Help me make peace with "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"

Just listen in wonder at the bass, the arrangement, and the engineering. Miraculous. Screw George, I love that track...

 

Sure you can. Create an iTunes Playlist, delete "Maxwell's Silver Hammer", insert "Hey Jude", entitle it "Abbey Road", done. It's 2018, not 1978.

 

I could try and convince you of the goodness of Mr. Moonlight. But Maxwell has no redeeming value.

 

Haven't listened to this song in awhile. Here's my review:

Headphones on. Hitting "play". Just started. Great toms by Ringo. Great bass by Paul. Piano kicks in. Fantastic harmonies. The Moog is cool. With headphones, great use of stereo separation with the drums in the right ear and piano and bass in the left ear and Paul's great vocal right in the center. Wait. Guitar solo now. Twangy, reverb, cool. Piano solo nice too, bass transition with more Moog, excellent. Rose and Valerie "Maxwell must go free..." is a nice garnish. Nice brushwork Ringo. Big rave-up at the end.

It's a solid C+ track, above average. But above average Beatles equals the best song ever created by 1000 other artists. Bang-bang, indeed.

 

McCartney's poops are more brilliant than other artists' Statements.

 

As John once said of the song before he began publicly deriding it, the song is about karma...if that helps.

 

I love it always have. I don’t think it’s dumb at all. It’s got great tongue in cheek story-telling lyrics about a kid who goes on a murderous rampage. I think it’s The Beatles best example of story telling lyrics as it’s quite detailed and gets your imagination going. It’s got a great melody and the use of synths is just awesome. People who take it seriously are missing out. I don’t know how (not you in particular, but some people) could possibly miss that it’s just a humouress song. Obviously doesn’t mean it’s automatically good, but some people do seem to think the lyrics are serious somehow.

 

Perhaps if John was singing...?

 

I'm pretty sure that the melody of the chorus was inspired by this:

 

Easy, if you like it listen, if you don't, don't!

 

If you love Cole Porter and Lorenz Hart, it is the only half-decent lyric in their catalog.

Most of the Beatles' lyrics expressed juvenile ideas in a juvenile manner.

Here was a rare Beatles song with fresh subject matter delivered in a demanding rhyme scheme.

What's not to like?

 

The first pop song about a serial killer?

 

No, that would be "To Keep my Love Alive" by Rodgers and Hart.

 

It could be urban legend/myth material, but I seem to remember someone writing that it was inspired by a mathematics grad student in Texas who ball-peen hammered a professor to death who'd voted down awarding him his PhD after his oral defence. I think of that every time I hear the song.

 

This one doesn't bother me. It's just one of McCartney's goofs. Now the song I don't get is Octopus' Garden. It's just awful.

 

Agreed for the most part, love the song.

Just as John's Sexie Sadie was a cover for Maharishi my sense is that's Paul's Maxwell Silver Hammer was symbolic of frustrations with Apple. Two cents....

 

The rhymes are quite clever, aren't they?

quizzical-(pata)physical
Edison-medicine
school again-fool again
Max to stay-gone away
Valerie-gallery
thirty one-dirty one

With the single exception of Max to stay-gone away, all the rhymes are on the third last syllable, with the last two syllables identical. In each case the rhyme occurs within a single line. In the first verse, he manages to get home-alone-phone-Joan in the midst of successive lines, although he doesn't attempt that again in the last two verses. He does however give us annoyed-avoid and behind-times (okay, not a great one) in the second verse, and alone-testimon(ial) and free-agree in the third verse. There's no doubt in my mind that he worked hard on those lyrics, whether you like them or not.

 

Don't go screaming from the gallery, now.

 

I don't mind it but it's not a great song. Everything can be criticized. And not a fan of Rocky Raccoon either!

 

I think the song sounds fine as does the entire Abbey Road album. What I can't stand though, about Maxwell's Silver Hammer, is where McCartney does the contrived snort/laugh. Man I hate stuff like that, as well as any courtesy laugh for things that aren't actually funny. One of the most dimwitted fake behaviours anyone can do IMO.

 

Paul also worked extra hard on the bass in order for it to sound like a tuba sliding into the notes emulating a brass instrument rather a guitar.

Maxwell's Silver Hammer is electric pop vaudeville at its best.

 

Listen to it when you're drunk and sing along. You gonna love it then.

 

Just ignore the lyrics! They're not offensive, just silly.

Focus on the wonderful melody and bass playing.

 

It's cartoon violence though - like the Stooges or Tom & Jerry. It's quite childish but that appeals to me

 

I think it’s a great song.