What I think the promise made between John and Paul included:
Eternal love -> each one of them should love the other forever -> Get Enough
Friendship and loyalty -> Another Girl, Coming Up
They couldn't have other serious relationships -> John broke this rule when he got with Yoko, or at least that what Paul thought, and challenged it with his other relationships: Stuart and Brian -> Yvonne's The One, Tell Me Who He Is, She Loves You -> this rule breaks after the partner's death though -> Turned Out
They couldn't reveal their relationship or sexuality to the public -> or at least until society would get less homophobic. Their approach would be "keep the public guessing". John kind of broke this rule talking more openly about his sexuality in the last years of his life -> Did You Have To Confess
They should try to fight for a more inclusive world so that they could be open about their relationship through the power of love -> Tug Of War, The Lovers That Never Were, Through Our Love, Motor Of Love
A secret code through which they could communicate -> they would use code words in their songs and irl when talking about their relationship -> Press, Fuh You, Dominoes, Days We Left Behind
A psychic connection -> they believed that they would acquire a sort of mental connection through their pact, that would transcend death. For this reason Paul still refers to John as if he was still alive in songs and in his mind and he still asks him for advice and is waiting for a message from him -> Fine Line, Through Our Love, The Lover That Never Were -> Paul sees dead John as some sort of god-like figure he depends on -> This One, Motor Of Love, Follow Me
Notice: The word "LOVE" has a particular significance for them. For them love had a special power that could free people, bring light to the world (this is often expressed with the word sunshine) and lead to a better and more inclusive society -> The Word, All You Need Is Love, Through Our Love, Motor Of Love, Getting Better -> this idea was Paul's initially, but John came to accept it afterwards and it helped him a bit with self-acceptance
I think another rule was not to reveal that the songs they wrote were about each other, and either say they weren't about anyone in particular or that they were about their current partner
The psychic connection also and most importantly includes being in contact with each other through dreams. In Things We Said Today these verses explain how deeply they believed in this:
You say you will love me
If I have to go
You'll be thinking of me
Somehow I will know
Someday when we're dreaming
Deep in love, not a lot to say
Then we will remember
Things we said today
Paul still deeply believes in this, and I wouldn't be surprised if he still dreams about John almost every day. He feels like he can reconnect with him in this way, and this is why Paul always says things like "I still feel like he's in my head". He uses dreams as a mean to 'get in contact' with John, and he expressed this in many of his songs:
Motor Of Love
I can't get over your love
No matter how hard life seems,
There's a light in my dreams
Thanks to you
I Owe It All To You
Last night you helped me through,
Took me to the lovers zone.
I saw there, images
Projected on a wall of stone.
I stood inside Egyptian temples,
I looked into eternal gardens,
Lay on the shores of distant islands,
Listening to the sea birds song of joy
Beautiful Night
Things can go wrong, things can go right
Things can go bump, in the dead of the night
So let me be there, let me be there
Let me be there with you in the dead of the night
Make it a beautiful night for me
It's a beautiful night for love
And Paul is waiting for approval from John to 'go along with his plan', which is waiting for something to happen to reveal their secret, and in the meantime "keep the public guessing" about the nature of their relationship by putting little messages in his songs.
And I wouldn't mind knowing, knowing
That you wouldn't mind going
Going along with my plan
When it will be right? I don't know
What it will be like? I don't know
We live in hope of deliverance
From the darkness that surrounds us
I think that now Paul is feeling more like opening up to those who are willing to listen...
I can tell the truth if you wanna hear
What I have to say
(...)
I don't wanna hide
I think it's pretty moving that he feels so comfortable now saying this, because he's been hiding almost all his life:
For me to lie when I don't have to lie
Could get me into trouble
But I've been keeping out of trouble for a long time now
Sometimes I'd rather run and hide,
Than stay and face the fear inside
But he's staying (which means keep loving John ig), and he's never gone away:
I'll be there 'til the end
I never need to go
He's inviting us to come inside his mind and listen to what he wants to tell us:
Well, step right up and take a look
See what you can find
'Cause all my life's an open book
Come inside my mind
I think he still wants to be sure he has John's approval though:
You got to let me know what you wanna do
This is because he wants to decide together with him, and he thinks that he'll know if John thinks he took the right decision, because he thinks that his spirit kinda has merged with his and he's still alive in his head:
Whatever we decide is right
Somehow, we're bound to know
As I said he still dreams about him (in the original lyric sheet he writes "I've always dreamt of you", and in a way it's true because before meeting him he was dreaming about finding a soulmate → Like Dreamers Do), and thinks about the things they can do together, and I think he's referring of the things they planned, but he uses the present tense because he thinks that whatever he does John is with him:
Last night I dreamed of you
And all that we could do
Together, side by side
We two can do
I think he wants to reveal some things without revealing the secret or breaking the promise.
I’m wondering why you are willing to take Paul’s explanation of some of his new songs literally, when we know he frequently lies about these things? I’m not saying As You Lie There is definitely not about Jasmine, but I don’t think we should dismiss the possibility that it’s about John.
I never said that I completely dismissed the possibility that As You Lie There could be about John. Anyone who reads my blog knows that I’m often skeptical of many of the explanations Paul gives for his songs. I frequently point out the inconsistencies, contradictions, evasiveness, and the way his stories sometimes change over time whenever he discusses the inspirations behind his music. In my previous post, I said that at first I wasn’t entirely convinced by the Jasmine story because I had read that “Jasmine” was an exceptionally rare name in Liverpool at the time. But then I found out that there actually was a Jasmine living in Paul’s neighborhood, and people even reached out to her after the song came out. She confirmed that she knew who Paul was back then, though they rarely — if ever — interacted. She also said she had no idea he liked her. So when I go back to the lyrics, in my opinion they make much more sense as a song about a boy having a crush on a girl who barely knows him, or doesn’t realize he likes her at all. Paul talks about walking past her house often and looking up at her window every night. It really sounds like he’s describing somebody who lived very close to him and whom he could quietly observe from nearby. That doesn’t really sound like John to me. John lived about two miles away. Paul also says in the song that he had only met her "once".
Now, could Paul have been thinking of more than one person while writing the song, or could a song that begins about one person slowly morph into another? Definitely. I actually think that happened in Two of Us and in his poem Rocking On, where elements of both John and Linda seem intertwined. So I don’t completely dismiss the possibility that some lines in As You Lie There may also carry echoes of John. I also think Paul often adds details to songs that are not necessarily meant literally, but are there to strengthen the emotion and structure of the piece and make it feel fuller or more dramatic. Lines like “I like to think we could be together forever” or "Just say the word and we can be together forever", very likely don’t reflect how intensely he truly felt about a girl he barely knew at the time (much less how he feels about her now). But phrases like that help transform the song into a proper romantic ballad.
So I do think the main inspiration behind the song was Jasmine. Honestly, almost none of the lyrics really scream “John” to me, or contain anything that could only apply to John specifically. I just don’t see it. I respect everybody’s opinion, but personally I don’t hear it in this one. Yes, Paul lies often. He has admitted that himself, and it’s especially true when he discusses the inspirations behind certain songs. But that doesn’t automatically mean that everything he says is false. And this album is not only about John. It’s about Paul’s childhood, the early days, his parents, his friends, the people he grew up with, and the world that shaped him. So it also makes perfect sense that he would write a song inspired by an old childhood crush. If you think about it, the chances of Paul randomly coming up the name “Jasmine,” only for it to later turn out that there actually was a girl named Jasmine living near his house, are very small, considering how exceptionally rare, almost nonexistent, the name was in 40s and 50s Liverpool. That coincidence would be very difficult to dismiss. And I don’t mind this song not being about John. I’m more than satisfied with We Two, Never Know, and Lost Horizon. Those songs genuinely do kind of scream “John” to me. But As You Lie There feels much more like a song about a crush on a girl from your neighborhood that you barely know. I completely respect the opinion of people who think otherwise, I just personally don’t agree on this one.
I’ll admit I had low expectations for the new album but I’ve been incredibly impressed with the musicality and production of The Boys of Dungeon Lane. I’m in awe of Paul’s ability to pluck these melodies out of thin air, and after a listen or two, feel as if they have been in the McCartney catalog for decades. How can he hitting this great stride at 83 years old? It illustrates that getting older doesn’t mean you stop growing or that creativity dies. I hope all of us will be this lucky.
I’m really into a lot of songs on this record but I wanted to talk about Never Know because, not only is it my favorite, but a lyric triggered a connection that’s worth exploring, so here we go…
First, this song feels heavily inspired by past musical Beatle business (tape loops, close harmonies, mellotron, electric piano, recorder à la Fool on the Hill) but the lyrics feel placed in the early 70s timeline of the breakup and escape to Scotland. Let’s take a look:
I want to be the one | That's rooting for you | Lying in the sun again | I want to feel your touch | The things that you do | Have always meant so much to me
I don’t think he’s literally talking about lying in the sun (although he’s likely using a double meaning here), I read this as John being the sun. ☀️ The charismatic genius he bet his life on. When all is right with the world, he’s typically basking in John’s glow. Almost all of John’s attention and warmth, creatively and personally, has been on Paul up to this point. But now the sun shines on Yoko and he’s longing to be the partner who is John’s main support and focus again.
I want some love and peace | We need it right now | Your wonders never cease to be
At this point in time, John and Yoko are heavily engaged in their Peace activities. And Paul seems to be saying: okay, so you’re promoting a facade of love and peace to the world but, to me, you’re attacking my whole existence. Don’t I deserve love and peace right now too?
I love you, but you know | My heart is breaking over you | When you got me on the run | My body's shaking, oh, oh, oh | My mind is black and blue | I love you, but I never know
Here’s where this song took at turn that, in my mind, made me more certain that this is a “John Song.” The lyric “you got me on the run” alludes to his and Linda’s escape to Scotland to spin out, mourn, and heal in private. And the reason I think that is because of the line “my body’s shaking,” which instantly reminded me of the quote below from the book Wings: the Story of a Band on the Run
And this interview from All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words calls out shaking a little later in the timeline.
I'm gonna take the time | To prove that I care | Don't mind as long as I'm with you | I've got to make you see | I'll always be there | I only want to be with you
Following the story laid out in the previous lyrics, this last verse seems to be present day Paul being ever so self-aware that one of his greatest weaknesses is not being able to show/tell people that he loves them or that they are important to him. And he’s come to the understanding that this is what John needed to hear/know to believe that Paul never stopped loving him, knew a good thing when he saw it (warts and all), and was still committed to their partnership. So this song is just another one of those attempts to make John (somewhere across the universe) see that Paul “will always be there.”
WE two boys together clinging,
One the other never leaving,
Up and down the roads going—North and South excursions making,
Power enjoying—elbows stretching—fingers clutching,
Arm'd and fearless—eating, drinking, sleeping, loving,
No law less than ourselves owning—sailing, soldiering, thieving,
threatening,
Misers, menials, priests alarming—air breathing, water drinking, on
the turf or the sea-beach dancing,
Cities wrenching, ease scorning, statutes mocking, feebleness
chasing,
Fulfilling our foray.
The audio at the end of the 'legalize gay sex, actually, you know what, fuck you, we're the Beatles, we can do whatever we want (as long as John gets his shit together)' song isn't just a rewind of the tape like Paul said at the listening party, I checked, it's Scottish bagpipe wedding music.
With the last two songs being 'by the way have I mentioned my mother was a saint' and a sad ballad about a recently married romantic woman dealing with an emotionally withdrawing husband who is starting to heavily use drugs but she doesn't mind because she loves him and the ending of the album being 'Papa gets high while momma gets by'
Nevermind all the insane 'yeah so I stalked John a bit as a teen and after the divorce', the innuendo stuffed songs about fucking for room and board while hitchhiking, the song about getting creampied and being a subby bottom with incredible lines about telling your truth.
i really do think that we as society don't speak often enough about this photo, bcs wtf man 😭😭😭😭what's better than hitting the proposal pose in front of your bestie (and a whole film crew. and cameras) while singing a love ballad which is certainly not about the very same bestie, nah-ah
Yes. And if it were only that picture, without all the surrounding context, I would probably just see it as them goofing around behind the scenes. Because we actually see similar playful behavior in the official If I Fell sequence from A Hard Day’s Night, when John is playing around and singing directly to Ringo. But if you watch closely, he repeatedly looks past Ringo toward Paul, who is standing on the other side. His attention keeps shifting back and forth between them, and when Paul finally looks back at him, John breaks into a wide smile. And it looks spontaneous, like it just naturally happened in the moment rather than being scripted. He was fixated on Paul both during the filming and behind the scenes, as the picture showed.
Another thing people don’t bring up enough is that Paul said in 1964 that If I Fell was his favorite song. Then, more than forty years later, in 2007, he still called it his favorite John song (it wasn't during an formal interview, he told it privately to someone while they were talking casually). That’s interesting, because in between these years, as well as afterwards and until this day, whenever he's asked (in more public mediums) to list his favorite songs by John, he mostly only mentions Beautiful Boy, Strawberry Fields Forever, Julia, and Across the Universe. Which makes you wonder why he never mentions If I Fell.
And there's something about the Valentine’s card that many overlook. A lot of people think that John used it as a draft while composing the song on the plane, but if you actually look at the card, the lyrics are written very neatly. There are no corrections, scribbles, or crossed-out lines like you’d expect in a draft. And it’s already the final version of the lyrics (well, more like 99%. There are like 3 words that are slightly different, but nothing that changes the meaning). It doesn’t look like someone actively composing on the spot. It looks like he already knew how the song was supposed to be, and deliberately chose to copy the lyrics down on that card. Which makes the whole thing more interesting. The card, as we all know, is addressed to Paul. And according to one copy a guy obtained of the card, it’s signed with a “J.” He thinks the “J” stands for Jane, but of course, it could also stand for John.
But yes, going back to the picture you mentioned, it becomes much more emotionally loaded once you place it alongside all this other context. You notice how focused John seems on Paul while singing If I Fell, both in the actual filmed scene and in the behind-the-scenes photos. He keeps looking back at him over and over. Which, of course, could still mean nothing.
"It's....semi-autobiographical, but not that conscious, you know. It's really about....it's not about Cyn, my first wife." (John, 1980)
my new mclennon serotonin listen is them singing that silly parody song they made at paul's house when they were still the quarrymen and john decides to have a spoken word interlude going "my darling when you burnt that toast the other morning, i looked into your eyes and could see that National Health eyeball" as paul's crooning in the background
It’s combining this with the anecdote of one of the Quarry Men of Paul making everyone toast.. I’m sure in this story he actually shouts out ‘hang on, the toast is burning’ when he’s being called into the living room.
It popped into my head this morning that Paul was literally out there singing ‘Every night I would call/because your fat ol’ number brought me such great joy’ and I’m still meant to pretend that he’s a) immovably heterosexual and b) never rode John’s fat ol’ number??
It’s getting too difficult to maintain this facade!! 🚬
Favourite trope of pictures: John looking blissful, safe and bridal, and Paul looking self assured and smug as he reminds the photographer that HE’S bagged the hottie 💕
THURSDAY 27 JUNE
Paul spent the morning at Abbey Road while Billy J. Kramer
and the Dakotas rehearsed ‘Bad To Me’ and ‘I Call Your Name’,
which they recorded in the evening. He brought the lyrics to ‘Bad
To Me’ written on a packet of Senior Service cigarettes. He returned to Liverpool in the afternoon and in the evening he and John finished ‘She Loves You’ in the dining room of his house in Forthlin Road, while his father Jim watched TV in the living room.
FRIDAY 28 JUNE
The group drove across the Pennines in heavy rain for a
thirty-two-hundred-capacity sold-out concert at the Queen’s Hall
on Sovereign Street in Leeds. The show began at 8pm, billed by
promoter Bernard Hinchcliffe as a ‘Jazz-’n’-Pop Ball’. <…>
'My then boyfriend was lead guitarist in the Voltairs, who were one
of the support acts that night. When the Beatles came onstage, I can
only describe the sound from the audience as a volcanic eruption. The performance was very loud and totally magnetic! After the show I
went backstage up some rickety steps and into a pokey dressing room.
The entire time we were there with them, Paul and John were
absolutely red up (with adrenalin, I believe, but it may have been
something else!). George and Ringo were rather quieter but still friendly. John spent the majority of the time sitting under the table
clowning. The one exchange I can recall is Paul asking if anyone had a spare razor blade. When ask why he wanted one he said, ‘To shave
with.’ Then he quipped, ‘They’re very hard to get hold of yer know!’
The impression I’m left with was that they laughed and joked together a great deal. I just remember them being very down to earth; an energetic group of lads with a wicked Scouse sense of humour. I still have their autographs from that night signed, ‘To Dinah’.
DINAH BENTLEY, SPECIAL NEEDS TEACHER, HUDDERSFIELD, WEST YORKSHIRE
(The Beatles 1963: A Year in the Life by Dafydd Rees, 2023)
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