The Beatles biographer reveals exclusive original manuscripts of some of the best pop songs ever written
Reading the words now, and probably trying too hard to work out exactly what he [John] is trying to say, it would seem the message is simple: work hard, bring the money home, and you will get marital bliss. There is a slight hint of a chauvinism when he moans that he is working all day for money so she can have things. Maureen Cleave of the London Evening Standard was one of the first journalists to write intelligently and revealingly about The Beatles. She happened to be interviewing John on the day they were to record the song and went with him to Abbey Road in a taxi. During the journey, John showed her the words of the song, written down on an old birthday card given to [his son] Julian – he had recently had his first birthday – with an illustration of a little boy on a toy train.
“I said to him that I thought one line of the song was rather feeble. It originally said: ‘But when I get home to you, I find my tiredness is through, then I feel all right’. Seizing my pen, John immediately changed the second line of it and came up with the slightly suggestive: ‘I find the things that you do, will make me feel all right’.” The lyrics of “A Hard Day’s Night” received a deft backhanded compliment when Peter Sellers produced a record in which he recited all the words in the manner of Laurence Olivier declaiming Shakespeare. It was very convincing.
Source: The Independent, UK
