Most people would love to be the subject of a classic rock song. On the other hand, John Lennon’s son, Julian Lennon, has mixed feelings about The Beatles’ “Hey Jude.” He connected the song to his decision to follow in his father’s footsteps. John’s interpretation of “Hey Jude” conflicted with Paul McCartney’s.
John Lennon’s son said Paul McCartney wrote The Beatles’ ‘Hey Jude’ for him and his mom
During a 2023 interview with Esquire, Julian discussed how “Hey Jude” connected to himself and his mother, Cynthia Lennon. “It was ‘Hey Jules’ at first, but that didn’t quite sit well rhythmically,” he said. “‘Hey Jude’ was a better interpretation. Paul wrote it to console Mum, and also to console me.”
Julian has mixed emotions about the power ballad. “It’s a beautiful sentiment, no question about that, and I’m very thankful — but I’ve also been driven up the wall by it,” he revealed. “I love the fact that he wrote a song about me and for Mum, but depending on what side of the bed one woke up on, and where you’re hearing it, it can be a good or a slightly frustrating thing. But in my heart of hearts, there’s not a bad word I could say about it.”
Julian Lennon said some of The Beatles’ lyrics are ‘pertinent’ in the modern day
Julian still related to “Hey Jude.” “The lyrics are pertinent even now,” he opined. “They’re about making life better and taking the weight off my shoulders, especially on the path I followed as a musician — following Dad. It’s like, ‘What are you, crazy? Why would you do that?’”
Julian felt that being a musician was difficult for him. In recent years, he’s embraced some of his other passions, such as photography. However, Julian feels music will always be part of him. To this day, he is probably most famous for releasing the hit single “Too Late for Goodbyes” from his 1984 debut record Valotte.
John Lennon felt Paul McCartney wrote ‘Hey Jude’ about him
The book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono includes an interview from 1980. In it, John acknowledged that Paul said “Hey Jude” was about Julian. John proposed that “Hey Jude” was about him instead. John said Paul was upset that the Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership was in the process of breaking up, but Paul also wanted John to live his life freely. The “Imagine” singer felt that the song’s empowering lyrics were Paul giving him permission to move on with his life.
John said he had nothing to do with the writing of “Hey Jude” and he gave Paul all of the credit for writing the song. In John’s opinion, the lyrics of “Hey Jude” did not resolve themselves. He had similar opinions about The Beatles’ “Yesterday,” another classic ballad Paul wrote. Despite this, he still considered “Hey Jude” one of Paul’s masterworks.
Julian has mixed feelings toward “Hey Jude” but he and John both had kind words for it.
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