John Lennon Said He Acted Like ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ While Making This Album

One John Lennon album is most famous for producing a cover of a sweet love song. Ironically, John said he acted like horror movie characters Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde while recording the album. Here’s a look at the impact of the song John covered.

John Lennon acted like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde while creating an album of standards

In 1975, John released a record called Rock ‘n’ Roll. It was a collection of standards from the 1950s and 1960s, the most famous being Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me.” During a 1980 interview from the book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono, John discussed how Rock ‘n’ Roll came together.

“It was such a mess that I can hardly remember what happened,” he explained. “I was away from Yoko and I wanted to come back. I did, once I got sober; when I was still drunk, I would just ramble on or scream abuse at her or beg her to come back, between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I don’t know what I was saying or doing half the time.”

The ‘Imagine’ singer wasn’t always respectful to Yoko Ono but he felt she was very smart

After that, John revealed what he thought of Yoko as a person. “Unfortunately, she’s almost always right, although she doesn’t need to remind me of it over and over [chuckling],” he said. “Jesus, she’s a lot smarter than I am — a lot more intelligent. Most women are innately more intelligent than men, I think. 

“And Yoko’s specifically bright,” he added. “I mean, you can see that yourself, and to live with her is to live with a searchlight. It keeps me awake. But sometimes you don’t wanna be awake. I mean, it’s too much. You wanna be a fool. I do.”

John Lennon’s ‘Stand by Me’ is only 1 part of the tune’s huge cultural impact

While Rock ‘n’ Roll was a hassle to record, John’s version of “Stand by Me” remains one of his most famous solo songs — and certainly the most famous cover he recorded without The Beatles. The original track was co-written by King, Jerry Leiber, and Mike Stoller. Leiber and Stoller were most known for writing Elvis Presley singles such as “Jailhouse Rock,” “Hound Dog,” and “She’s Not You.”

During a 2018 interview with Variety, Stoller said all three writers of “Stand by Me” were very proud of the song. Stoller expressed sadness that King and Leiber were not around to see how big “Stand by Me” would become. Notably, both songwriters were alive when John put out his cover in 1975. The track would go on to be covered by Imagine Dragons, Mickey Gilley, U2, Bruce Springsteen, and Otis Redding. Sean Kingston even swamped it in his massive hit single “Beautiful Girls.” “Stand by Me” was also included in the musical Smokey Joe’s Café.

John acted like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde but “Stand by Me” proved he could sing like an angel.