On Friday, June 3, 2022 at 4:37:06 AM UTC-7, Norbert K wrote:
> On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 8:21:09 PM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 1:16:39 PM UTC-7, Curtis Eagal wrote:
> > > On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 12:11:04 PM UTC-7, Curtis Eagal wrote:
> > > > On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 9:07:10 AM UTC-7, Curtis Eagal wrote:
> > > > > On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 4:48:49 AM UTC-7, Norbert K wrote:
> > > > > > On Thursday, June 2, 2022 at 2:00:08 AM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > On Sunday, May 22, 2022 at 6:02:08 PM UTC-7, geoff wrote:
> > > > > > > > On 23/05/2022 5:21 am, Curt Josephs wrote:
> > > > > > > > > On Wednesday, May 18, 2022 at 8:01:32 AM UTC-7, RJKe...@yahoo.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >> On Monday, May 16, 2022 at 6:25:01 PM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>> On Saturday, May 7, 2022 at 11:07:39 AM UTC-7, RJKe...@yahoo.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>> On Wednesday, May 4, 2022 at 10:26:33 AM UTC-4, eagali....@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>> On Monday, May 2, 2022 at 7:12:27 AM UTC-7, RJKe...@yahoo.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>> On Thursday, April 28, 2022 at 9:21:14 AM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> On Thursday, April 28, 2022 at 4:11:37 AM UTC-7, Norbert K wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>> On Wednesday, April 27, 2022 at 8:16:06 PM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>> On Wednesday, April 27, 2022 at 3:56:31 PM UTC-7, geoff wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> On 28/04/2022 4:03 am, Norbert K wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>> On Tuesday, April 26, 2022 at 5:30:15 PM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>> On Tuesday, April 26, 2022 at 4:08:26 AM UTC-7, Norbert K wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>> On Monday, April 25, 2022 at 3:12:36 PM UTC-4, eagali...@gmail.com wrote:
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>> The song "Imagine" resulted from discussing a book about prayer with Dick Gregory - I have a family member who insists the line about "no religion" proves he was promoting heathenism, while my opinion is the theme follows the "Our Father" prayer: the best way for God's Will to be done on Earth as it is in Heaven is to stop arguing about prejudices and possessions, manifest a rational society in the here and now. The full Maureen Cleave article from 1966 noted that two of John's favorite possessions were a Bible and a Crucifix; but wife Cynthia's gift of mechanized caged singing bird struck him as offensively bourgeois and partially inspired "And Your Bird Can Sing" - "when your prized possessions start to bring you down" is a similar anti-materialistic theme as "Can't Buy Me Love."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>> Your family member has a point; Lennon did occasionally purport to be a "born-again pagan." He had Christian phases, too -- one of which Yoko squelched because she feared it would prevent her from controlling him through the occult. Which brings up the point that he went along with Ono's occultism. And we know that John also had a soft spot for gurus. Like I said before, he was all over the map; he did not subscribe to any one belief system for too long.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>> Didn't Lennon explain somewhere that by "Imagine no religion" what he meant to say is that there should be no "one religion" that excluded others?
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>> I expect we'd agree Lennon did not wish for an *absence* of religion any more than he wished for an absence of possessions.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>> Did anyone ever discover the title of the book gifted to Lennon by Dick Gregory?
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>> John called his period circa 1969 "Christian Communist," recognizing it as a phase. We think of him pushing people's buttons on controversial issues, but in my book on the "Beatles For Sale" era ("The Quality Of Mersey") the whole group is being interviewed together, and they projected a unified religious perspective ("more agnostic than atheistic" was Lennon's assessment), with Paul and Ringo making some provocative remarks. Paul said, "We probably seem antireligious because none of us believe in God"; Harrison declared, "John's our official religious spokesman." John said that's how most people really feel, with Ringo agreeing, "It's better to admit it than be a hypocrite." Lennon saw hypocrisy in the clergy lamenting the conditions of the poor without being charitable to them. McCartney mentioned the cost of a single bronze door in the Vatican.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>> Paul made it clear none of that discussion involved the actual teachings of Jesus: "Believe it or, we're not anti-Christ." Then Ringo qualified that with, "Just anti-pope and anti-Christian." So there was agnosticism, leaning pro-Christ - but righteously anti-Christian, shared by the entire group.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>> So the song "God" uses the title word to address the typical cultural perception, the concept that placates pain and suffering with the dubious promise of eternal happiness once everything is over.. It could not be about Lennon's own personal conclusion that God does not exist, since he described in a 1968 interview that through drugs, diet and meditation he had sensed a Higher Power. What is being disbelieved in "God" is resorting to the victim mindset that effectively allows the oppressor minimal resistance. The idea is the more pain you have, the more God you need psychologically as a coping mechanism, usually for something that shouldn't be happening in the first place. Think of the 'Negro Spiritual' songs borne of suffering in slavery. Pie in the sky when you die by and by.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>> At the time John was completing primal therapy with Arthur Janov, who considered religion madness, and Lennon later admitted the attempt to purge it from his psyche failed. He called himself "a most religious fellow." Even in childhood, John would point upwards and say "Somebody's watching" when he detected mischief; once he walked in announcing he had just seen God. John spoke of other religious figures who were advanced spiritually like Jesus, with admiration for their simple rational philosophies that few seem to grasp. An interviewer brought up the rumor he proclaimed he WAS God, receiving the reply he had not meant he was "A God or THE God," but shared a fragment of divinity: "We have all things within us," the option of being evil or righteous through exercise of free will. He said the recurrent dichotomy of moral extremes was summed up in the Christ-versus-Hitler contrast.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>> I remember an interview with Lennon in which he pronounced vaguely that "God is an energy, a power source," but that "I never believed it was any one thing."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>> Under Janov's influence, Lennon asserted that "God is a concept by which we measure our pain."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>> Then there were his televangelist phases, during which he presumably accepted the god of Christianity.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>> And the "born-again pagan" identification came in 1979, IIRC.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>> Again, I see a guy whose beliefs fluctuated wildly depending on what drugs he was on, what TV he was watching, and who he was hanging out with.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> More than that, comments not intended to indicate any genuine belief,
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> but merely an off-the-cuff comments intended to rankle the other party,
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> or to engender controversy for controversy’s sake.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> An approach which certainly seems to have worked extremely well with
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> some fanatics !
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>> geoff
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>> A Beatle in a 1964 group interview (published in 1965) said, "We probably seem antireligious because of the fact that none of us believes in God" - that was Paul McCartney.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>> When Paul continued, "We're not anti-Christ," one of them added, "Just anti-pope and anti-Christian" - that was Ringo Starr.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>>> McCartney expressed outrage that there was a societal stigma against atheism.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>> Really? How brave, if so. I'd very much like to see a quotation.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> The full text is available online, it's Jean Shepherd's interview for Playboy; my commentary version delves into key points hinted by the actual content, separating from the high-energy banter for media consumption. They were resuming a national tour with two shows in Exeter, and it took place around 11 pm in their Torquay hotel room. The sense is that a tape ran as a rambling conversation developed, and it all got printed verbatim.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> Anyone can now hear the pro-religion single minute from John Lennon's interview with David Wigg (10:07 to 11:08 in the link below):
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=db0Y4ul32U8
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> For those who do not want to be bothered listening to this rare, intriguing interview, here is brief transcription --
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> DW: "John, on one broadcast in France, you said that you were God. Were you serious about that? Do you really FEEL you are God?"
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> JL: "We're all God. Christ said The Kingdom of Heaven is within you, and that's what it means. And the Indians say that, and the Zen people say that: It's a basic thing of religion - We're All God. I'm not A god, or THE God - NOT THE God! - But we're all God, and we're all potentially divine, and potentially evil. We all have everything within us, and The Kingdom of Heaven is nigh, AND within us. And if you look hard enough, you'll see it."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> DW: "Do you then believe in life after death?"
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> JL: "I do. Without any doubt I believe in it."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> DW: "Have you had any special experiences that make you believe so convincingly?"
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> JL: "In meditation, on drugs, on diets, I've been aware of a Soul, and been aware of The Power."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> *
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>>> Even the infamously controversial Maureen Cleave interview involved discussion of a book about Christ's Disciples, "The Passover Plot."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>>> I honestly have no idea what it means to say "We're all God." I don't consider myself godlike. Are bad guys also God according to John?
> > > > > > > > >>>>> If God created everything, then what material is it ALL made from? Having a fragment of the Godhead's divinity through existence itself is not the same as BEING The Godhead, it is a simple distinction. I doubt many evil figures throughout history ever thought themselves so - there is always a justification, rationalizing whatever is done as improvements. Evil people simply exercise free will in ways that do not please God, to eventually incur a negative judgment.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> So bearing a fragment of divinity carries responsibility that one's lifetime(s) might not manifest as righteous acts.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> Any religious statement will be controversial until the soul separation (Reaping) events make the esoteric explicit - but of course then it will be too late to repent and convert.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> Remember that JL from 1964 was saying The Beatles were not show business, it was a task that once performed would be finished, there could be no gimmicks or tricks to keep things going (despite what people thought), and that the project should be completed in about five years (i.e., circa 1969). In 1980 he quoted the Bible that there is nothing new under the sun, so an existing story as subtext source was being insinuated.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> "If you want to use The Beatles or John and Yoko, people are expecting us to do something FOR them - that's not what's gonna happen: because THEY'RE the ones that didn't understand ANY message that came before anyway, and they're the ones that will FOLLOW Hitler, or follow the Reverend Moon, or whatever. FOLLOWING is not what it's about."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> More to your issue: "I think the idea of leadership is that old Judao-Christian idea of the separateness of God - FROM us, as being OUTSIDE of us - the Other. We ARE The Other: there is only One. So therefore, people kind of expect more from us than they expect from themselves.... We take responsibility for the WHOLE THING, because we're ALL responsible for the whole thing."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> A reunion of his former band suggested the crowd would be "expecting God to perform."
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> The rooftop concert controlled the elements of their actual concerts: they could not be shouted down, their personas and movements were not a distraction from the music, and the excuse the fans already had the records since the material was new.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> Canonical texts attributed to Henoch include a dream involving animals that forecast the entire course of human history, from Cain killing Abel to the Apocalyptic period. It has correct chronology and scenarios about the ascension of Elijah, Christ and His disciples, Constantine's three sons, etc. leading into the Nazi Holocaust: the next passage could be the first instance of Isaiah 6, regarding an inability to properly process audio-visual material, which Jesus reiterated. The story has one of the eyes-open sheep group being killed, then someone represented as ram also opens his eyes and sprouts a horn of Faith, which many try to break. Ultimately an Abyss opens in the physical and astral dimensions simultaneously, into which the 'blind sheep' are thrust with their unrighteous leaders, along with the demons who were actually guiding them.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> The open eyes signify awareness of the subliminal aspects, to which the blind sheep remain oblivious.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> The old tunes brought out for 1969 had some musical communication that was too fast and unfamiliar to expect conscious comprehension by the people in the street. The opening of "Dig A Pony" just seems like a rapid rambling guitar passage that repeats - but without giving away the startling whole message, the first portion sounds like,
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> 'Jesus was a Leader -
> > > > > > > > >>>>> THE Apostle Leader -
> > > > > > > > >>>>> But without...'
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> The next five transcribed words completing that musically hidden remark is essentially dismissive of those thinking declaring themselves a follower is all that was required.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> George Harrison in "Something" with the line, "You know I believe, and how," was announcing his self-confirmation was complete - certainly enough had occurred to reinforce his faith. Yet with John's "God" we have the contrasting, cynical view, actually a 'Crisis of Faith," which takes into account the public reaction in a more practical way - yes, there was a big reaction, but not the one that was anticipated, of clarity with conceptual esotericism. John knew that although his band was intellectual, that was not their appeal.
> > > > > > > > >>>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>>> John proverbially described how The Beatles were in the crow's nest or at the masthead, but we are all in the same boat.
> > > > > > > > >>>> Old Siam Sir, that's worth a revisit.
> > > > > > > > >>>>
> > > > > > > > >>>> That's one of Paul's most underrated albums.
> > > > > > > > >>> The title implies 'Old's I Am,' there was video featuring a lot of the "Back To The Egg" (there's some heavy embryonic-reversal symbolism) songs, some tracks were recorded in a castle. The lyrics include some British locations, in a fanciful tale for the conscious mind, while the music itself takes the subconscious elsewhere - by unexpectedly having instruments seem to be voicing phrases on a theme with expressive cadence. The cover image had the bizarre twist of unrolling a living room rug to view Earth through a floor portal. That was after the "London Town" cover featured the Thames in the same position as 'distant Earth,' some recorded on a yacht in the Virgin Islands.
> > > > > > > > >>>
> > > > > > > > >>> The BTTE inner sleeve had the dome of Chapel where the Holy Shroud resides in Turin, designed by Guarino Guarini.
> > > > > > > > >> I'll have to look for the videos.
> > > > > > > > >>
> > > > > > > > >> What do you think, is it a solid album? I remember that the critics were vicious.
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > I've processed a lot of what the critics focus on, and it does not mesh with their intentions. The Nativity element appears in the last track, "Baby's Request," done for the Mills Brothers, with the instrumental bit starting,
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > 'Virgin Has A Sacred Body...'
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > The supergroup performs the "Rockestra Theme," mostly an instrumental, and there was recently a radio show offering a prize for the vocal refrain, which somebody won by saying it was about not having 'any dinner' - but even if that were technically true, I still hear something about God never having any dealing with the devil (which could be deliberately close-sounding to what what actually sung).
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > Critics generally care about how music makes listeners feel as representative of certain genres; The Beatles turned that around by shifting between and inventing genres, while building some hidden message itself into the various musical structures, which in aggregate induces a sustained subconscious satisfaction. So the average reviewer lacks the observational tools to evaluate the tunes on a comprehensive esoteric level, doing better by considering the cultural stylistic implications.
> > > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > > Remember, after "Back To The Egg" McCartney had nowhere to go with the Christian format but to return to the beginning, which was actually the conclusion, i.e., The Ascension of Jesus - and the follow-up was "McCartney II," which featured the hit "Coming Up," whose obsessively repeated lyric obviously suggests a rising or ascending.
> > > > > > > > You idiotic nym-shifting conversation with yourself is only surpassed by
> > > > > > > > the bizarre religio-maniacal fanaticism that is totally in your own mind
> > > > > > > > and not based on anything real.
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > > Whichever of your 3 or 4 (at least) names you use to carry out your
> > > > > > > > masturbatory one-self 'discussions", please give it a rest.
> > > > > > > >
> > > > > > > Take "Yes It Is," for one example. The lyric, "Scarlet were the clothes She wore/ Ev'rybody knows, I'm sure" comes directly from Matthew 27
> > > > > > > Peter Fonda upset George Harrison further instead of calming him down in Benedict Canyon, infuriating Lennon, who later used Fonda's >referring to his near death experience - <snip>
> > > > > >
> > > > > > George was having a bad acid trip on this occasion; he thought he was dying.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Peter Fonda tried to calm him down by telling him that death was not to be feared. My understanding is that *Lennon* overheard parts of what Fonda was saying to Harrison and misunderstood it; Lennon was disturbed by it. He demanded of Fonda: "Who put all this sh*t in your head?" If he had given the young actor a fair listen, he'd have known that Fonda was speaking from personal experience.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > I have no heard before that Fonda's statements made Harrison more upset. Can you support that?
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Lennon's and Harrison's LSD experiences seem to have been bad as often as not. So why, I wonder, did they keep taking the drug? Did they assume it would be the source of some sort of mystical insight? I suspect so..
> > > > > This was discussed recently on Chris Carter's Sunday Beatles radio show, my impression from the interview was that Fonda was the sort who would seem to be engaging Harrison to calm him, while he was actually showing a wound from a bullet, perhaps with a mischievous desire to see a Beatle freak out. Of course to John this was a potentially abusive encounter for his bandmate, where he felt compelled to intervene (John's moral compass always seemed to point true north) - so it was a combination of what Fonda said, and was exposing of himself simultaneously.
> > > > >
> > > > > Long after 'Bicycle Day' that compound was over-purchased by a government agency seeking a brainwashing medium; following a variety of experiments on various subjects, it was determined useless for the intended purpose, since people were essentially 'brainwashing' themselves. Currently there has been allowance for the terminally ill to come to terms with death through the psychedelic experience. The effect allows parts of the brain that do not usually communicate to interact, so that sounds can be seen, and colors can be heard, etc. A musician might consider such a phenomenon life-changing.
> > > > >
> > > > > On the paranormal program "One Step Beyond" the host tried ESP tests before and after ingesting 'sacred mushroom': before, he failed like a normal person; after, a strobe light flashed incredible images behind closed eyes, and the previous tests were passed without explanation - it was as if he could somehow feel the correct answers.
> > > > >
> > > > > The radio guest described how they had sugar cubes wrapped in foil, and Harrison had taken more than others were advising; it was also the only instance known when Starr ingested the substance. McCartney refused it when Harrison offered, later explaining he was taking a couple years to think about it; then an interviewer asked about it, and he could not hold back from making his admission.
> > > > >
> > > > > Two of the Rolling Stones had been arrested at a party Harrison attended, after George left, because the British police did not want to bust the charismatic Beatles before the threatening Stones: that was the meaning of the line from "I Am The Walrus," that goes, "Semolina Pilchard, climbing up the Eiffel Tower," ridiculing the constable in charge of the pop-star-sting, a Sergeant Pilcher.
> > > > Of course, the era was rife with people who were undone by their own excesses, but it can be believed young Julian's drawing of classmate Lucy was the origin of the Sgt Pepper song title, probably without the youngster picking up on what the adults thought was so amusing. Harrison would say substances do not have inherent morality (coincidentally the Harrison Act in 1913 was the first substance prohibition), which is a separate issue. There were a lot of tragedies, partially since one noted effect was return to a childlike sense of distracted imagination, so a 'sitter' would be required to avoid horrendous decisions.
> > > >
> > > > McCartney has said "Got To Get You Into My Life" was somewhat about cannabis. One of the few Beatle tracks with questionable participation from him is "She Said She Said." I remember from the era (before tv was in color) a news clip of the group seated in a room (with a few women, could have been fans or wives) performing the song - if it could be reviewed, my guess is someone male stands and exits in the full clip, from the derived song subtext.
> > > >
> > > > The lyrical lines, "I know that I'm ready to leave/ 'Cause you're making me feel like I've never been born," indicates John is singing from the point of view of Judas Iscariot, while leaving the Last Supper to betray Jesus. Even though the lyrics seem basic, the REVOLVER sessions was the start of playing back each track in reverse: the fade-out heard backwards has their voices coherently incanting,
> > > >
> > > > 'Most people say they know enough...
> > > > Most people say they know enough...
> > > > I think there's few who know enough...
> > > > I think there's few who know enough"
> > > The line attributed to Peter Fonda's talking about his near-death experience, "I know what it's like to be dead," still applies to the Last Supper situation, since Jesus had been prophesying about His imminent death and beyond, a teaching so disturbing to His followers it was an act of faith that a female believer anointed Him prematurely for His burial at Bethany - seeing that unorthodox action, Judas protested the money could have been given to the poor, while he likely intended some embezzling.
> > >
> > > The thirty pieces of silver bounty was foretold in Hebrew prophecy. In the "Help!" era, on the flip side of a single, "I'm Down" is their musical picture of the ignominious end to Judas Iscariot - without giving away the shocking details that are instrumentally articulated, compiled for Book 6 (title, full outline and artwork completed), a brief flourish on electric piano as the rocking tune is winding down paraphrases a gospel passage -
> > >
> > > 'Buried in a FIELD -
> > > For the POTTER!...'
> > >
> > > Among the available sources is Matthew 27:5-10 -
> > >
> > > << So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.
> > >
> > > 6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.” 7 So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners. 8 That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price set on him by the people of Israel, 10 and they used them to buy the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.” >>
> > >
> > > The Beatles knew how to stick with The classic story.
> > Taking the idea that Judas is the first-person character for "She Said She Said" lyrically, there is a special irony in the line,
> >
> > "When I was a BOY,
> > Ev'rything was right..."
> >
> > One of the Infancy stories had Child Jesus called upon to exorcise the devil from a boy near His own age, named Judas Iscariot. Things went awry, and Jesus was bitten where the lance would later pierce. So while the lyric sounds innocuous, it serves to insinuate a sinister yearning; the aural depiction of the failed exorcism episode appears to be the western tune "Rocky Raccoon," where the hero takes a gunshot from the villain Dan, the tribe of Israel said to be related to the Antichrist. That this could be foreshadowed in the 1966 track demonstrates extensive research beyond the particular phase being recorded.
> Lennon's line "When I was a boy, everything was right" has always seemed like a non sequitur to me. What does that have to do with the dispute between him and his interlocutor when claims to know what it's like to be dead?
>
> The best thing I can come up with is that Lennon's implying he never had to worry about such stuff when he was a boy because he never encountered anyone who made such claims.

Remember what McCartney said about expecting one little thing to be their message certainly failing, it is naive to think the episode at a party so emotionally impacted John that he was working out his issues with musical therapy.

This is one case where the lyrics are straightforward, the wording of the Fonda statement simply inspired a certain take on what was already scheduled..

The strong opening riff is unique, the main riff is a variant, and there is a unique guitar part played more quietly leading into the vocals entering. Since the strong riffs would be redundant to what the lyrics are already saying, I can reveal instead the quieter parts that demonstrate the esoteric depth.

The first quiet part in the opening, after the louder bit, like a jangly rhythm suggests,

'He ate The Morsel -
And left The Supper'

Jesus had been speaking about one of the Apostles betraying Him - the version with the full scenario is in John 13:21-30:

<<
21 After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.”

22 His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. 23 One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. 24 Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.”

25 Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?”

26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.

So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” 28 But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. 29 Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. 30 As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
>>

The theme of the quieter motif recurs bass-heavy during the 'boy' sequence, thusly -

"When I Was A BOY -"

{'The Morsel
SWALLOWED DOWN'}

"Ev''rything was ri-ight...'

{'Had
SWALLOWED DOWN'}

"Ev'rything was ri-ight..."

So the subtlest part is to bring in the concept from John 13:26-27 about the morsel that allows Judas to be re-possessed by Satan, so the throwback to the exorcism from their childhoods is apparent subtext.

Punctuate the lyrics properly -

"SHE said, 'You don't understand what I said -'

I said, 'No, no, no -

You're WRONG!'"

It is Judas cutting Jesus off from providing any explanation, the time for discussion is over as far as he's concerned. It is expressing through role-playing the contempt Judas had for the Lord at the time of betrayal.

"SHE said, 'I know what it's LIKE to be dead,'

'I know what it IS to be sad' -

And SHE's making me feel like I've never been born!"

It is a musical dramatization of Iscariot mocking the Savior's most controversial teachings, as Satan is entering him to perform the damnable task of the actual betrayal. John Lennon spoke about how concerned they were with song sequencing on albums, closing and opening sides with strong material. The next song opening Side Two is "Good Day Sunshine," where the piano bit in the middle deftly continues the story with how some other Apostles had not caught the betrayal hint, and believed Judas had departed to make preparations for another supper at a later date.