Come Together

My InterpretationThe song is about the Beatles feeling towards eachother. during a weak time, George brought up the Yogi and the phrase "Come Together right now over me" is an excerpt from the script telling them to use this song to build their bonds again and unite as one.

Each verse is dedicated to a Beatle:

Verse 1: "Here come old flattop, he come grooving up slowly
He got joo-joo eyeball, he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker he just do what he please"

This verse is obviously Ringo. Ringo's old school drum beats ("Flat top" refering to the old hair cut in the mid 1900's) were off at first with the rest of the band, but in time he got better and better ("Groovin' up slowly"). "he got hair down to his knee," is a joke about his shaggy look when he first joined the group and since he's sitting down playing the drums his hair wouldnt quite reach his knees but you get the riff. "Got to be a joker he just do what he please," Refers to him being the goof of the quad-squad.

Verse 2: "He wear no shoeshine, he got toe-jam football
He got monkey finger, he shoot Coca-Cola
He say, "I know you, you know me"
One thing I can tell you is you got to be free
Come together right now over me"

Did someone say George? "He wear no shoeshine," well lets face it, George wasnt fancy and liked the bare foot thing. "He got toe-jam foot ball," Soccor was a sport usually practiced outside the temples where the Yogi was practiced. "He got monkey finger," George was extreeeeeemly dextrous and learned many stringed instruments with ease. "He say,' i know you, you know me'etc..." another refrence to the Yogi.

Verse 3: "He bag production, he got walrus gumboot
He got Ono sideboard, he one spinal cracker
He got feet down below his knee
Hold you in his armchair, you can feel his disease
Come together right now over me"

This is the most obvious one... give up? really??! It's John! Duh! "he bad production," refers to john constantly would stopthe recordings and piss off all the rest of the band. "He got walrus gumboot," John wrote 'I am the walrus" and kept making songs like that and refused to change his style, thus upsetting the rest of the band. "He got Ono sideboard," a side board is a court term refering to pulling to the side or distracting. Yoko Ono would pull John away from the band and Is believed to be the downfall of the band. "he one spinal cracker," a term related to "braking my back," John would constantly argue with the band mates adn "brake thier backs." "He got feet down below his knee," John refused to be openminded or "get on his knees" He wass stubborn and stood up, refusing to kneel to anyone.
"Hold you in his arm chair you can feel his disease," Anyone who really knew John, or even got close to him, you knew something was wrong physically with him, depression, anger, etc. etc..

Verse 4:"He roller-coaster, he got early warning
He got muddy water, he one mojo filter
He say, "One and one and one is three"
Got to be good-looking because he's so hard to see
Come together right now over me "

Last but not least, Paul! "He roller-coaster," Paul was very emotional and would change all the time on everything whether it be a song or feelings. "He got early warning," Early in, the rest of the guys knew that Paul was going to be a problem so they warned him. "He got muddy water," A referance to Pauls changing facination to the band "Muddy Waters," Bluesy style. "he one mojo filter," Paul was very persuasive and would make the rest of the members bend to his will. "He say 'one and on and one is three'," Is a referance to Paul trying to constantly tell the rest of the band that even witout him, the band could survive. "Got to be good-looking because he's so hard to see," Paul was the "cute" one of the group and was also very hard to get along with and read as aperson.

WEllllll, thats my interpretation, i hopee it was helpful and clear things up.
-elBajista





P.S. sorry for typos, my comp is acting weird and it's hard to type :)

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General CommentRemarkably for such a druggy song, there's nothing SPECIFICALLY drugs-related in the lyrics.

It was originally meant as a campaign song for acid-guru Dr Timothy Leary when he was going to run for US President (no kidding!), but later John re-wrote it in its present form. Alongside references to blues singer Muddy Waters and Yoko's Ono's company "Bag Productions" there is an inevitable Walrus. "Spinal cracker" reportedly refers to a form of Japanese massage involving a wife (Yoko?) walking on her husband's spine! But guess why the song got banned by the BBC...

Yes, because the State-owned broadcasting corporation deemed that the mention of Coca-Cola was advertising and therefore could not be played on the BBC!

The same thing happened with "Lola" by the Kinks, but they actually changed the lyric to the more evocative "cherry cola".

Simon Beck
London, UK

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General CommentYou're all wrong. It's John saying that the Beatles are his band, not Paul's. Each verse is about one of the members. Ringo, first verse. George, second verse. John, third verse, kinda making fun of himself with Ono side board and bagging production. And the last one is an attack on Paul saying one and one and one meaning John, ringo and George. And saying the only reason Paul was popular was because he was good looking and couldn't notice him any other way. John saying come together over me, not Paul. And the fact that John did all the backup vocals for this song.

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My InterpretationLike a lot of John's lyrics (and like Dylan's), there are multiple meanings. The two didn't have their songs wrapped neatly in a bow for the listener to easily decipher. Both Dylan and Lennon (who were friends) realized they were truly lyrical geniuses and immensely popular. They probably took great glee in puzzling, provoking, intriguing and teasing their listeners. Listen to Desolation Row or Like a Rolling Stone where there are countless meanings. Same with I want you (she's so heavy)--drugs, sex?

The song is probably on one level about the four individual Beatles. It is also about taking drugs. It is also about sex. In fact it is eerily similar to Happiness is a Warm Gun which also had multiple meanings---an actual pistol, sex, shooting drugs, etc. (bang bang, shoot shoot).

The first two verses are interesting in that they both could be about George and Ringo. Lyrrics could be interchanged. Flat top. Is that an old stodgy hair style? A guitar top? Groovin up slowly. Is that the groove of the song suggesting the drummer? Or someone who was square and was slowly becoming more hip?

Shoot coca cola has a drug reference but it could be about a Coke ad Ringo was asked to be "shot" in.

The most interesting verse is the fourth which seems to be about Paul who is emotionally up and down (roller coaster), was getting guff form the other members for being too bossy (early warning), he was a buzz kill (mojo filter--filtered out other musicians creative ideas?).

The "one and one an one is three" seems to be John mocking Paul's overly simplistic song writing. He later sang in "How Do You Sleep," the only thing you did was Yesterday.

"Got to be good lookin'" refers to the fact that he was the cute Beatle but the only thing he is noticed for is his looks not his intellect...(so hard to see...empty mind, or it could simply mean "hard to read" since he was impulsive and bossy. It seems to be John mocking Paul's overly simplistic mind.

The title Come Together could be John's plea to the band members to continue making great music together and not going solo. Or it could refer to the 1960's "let's all get along" ideal. Or again it could be about sex (cum together)...it could even be about Paul's death (come together over me in my grave).

There are a lot of religious meanings as well from their time in India and George's stronger religious beliefs.

I think it is by far their coolest song. It has a Stones-like groove with dynamic drumming and and a serious danceable groove. The song has a drug-like, happy groove with soaring lead guitar lines from George. The "shoot" parts could suggest shooting up (drugs),shooting your load (sex), or even death (shoot me).

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General CommentI BELIEVE THIS SONG REFERS TO THE BEATLES AS A WHOLE,THE FIRST LINE IS ABOUT RINGO,THE SECOND ABOUT GEORGE-THE MAN MIGHT I ADD,THE THIRD ABOUT JOHN AND THE FOURTH ABOUT PAUL11 AND MUST I REMIND ALL OF YOU JOHN IS NOT THE ONLY BEATLE!!!

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General Commentactually this song has many many drug refrences. im not sure what joo-joo eyeballed means, but i assume its something to do with dialated pupils after using acid or smoking pot. i know the holy roller is a refrence to rolling joints, because stores that use to sell rolling papers usually had bibles and other religous materials in them, thus producing holy roller, i even herd stories that bible pages were used to roll joints. and come on he shoot coca cola? shooting coke. bag production, weed, baggin weed. spinal cracker, acid hits go straight to the spin

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General Commentanother one of the examples of john's songwriting randomness. makes you wonder what he was on back then...this is a pretty cool song though, regardless.

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General Commentby the way, has anyone seen this really cool flash cartoon/music video of Come Together on albinoblacksheep.com. It's really cool.

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General CommentI don't know for sure about this one, but the short phrase that is being mouthed quietly throughout the whole song is "shoot me". Maybe Lennon was referring to someone who... "Shoots Cocaine" has "Long Hair" and "Smelly Feet" that he dislikes. I truly don't know, maybe this will inspire someone else.

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General CommentIn the song John Lennon describes random people in his unique way, bassically saying everyone come together and help me with my cause ("come together right now over me"); Lets stop the war and make things right. I urge you to watch the videos "Money Masters" and "Zeitgeist Addendum" John was very aware of what's going on.

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