Paul McCartney Shared How John Lennon Improved 'I Am the Walrus'
“I Am the Walrus” is one of The Beatles’ most bizarre and surreal tracks. The song was written by John Lennon, who, according to Paul McCartney, also provided many of the weirder moments that improved the track.
“I Am the Walrus” debuted in 1967 as a part of The Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour movie and album. The song features some of the band’s more surreal and nonsensical lyrics. The track was inspired by the work of Lewis Carroll, specifically The Walrus and the Carpenter story from Through the Looking Glass. In the 1980 Playboy interview, John Lennon said the inspiration for “I Am the walrus” came to him during two acid trips.
“The first line was written on one acid trip one weekend. The second line was written on the next acid trip the next weekend, and it was filled in after I met Yoko,” Lennon shared. “Part of it was putting down Hare Krishna. All these people were going on about Hare Krishna, Allen Ginsberg in particular. The reference to ‘Element’ry penguin’ is the elementary, naive attitude of going around chanting, ‘Hare Krishna,’ or putting all your faith in any one idol.”
Source: Ross Tanenbaum/cheatsheet.com
