Paul McCartney Wrote The Beatles’ ‘Your Mother Should Know’ Because He Hates Generation Gaps

The Beatles‘ “Your Mother Should Know” was inspired by Paul McCartney’s interactions with his aunt. In addition, it was supposed to advocate peace between generations. Notably, its message was really out of step with the 1960s counterculture.

The Beatles’ ‘Your Mother Should Know’ was inspired by Paul McCartney’s aunt

In the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Paul discussed the origin of “Your Mother Should Know.” “My Aunty Jin and Uncle Harry and a couple of relatives were staying and they were in the living room just across the hall, so I just went to the dining room and spent a few hours with the door open with them listening,” he recalled.

This environment inspired him to write “Your Mother Should Know.” He felt the song was “basic.” Paul felt he probably wouldn’t have written it if Aunty Jin wasn’t nearby.

The Beatles’ song was about how ‘your mother might know more than you think’

Paul said there was a meaning behind “Your Mother Should Know.” “I’ve always hated generation gaps,” he added. “I always feel sorry for a parent or a child that doesn’t understand each other. A mother not being understood by her child is particularly sad because the mother went through pain to have that child, and so there is this incredible bond of motherly love, like an animal bond between them, but because we mess things up so readily they have one argument and hate each other for the rest of their lives.”

In its own way, “Your Mother Should Know” was another Beatles peace anthem. “So I was advocating peace between the generations,” Paul said. “In ‘Your Mother Should Know’ I was basically trying to say your mother might know more than you think she does. Give her credit.”

‘Your Mother Should Know’ stands in contrast to how the counterculture viewed parents

“Your Mother Should Know” is precisely the sort of Beatles song only Paul could have written. Like “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer,” “Honey Pie,” and “Martha My Dear,” it’s an attempt to revive the music hall genre. None of the other Beatles or other rockers of the time were as committed to that style of music.

What really makes “Your Mother Should Know” stand out from other 1960s songs is its attitude toward the older generation. It advocates a cross-generational bond with children and their mothers at a time when the youth were particularly distrustful of authority.

Compare “Your Mother Should Know” to The Rolling Stones’ “Mother’s Little Helper.” The latter is also about mothers, but it’s a mean song that downplays the struggles of motherhood. “Mother’s Little Helper” portrays the Baby Boomers’ parents as contemptible hypocrites, while “Your Mother Should Know” is more conciliatory. While The Beatles were often innovative, “Your Mother Should Know” shows they could be traditional in more ways than one. Notably, the song is accompanied by an old-school Hollywood dance number in the film Magical Mystery Tour.

“Your Mother Should Know” has an interesting meaning even if it was out-of-step with the times.