John Lennon Said He Loved Elvis, but He Had a Strange Way of Showing It
The Beatles changed everything about the pop music landscape, but not without some help from musicians who preceded them. Artists such as Elvis Presley, Little Richard, and Ray Charles inspired the Fab Four and countless other English musicians of that era. John Lennon said there wouldn’t have been The Beatles without Elvis. Paul McCartney praised John as the Elvis of The Beatles. Likewise, John praised Elvis for inspiring The Beatles’ music, but he had a strange way of showing his admiration.
John Lennon loved Elvis Presley and once said he was the reason The Beatles existed
John and Paul became prolific songwriters as their careers progressed. Yet The Beatles covered songs by many artists early in their run. Elvis was one of them. After all, John said Elvis Presley was the reason The Beatles existed in the first place.
“Nothing really affected me until I heard Elvis,” John once said, according to The Beatles: Here, There and Everywhere author Nancy Hajeski. “If there hadn’t been an Elvis, there wouldn’t have been The Beatles.”
Unsurprisingly, the Fab Four worked several songs by The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll into their repertoire. John and The Beatles covered the Elvis songs “I Forgot to Remember to Forget,” “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down And Cry (Over You),” “That’s All Right (Mama),” and “I Got a Woman” during their frequent BBC Radio appearances in the early 1960s.
The King’s music helped shape The Beatles. John loved Elvis but had a strange way of showing his love for the music icon.
John displayed his love for Elvis in a strange way — by repeatedly calling out his music
John loved Elvis Presley and said he was a primary influence on The Beatles. Without him, there would be no Fab Four. John admitted Elvis’ first record was one of the few he listened to all the way through (per his Twitter account).
But John had a strange way of showing his love for Elvis. He repeatedly denigrated The King.
- The Beatles guitarist called out Elvis’ song “(You’re the) Devil in Disguise” during a 1963 TV appearance. The show, Jukebox, asked guests to rate songs and artists as a hit or miss. John said that tune was a miss as the lyrics and the beat didn’t suit him.
- Elvis was a huge influence on John, but his love faded, and it didn’t even take that long. While still a schoolboy, one of his friends played the Little Richard song “Long Tall Sally” for him. John said the tune was better than anything Elvis recorded, and he soon found Little Richard to be a larger inspiration on his music.
- John once became irritated when Paul tested out an Elvis cover during The Beatles’ Hamburg days. Macca worked out a piano arrangement of “It’s Now or Never,” and John said he had “no time for this s***.” He might have been directing his ire toward Paul, but John didn’t hesitate to use Elvis’ music as the vehicle for his outburst.
Let’s not forget John insulted Elvis to his face in his own home the only time The Beatles met him. John said his love of Elvis led directly to The Beatles, but he showed his admiration by repeatedly calling out The King and his music.
The Beatles’ guitarist didn’t love all his admiration for The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll
John expressed his Elvis love in strange ways over the years. He found other inspirations for his songwriting, but The Beatles’ guitarist never lost all his admiration for The King.
The “Yeah, yeah, yeah” portions of The Beatles’ “She Loves You” came from early rock ‘n’ roll pioneers. In that way, Elvis inspired the Fab Four’s No. 1 hit. There were those numerous covers The Beatles performed, a way to spread Elvis’ work and their love for it to the masses. John showed his passion for Elvis by buying 10 copies of “Heartbreak Hotel” when new versions of the single became available. He wasn’t necessarily happy about repeatedly shelling out, but he did it anyway.
John Lennon loved Elvis Presley’s music, which directly inspired The Beatles. He showed that passion in a strange way but never fully lost his admiration for the rock ‘n’ roll pioneer.
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