What was it about the "Ram" lp that Lennon found so offensive?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by audio, Nov 5, 2006.

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  1. Chris M

    Chris M Senior Member In Memoriam

    Pretty sure it's about Linda's first husband.
     
  2. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    John didn't like that most of RAM was mixed 1/2 out of phase.
     
    ggggreenisaac and kevinfree like this.
  3. Chief

    Chief Over 12,000 Served

    This is very interesting, but the only reason I would doubt your theory is that Paul never writes in an allegorical style. I'm trying to think of another example, and I can't - maybe "Little Willow"?. The best examples I can think of in general are David Crosby's "Cowboy Movie" and Neil Young's "The Old Homestead". But who knows, maybe McCartney did it too. Also, I always thought the line "a piano UP my nose". Yeah, I know it doesn't make any sense!
     
  4. Chris M

    Chris M Senior Member In Memoriam

    OT: I read somewhere that John slept with Linda at some point. Anyone know if that's true?
     
  5. Inscape

    Inscape New Member

    Location:
    Montreal
    Is it not generally agreed that "Blackbird" is allegorical?
     
  6. stereoptic

    stereoptic Anaglyphic GORT Staff

    Location:
    NY
    :)
     
  7. jacden

    jacden Senior Member

    Location:
    Denmark
    Paul said in an interview some years ago that "Dear Boy" was a message to Linda's first husband. Makes perfect sense if you read the lyrics.
     
  8. Veech

    Veech Space In Sounds

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    But John was 1/2 out of phase so it balanced out. :D
     
  9. Veech

    Veech Space In Sounds

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    yep.
     
  10. Chief

    Chief Over 12,000 Served

    Well, thats what Paul started saying on his 2002 tour. Personally, I don't buy it. All these years and it never came up. He said that he was referring to women as "bird", the English slang. Maybe someone from Britian can help here, but I thought referring to women as "birds" wasn't complimentary exactly. At any rate, he explained how it was about black women. I think he came up with it 30 years after the fact.
     
  11. bldg blok

    bldg blok Forum Resident

    Location:
    Elmira, NY
    Check out the picture of Paul and Linda in disguise on the inside cover of "Ram" next to the one in the lower right corner with Paul holding the ram by it's horns, the one John chose to lampoon for the "Imagine" album. Paul's mask has glasses, Linda's has slit eyes, and they're both wrapped in sheets. I think J&Y got the message.
     

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  12. Veech

    Veech Space In Sounds

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    I totally missed that reference, thanks for pointing it out. Pretty obvious, eh?
     
  13. bldg blok

    bldg blok Forum Resident

    Location:
    Elmira, NY
    Yeah, but it's pretty music-centric around here, right? ;)
     
  14. mark f.

    mark f. Senior Member

    Veech, this is fabulous stuff. Not sure if you're right but lord knows I don't have a better version. A thoroughly enjoyable interpretation of a great song.
     
  15. zobalob

    zobalob Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow, Scotland.
    "Bird" was just slang for a young girl or woman...didn't have any bad connotations....kind of like "chick".
     
  16. Lord Hawthorne

    Lord Hawthorne Currently Untitled

    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    Linda's mask was store-bought. If you remember the comic strip "Li'l Abner", you might remember "Shmoos".
    Sometimes a Halloween mask is just a Halloween mask.
     
  17. Marry a Carrot

    Marry a Carrot Interesting blues gets a convincing reading.

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Are you sure that's a "fact"?

    And where does the idea that Billy Budapest was a nickname for George Harrison come from? And even if it's true, would it actually shed any light on the lyrics to "Monkberry Moon Delight"?
     
  18. Chief

    Chief Over 12,000 Served

    Paul has said "Dear Boy" is about Linda's ex. So, if we're to believe him...? I believe him on this one, but not on "Blackbird".
     
  19. Marvin

    Marvin Senior Member

    I've read that JoJo in "Get Back" was supposed to be Linda's ex.
     
  20. mark f.

    mark f. Senior Member

    Not sure if you're being serious or not but I got the impression that he made the Blackbird story up later. I thought it was interesting how detailed he got during the Chaos and Creation interviews on that song.
     
  21. Marry a Carrot

    Marry a Carrot Interesting blues gets a convincing reading.

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Paul talked about "Blackbird" being a metaphor for the civil rights movement long before 2002. William Dowlding's "Beatlesongs" says this was mentioned in "The Beatles A to Z," published in 1980. (I don't have a copy of the latter book, but I bet someone reading this does.)
     
  22. john_frogg

    john_frogg I'm listening.

    Location:
    Europe

    In the so-called Postcard sessions tape from the end of 1968 :)shh:), where Paul plays guitar along with Donovan, one of the songs he plays is "Blackbird", and he does tell Donovan that it is about a woman. I don't have the recording with me right know, but he may even mention that it was about a certain civil right activist, like he has said in his last tours.
     
  23. Stateless

    Stateless New Member

    Location:
    USA
    Doesn't the middle of "Kreen Akore" on McCARTNEY sound like Paul is mocking Yoko a bit with Ono-like squawks he does?
     
  24. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law

    Not to change things, but, in an old theory I mentioned a while ago about "I Know (I Know)" being about paul, John sings, "I know what I was missing."
     
  25. Jaffaman

    Jaffaman Senior Member

    :p
     
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