Catastrophysician, if the underlying sadness of this songs make you cry, wait 'till to hear what the song is really about....it will make you bawl I'm afraid.
@The Great Wok I agree. It was written in the early years of the Lennon/McCartney songwriting partnership and whilst they had worked together on the tune the lyrics had been presented complete by John. This was unusual but Paul didn't give much thought. However Paul McCartney recently revisited the song for his 'Lyrics' project and wonders if John was calling out to his dead mother? It wasn't many years since she had died. John famously wrote 'Help' a few years later expressing his inner feeling so 1could he have been doing the same with 'I Call Your Name'? On re-reading...
@The Great Wok I agree. It was written in the early years of the Lennon/McCartney songwriting partnership and whilst they had worked together on the tune the lyrics had been presented complete by John. This was unusual but Paul didn't give much thought. However Paul McCartney recently revisited the song for his 'Lyrics' project and wonders if John was calling out to his dead mother? It wasn't many years since she had died. John famously wrote 'Help' a few years later expressing his inner feeling so 1could he have been doing the same with 'I Call Your Name'? On re-reading the words as a young boy missing his mother and wondering if the reason she rushed across the road to catch the bus only to be hit by a car was because she had stayed longer with him at Mimi's than she should so perhaps her death was in part down to him. (Was I to blame for being unfair?) He may have felt guilt she had to visit him cos he was living with his Aunt Mimi instead of with his mother Julia.
The chorus "Don't you know I can't take it, I don't know who can, I'm not going to make it, I'm not that kind of man' could be interpreted as him feeling her loss so great he's not sure he'll survive. Who can survive the loss of a parent so young?Paul McCartney for he had survived the loss of his mum at a young age. Not being 'that kind of man' suggests he'd carried these feelings from childhood and they were still as strong as ever.
I dunno if Paul is correct but if he thinks it could explain John's lyric then The Great Wok is right in referring to the underlying sadness in the lyric.
Catastrophysician, if the underlying sadness of this songs make you cry, wait 'till to hear what the song is really about....it will make you bawl I'm afraid.
@The Great Wok I agree. It was written in the early years of the Lennon/McCartney songwriting partnership and whilst they had worked together on the tune the lyrics had been presented complete by John. This was unusual but Paul didn't give much thought. However Paul McCartney recently revisited the song for his 'Lyrics' project and wonders if John was calling out to his dead mother? It wasn't many years since she had died. John famously wrote 'Help' a few years later expressing his inner feeling so 1could he have been doing the same with 'I Call Your Name'? On re-reading...
@The Great Wok I agree. It was written in the early years of the Lennon/McCartney songwriting partnership and whilst they had worked together on the tune the lyrics had been presented complete by John. This was unusual but Paul didn't give much thought. However Paul McCartney recently revisited the song for his 'Lyrics' project and wonders if John was calling out to his dead mother? It wasn't many years since she had died. John famously wrote 'Help' a few years later expressing his inner feeling so 1could he have been doing the same with 'I Call Your Name'? On re-reading the words as a young boy missing his mother and wondering if the reason she rushed across the road to catch the bus only to be hit by a car was because she had stayed longer with him at Mimi's than she should so perhaps her death was in part down to him. (Was I to blame for being unfair?) He may have felt guilt she had to visit him cos he was living with his Aunt Mimi instead of with his mother Julia.
The chorus "Don't you know I can't take it, I don't know who can, I'm not going to make it, I'm not that kind of man' could be interpreted as him feeling her loss so great he's not sure he'll survive. Who can survive the loss of a parent so young?Paul McCartney for he had survived the loss of his mum at a young age. Not being 'that kind of man' suggests he'd carried these feelings from childhood and they were still as strong as ever.
I dunno if Paul is correct but if he thinks it could explain John's lyric then The Great Wok is right in referring to the underlying sadness in the lyric.