the boys of dungeon lane. thoughts????
I waited a few days before answering this because I wanted to see what Paul had to say about each of these songs. Quite often, what Paul says about a song (and, more importantly, what he doesn’t say) can be very telling. I wanted to give him the chance to explain the background of each song before giving my opinion, because I know most of you would like me to talk about the songs that seem the most likely to be about John, or at least the most ambiguous. So first, I’m going to go through the songs for which Paul has given explicit explanations regarding their meaning or inspiration. And once we do that, you will notice omething rather interesting:
As You Lie There: Paul said this song was about a girl he had a crush on named Jasmine. At first I wasn’t completely sure about that explanation because apparently the name “Jasmine” was extremely rare in Liverpool in the 1940s. But someone was actually able to track down the real Jasmine Paul was referring to (Jasmine Howe) and she confirmed that yes, she knew Paul and lived nearby, though she had no idea he liked her.
Ripples in a Pond: Paul said this was a love song for Nancy. He’s essentially telling her, “I love you more than I did before,” and “Sometimes I get the feeling you’re so good for me I must be blessed.” Lovely song.
Mountain Top: Paul explicitly explained that this song was about people going away for the weekend to trip out and get stoned. The lyrics are very straightforward. No mystery there.
Salesman Saint: Paul explained that this song is about his parents and his imagining what their lives were like during the war, since his father was a fireman and his mother was a nurse, both involved in the wartime effort.
Life Can Be Hard: He said he wrote this during the COVID lockdown. At the time he was staying with Nancy and her niece, who had a baby. They were having a nice time together, but the song acknowledges that life was difficult for many people during that period. Paul said: “A lot of people had a hard time, but then a lot of people didn’t. We were lucky.”
First Star of the Night: Again, Paul was very straightforward about this one. He said he wrote it in Costa Rica during the tour there while it was raining, like the first verse describes, before the song shifts into a clearer evening. He said: “The first star of the night is always a sort of special thing when you see it — it always gives me a bit of hope.”
Momma Gets Old: Paul said this one wasn’t about anybody in particular, that he simply made up a story the way he did in Lady Madonna. He imagined a woman who is with a very lazy man, essentially two fictional characters in play.
Down South: Paul has said many times that this song is about memories with George. No mystery there. It’s a lovely, nostalgic song, and I’m glad he dedicated something like that to George.
Home to Us: Again, no mystery here. Paul said the song was written with Ringo in mind. He added: “In writing the song I’m talking about where we came from. In common with a lot of people, you come from nothing and you build yourself up. Ringo was from the Dingle, and that was well hard. He said he used to get mugged coming home because he worked. Even though it was crazy, it was home to us.”
Days We Left Behind: This song (which Paul said was his favorite on the album) contains the only part in the album he has openly acknowledged was about John, and its only one verse. And mere fact that he admitted that stands out, because Paul is usually very reticent and evasive when discussing things he writes about John, other than Here Today and Dear Friend. And yes, that verse has definitely given us a lot to discuss 😅. But the entire song is not just about John. It’s really a nostalgic tribute to Liverpool and the early days. He also pointed out some lines that are about him and George. It’s about childhood, memory, and the beginning of everything. It’s probably my favorite song on the album too.
And now this is where things get interesting. Because the following songs are the ones Paul has not really explained at all. At most, he talks about the instruments used, the studio equipment, or technical details, but says nothing about the songs’ emotional meaning or inspiration. And interestingly enough, these are precisely the songs that many find the most intriguing and the ones that most strongly give people the feeling that they could relate to John:
Lost Horizon: The only thing Paul has really said about this song is that he wrote years ago — probably sometime in the early 2000s — and that he had forgotten about it until rediscovering it recently. He tells a long story about finding it again, but says absolutely nothing about its meaning or emotional inspiration. The lyrics are beautiful and vivid, and very descriptive of 50s Liverpool. And this is the most intriguing verse: “Where every memory we shared brought us closer together. And every day we spent there was the start of the first day of forever.” Now, those lyrics are not necessarily romantic. They are deeply emotional, but that does not automatically mean romance. Still, it’s interesting that Paul gives such a detailed account of rediscovering the song while remaining completely silent about what inspired it.
We Two: Again, Paul has said nothing about this song beyond technical details. The only comment he really made was about the tape rewinding sound effect at the end: “We just stuck that on because nobody hears that anymore.” Other than that, most of the information people have gathered comes from studio notes: references to the song utilizing a four-track machine the Beatles often used, the harmonium from We Can Work It Out, and even a small snippet from Because. But Paul says nothing about the meaning. And being honest, if for some reason Paul had teasingly said, ‘Well, there is one more song on the album about John, but I’m not going to tell you which one it is,’ my guess would probably be We Two, mainly because of lyrics like: "Over and over again, my thoughts return to you”, “Always, my friend, you’ll be my only one”, “Last night I dreamed of you, and all the things we could do together, side by side”, “Over and over again, I’ll be in love with you.” Now, this could absolutely be about Linda too. But given the “my friend,” and given how much the album focuses on the very early days, I personally lean more toward John.
Come Inside: Here too, Paul’s explanation is extremely vague. He simply said: “There’s nothing much to say, other than it’s a rocker, and it’s terrific.” That’s basically it. I’ve seen a lot of people around Tumblr explaining their interpretation of this song, that like the lyrics say, Paul is telling us that his life is an “open book” and that anybody who pays enough attention can make out details of his life without him having to say anything. If that IS actually the meaning Paul intended, well… you can make of that what you will.
Never Know: Again, Paul barely says anything about this song. The only things he mentioned was that he was trying to capture the vibe of Laurel Canyon in the 70s. Ironically, the article quoting him disagreed and immediately pointed out that the song actually sounded very Lennon-esque, lol. The first verse is the one that caught my attention the most: “Lying in the sun again, I want to feel your touch. The things that you do have always meant so much to me. I want some love and peace, we need it right now. Your wonders never cease to be.” The bit about “I want some love and peace, we need it right now” feels especially interesting considering that Paul recently said something very similar about Imagine, that John’s vision in that song described something the world needs right now. And the part about “lying in the sun again” reminds me of what Paul once said about how he and John used to sunbathe a lot together a lot in a nearby cemetery. I probably wouldn’t have thought too much of it if Paul hadn’t used the word "again". And then you have this verse: "I love you but you know, my heart is breaking over you, well, 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." It sounds less like a simple love song and more like someone trying to hold onto a bond that has become emotionally overwhelming and difficult to navigate. Which of course, strongly evokes their relationship in the 70s, and the line: “My heart is breaking over you, well, you got me on the run”, could easily be interpreted as a callback to Band on the Run, of course.
So the point I’m trying to make is this: In the first ten songs I listed, Paul is very open and straightforward about the inspiration. He openly tells us which songs are about Nancy, Ringo, George, his parents, fictional characters, or general childhood memories. But in these last four songs I mentioned, he becomes completely silent about the emotional meaning behind them. And interestingly, those are exactly the songs people find the most intriguing in relation to John. Because it’s difficult to imagine an album centered on Liverpool, memory, and the early days without at least one major song emotionally tied to John.
Yes, Paul did say that one verse in Days We Left Behind was about John. But it would honestly feel strange if that single verse were the only direct material about him on the entire album. I could absolutely be wrong, of course. But personally, I suspect that at least one of those four songs may indeed relate to John in some way. John was such a huge part of Paul’s early life that it would be odd if there’s a song about George, a song about Ringo, a song about his parents, a song about a girl he had a childhood crush on…but not one about John beyond a middle eight in one song.
And if one of those songs is about John, then you also have to wonder why Paul seems rather hesitant to discuss it openly while having no problem directly identifying songs about everyone else.
