Why John Lennon Felt The Beatles’ ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ Was ‘Abysmal’
During an interview, John Lennon said he thought highly of The Beatles. Despite this, he felt The Beatles’ songs could have been much better, singling out “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” for criticism. He explained why he wished he could remake The Beatles’ songs.
John Lennon revealed what The Beatles thought of themselves
According to the book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono, John discussed The Beatles’ self-perception in a 1980 interview. “As far as we were concerned, we were the best, but we thought we were the best before anybody else had even heard of us, back in Hamburg and Liverpool,” he said.
“So in that respect, I think The Beatles are the best thing that ever happened in pop music, but you play me those tracks and I want to remake every damn one of them,” John added. “I heard ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ last night. It’s abysmal, you know?”
John Lennon felt The Beatles’ didn’t execute ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ properly
John explained why he didn’t enjoy “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” “The track is just terrible,” he opined. “I mean, it is a great track, a great song, but it isn’t a great track because it wasn’t made right. You know what I mean?”
John felt he could improve The Beatles’ songs. “I feel I could remake every f****** one of them better,” John said. “But that’s the artistic trip, isn’t it? That is why you keep going, always trying to make that next one the best.”
The way the world reacted to ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’
“Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” wasn’t a single, so it didn’t hit the Billboard Hot 100. The track appeared on The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band spent 15 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The album lasted 233 weeks on the chart.
According to The Official Charts Company, “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” didn’t chart in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band reached No. 1 in the U.K. for 28 weeks. The album spent 277 total weeks in the U.K.
“Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” made a significant impact on pop culture. Elton John released a cover of the song as a single. Miley Cyrus and Moby’s version of the song appeared on the Beatles tribute album With a Little Help from My Fwends. The Fab Four jukebox musical Across the Universe includes a cover of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” One of the musical’s lead characters is named after the song played by Evan Rachel Wood. “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” semed to connect with listeners even if John wasn’t a fan.
