" sound than can be obtained with a single voice or instrument. It is a form of overdubbing; the distinction comes from the...
lead vocalLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the... - Paul McCartneyPaul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
– Lowrey organLowrey organThe Lowrey organ is an electronic organ named after Chicago industrialist Frederick Lowrey.During the 1960s and 1970s, Lowrey was the largest manufacturer of electronic organs in the world. In 1989, the Lowrey Organ Company produced its 1,000,000th organ....
, bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, harmony vocalBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... - George HarrisonGeorge HarrisonGeorge Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
– acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, tamburaTamburaThe tambura, tanpura, or tambora is a long-necked plucked lute . The body shape of the tambura somewhat resembles that of the sitar, but it has no frets – only the open strings are played to accompany other musicians...
, sitarSitarThe 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages... - Ringo StarrRingo StarrRichard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, maracasMaracásMaracás is a town and municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil.-References:...
Elton John
In 1974, Elton JohnElton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
released a cover version as a single. Recorded at the Caribou Ranch
Caribou Ranch
Caribou Ranch was a recording studio built by producer James William Guercio in 1972 in a converted barn on ranch property in the Rocky Mountains near Nederland, Colorado, on the road that leads to the ghost town of Caribou...
, it featured background vocals and guitar by John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
under the pseudonym Dr. Winston O'Boogie (Winston being Lennon's middle name
Middle name
People's names in several cultures include one or more additional names placed between the first given name and the surname. In Canada and the United States all such names are specifically referred to as middle name; in most European countries they would simply be regarded as second, third, etc....
). The single topped the US Billboard pop charts for two weeks in January 1975 as well as the Canadian RPM
RPM (magazine)
RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,...
national singles chart for four weeks spanning January and February, eventually overtaken by The Carpenters
The Carpenters
Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo, consisting of sister Karen and brother Richard Carpenter. The Carpenters were the #1 selling American music act of the 1970s. Though often referred to by the public as "The Carpenters", the duo's official name on authorized recordings and...
's version of the Motown hit "Please Mr. Postman
Please Mr. Postman
"Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr...
", a song covered, with Lennon singing the lead vocal, on With the Beatles
With the Beatles
With The Beatles is the second studio album by the English rock group The Beatles. It was released on 22 November 1963 on Parlophone, and was recorded four months after the band's debut Please Please Me...
in 1963. It also appeared on the 1976 musical documentary, All This and World War II
All This and World War II
All This and World War II is a 1976 musical documentary that juxtaposes Beatles songs, performed by a number of musicians, with World War II newsreel footage and 20th Century Fox films from the 1940s...
.
The B-Side of the single was also a John Lennon composition, "One Day (At a Time)," a song from Lennon's 1973 album Mind Games
Mind Games
Mind Games is John Lennon's fourth post-Beatles album, and was recorded and released in 1973. Like his previous album, the politically topical and somewhat abrasive Some Time in New York City, Mind Games was poorly received by music critics...
. As with the A-Side, Lennon appears on the B-Side, playing guitar. In the US it was certified Gold on 29 January 1975 by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
.
During their collaboration, Elton John appeared on John Lennon's song "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night
Whatever Gets You thru the Night
"Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" is a song written by John Lennon, released as a single in 1974 on Apple Records, catalogue Apple 1874 in the United States and Apple R5998 in the United Kingdom. It peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #36 on the British singles chart...
". Lennon promised to appear live with John at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
if "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" became a number 1 single. 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
I Saw Her Standing There
"I Saw Her Standing There" is a song written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, and is the opening track on The Beatles' debut album, Please Please Me, released in the United Kingdom by Parlophone on 22 March 1963....
". 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
Philadelphia Freedom (song)
"Philadelphia Freedom" is a song released by Elton John as a single in 1975. The song was one of John's numerous number-one U.S. hit singles during the early and mid-1970s, which saw his recordings dominating the charts. In Canada, it was his eighth single to hit the top of the RPM national...
" single. In 1981, all three live songs were issued on "28 November 1974," an Elton John EP. In 1990, the three songs were made available on the Lennon
Lennon (album)
Lennon is a four CD box set featuring many of John Lennon's solo songs and was released in 1990.Compiled by the foremost authority on The Beatles, Mark Lewisohn, Lennon emcompasses generous samples from his single-only releases, and his albums from Live Peace In Toronto 1969 to Menlove Ave.Lennon,...
box set. In 1996, they were also included on the remastered edition of Elton John's Here and There album.
Elton John once said, "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
Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)
"Empty Garden " is a hit ballad from British pop-rock performer Elton John's 1982 album Jump Up!. It reached number 13 in the US singles chart. He dedicated the song in memory of the late Beatle, John Lennon, who had been murdered by an obsessed fan in front of his New York City apartment on...
".
It was a part of Elton John's repertoire until 1976. One notable one-off performance by Elton John took place on 9 October 1988, John Lennon's birthday. It also received a handful of performances in 1998, but has not been played live by Elton John since. Both the single and the B-side were later released on the 1995 re-release of his album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy is the ninth studio album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released in 1975. It debuted at number 1 on the U.S. Pop Albums chart, the first album ever to do so, and stayed there for seven weeks. It was certified Gold on 5/21/1975 and was...
and appear on various compilations.
It is the only Beatles cover song to reach #1 on the Billboard Chart.
Others
- In 1968, William ShatnerWilliam ShatnerWilliam Alan Shatner is a Canadian actor, musician, recording artist, and author. He gained worldwide fame and became a cultural icon for his portrayal of James T...
on The Transformed ManThe Transformed ManThe Transformed Man is actor William Shatner's debut album. It was released in 1968, while Shatner was still starring in the original Star Trek series, and began his musical career. The concept of the album was to juxtapose famous pieces of poetry with their modern counterparts, pop lyrics...
. - In 1978, Natalie ColeNatalie ColeNatalie Maria Cole , is an American singer, songwriter and performer. The daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, Cole rode to musical success in the mid-1970s as an R&B artist with the hits "This Will Be ", "Inseparable" and "Our Love"...
on the album Natalie Live!. - In 1987, The HootersThe HootersThe Hooters is an American rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. By combining a mix of rock and roll, reggae, ska and folk music, The Hooters first gained major commercial success in the United States in the mid 1980s due to heavy radio and MTV airplay of several songs including "All You...
as a B-Side to "Johnny B." - In 1988, The Christians on the charity compilation album Sgt. Pepper Knew My FatherSgt. Pepper Knew My FatherSgt. Pepper Knew My Father is a 1988 multi-artist compilation of 1980s artists recording new versions of the songs on The Beatles album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. The album was produced by the New Musical Express to raise money for Childline, the charity founded by the now-defunct BBC...
. - In 1992, Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids parodied the song as "Luci in the Sky with Demons" on the cassette tape The Family Jams.
- In 2001, The Black CrowesThe Black CrowesThe Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in 1989. Their discography includes nine studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the...
on the soundtrack of the movie I Am SamI Am SamI Am Sam is a 2001 American drama film written and directed by Jessie Nelson, and starring Sean Penn as a father with a developmental disability, Dakota Fanning as his inquisitive seven-year-old daughter, and Michelle Pfeiffer as his lawyer...
. - In 2003, Hyde on the single "Horizon".
- In 2005, Katie MeluaKatie MeluaKetevan "Katie" Melua is a British-Georgian singer, songwriter and musician. She moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then to England at fourteen. Melua is signed to the small Dramatico record label, under the management of composer Mike Batt, and made her musical debut in 2003...
on Piece by Piece. - In 2006, PUFFYPuffyPuffy can refer to one of the following:* Puffy or Puffy AmiYumi , a Japanese pop duo** Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi, animation series about fictional adventures of Puffy AmiYumi** Puffy: P.S...
on the "Hataraku OtokoHataraku Otoko"Hataraku Otoko" is a single by Japanese pop duo Puffy AmiYumi released on November 22nd, 2006. The title song is used as the theme to the anime series Hataraki Man.The single's tracks are all Puffy cover songs originally from different bands...
" single, for the animeAnimeis the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series Hataraki ManHataraki Manis a manga by Moyoco Anno, serialised in the seinen magazine Morning. It has been adapted into a TV anime, which screened in Japan from October to December 2006 and a drama that aired from October 2007 to December 2007. The story centres on 28-year old Hiroko Matsukata, editor at the magazine...
. - In 2007, BonoBonoPaul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
and The EdgeThe EdgeDavid Howell Evans , more widely known by his stage name The Edge , is a musician best known as the guitarist, backing vocalist, and keyboardist of the Irish rock band U2. A member of the group since its inception, he has recorded 12 studio albums with the band and has released one solo record...
performed the song on the Across the UniverseAcross the Universe (film)Across the Universe is a musical romantic drama film directed by Julie Taymor, produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures. The film's plot is centered around songs by The Beatles. It was released in the United States on October 12, 2007. The script is based on an original...
soundtrack. - In 2009, Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub BandEasy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub BandEasy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band is a dub reggae tribute to The Beatles' album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, by the Easy Star All-Stars. It was released on April 14, 2009. The album is lovingly dedicated to Lucy Rice, a friend of the band, and the mother of one of the album engineers,...
. - In 2009, Cheap TrickCheap TrickCheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...
released Sgt. Pepper LiveSgt. Pepper LiveSgt. Pepper Live is a performance by American band Cheap Trick with a full orchestra which was released on 25 August 2009, in commemoration of the forty-second anniversary of the release of the historic album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles. Both a live album and a companion...
, which included the song. - In 2009, Cobra StarshipCobra StarshipCobra Starship is an American synthpop band created by former Midtown bassist and lead vocalist Gabe Saporta in 2003 in New York City, New York...
released Living in The Sky With Diamonds, a reference to the song.
There is also a version floating around obviously recorded for the Yellow Submarine film using the original track by the Beatles with Jeremy Hilary Boob Ph.D. singing the first half of the first verse with completely different lyrics.
The different lyrics are:
"Picture yourself just a nuclear fission with library cards and a metaphor skies. (laughter) Somebody quotes you, you read from the sourcebook, a concept with microphone eyes." (laughter)
It is unknown whether these lyrics were written by John Lennon or not.