Maxwell's Silver Hammer

This song was most likely inspired by the tragic incident involving talented English playright Joe Orton and his lover companion Kenneth Halliwell(Maxwell is a wordplay on Haliwell). Halliwell bludgeoned 34 year old Joe Orton to death with a hammer to his head (9 blows) on August 1967. Halliwell then took an overdose of 22 Nembutal and committed suicide. Joe Orton and Halliwell were known to play the fools and had been arrested fined L262 and jailed for 6 months for damaging library books. They would return library books with new sleeve covers and new blurbs. Orton felt that the punishment was excessive due to them being queers. Joe Orton later started having success with his plays (dark satirical comedies).Joe Orton was in touch with the Beatles and was writing a play (Up Against It) for them. He was supposed to meet with them or their representatives the day they found him murdered. A chaufeur that had been sent to take him to the meeting discovered the bodies. Halliwell had been depressed and was seeing a psychiatrist. Joe Orton had found a new boyfriend and was planning to break up with the already stressed out depressed and troubled Halliwell. The play Up Against It was eventually produced in 1989 with music by Tod Rundgren. Paul McCartney took the incident changed the players and some circustances somewhat but kept the tragic situation the same and put it to rhyme and unreason......and now you know the rest of the story.....