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

As everyone knows, this info can be found in the acclaimed book A Hard Day's Diet.

 

And its sequel: Carry That Weight and Then Get Rid Of It ...

 

I heard Rod Stewart is going to cover this song in his up-coming sequel to Unplugged and Seated.

 

Nice.

 

My problem with it is the hammer/anvil sound, the music and lyrics are not great either but not nearly as sonically bothersome as that hammer/anvil sound.

 

Or, use technology to create a modified version of Yellow Submarine that sounds like Paul, John, or George, whoever is your fave, is singing it.

 

Ooh. Me wantie. Do they exist?

 

I used to HATE this tune but over the years it’s like a commercial jingle that I’ve hated so much I now almost leave on for some sick reason - it reminds me of an insurance commercial where old people are swimming or dancing - it has that vibe

 

'Plugged in and prostrate'?

 

We used to have it played on two stereos at the same time. (Quite common in dorm rooms). They would slowly go out of sync, which was delightfully disorienting.

We may have even tried with with each stereo playing at 16 rpm. (I can't remember for sure. I had to get someone in the right mood to be willing to try it. For some reason some people thought this was all rather strange...)

 

I love the moog part, the nod to Soft Machine ( “studied pataphysical” ) and if you put it in context with the (contemporaneous) Bonzo’s it kind of makes sense.

 

Such a creepy vibe, yet totally in keeping with Abbey Road. Monochrome True Crime pot-boiler. I had no idea the song would cause such consternation til I joined this forum. I always assumed everyone would appreciate its cleverness and quirkiness.

 

It's about a serial killer.... Not that nice. Quirky happy lyrics about killing people by hitting them over the head with a hammer.... What drugs was McCartney on when he wrote that

 

I think it’s pretty damn funny as a coded jibe at Lennon’s heroin habit.

 

Granny music with a twist.

 

Any lines in particular that supports that interpretation?

 

I love " Maxwell's ... is so dumb. It makes Octupus's Garden seem like Faukner." That's a great comparison.

Let me give you another on that throws Maxwell's into a better light:
The Silver Convention's "Fly Robin, Fly" the lyric of which is barely more than its title repeated ad nauseum is so dumb that it makes the Beatles' "Maxwell's Silver Hammer seem like Tolstoy.

I never thought of "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" as a great song, but I do recall it having some surprising turns and twists when I heard it the first time, when in the process of taking in the whole album. If anything, it could be considered the Beatles's contribution to the genre that includes the rhyme/song "Lilly Borden took and ax and gave her father forty wacks..." and perhaps the play "Sweeney Todd."

The other way I think about what strike me as the lesser achievements on the White Album is that they are part and parcel of what happened when the quartet let in much more experimentation, as well as more contributions from EVERY member, than they would have done in their tightly edited albums. That raises this question -- If the White Album had been edited tightly enough to keep out "Maxwell's Silver Hammer," what songs I really love would have also been kept out of the album??????

If letting in Maxwell's keep things loose enough to let in those real favorites of mine, it's a small price to pay.

 

Eh, I think you’re fine saying you just don’t like that one.

I’m a huge Beatles fan and I don’t like Maxwell or Wild Honey Pie. I could also do without Act Naturally, but I recognize it’s a cover and was done for Ringo, so I’ll give them a pass on that one.

 

"Maxwell's Silver Hammer" sucks. Just accept it and go on with your life. No band is 100%.

 

Same here. Had no clue many people dislike it completely. I think it's an okay song.

 

What is it with certain fans of certain groups? Why must they force themselves to like something? What’s the point?

And what’s the deal with airline food???

 

The fact that Lennon did heroin is just comical. What a poser.

 

I heard it for the first time in 1978. I was 14. My 9th grade world geography teacher played Abbey Road for us in the classroom fairly often. Loved it then, love it now.

He also played Cheech & Chong records.

I didn't learn a lot about world geography that year, but I did learn a little something about The Beatles...and a lot about stoner humor.

 

I just thought the “silver hammer” was a euphemism for a syringe, much like the “Gun” that made Lennon happy. Clang clang, bang bang...

 

It's by far NOT in my top 50 of favorite Beatle songs but the best way I "accept" it is as part of the overall album side in which I think it works quite well. On top of everything else, if you don't like it as a song, why not consider the top notch recording the 3-piece band turned it into...? While I can live without some of the cutesy inflections in Paul's vocal approach, the instrumentation is excellent...especially by George whose guitar and synthesizer work actually makes the track.