3 John Lennon Songs From 1967 That Changed Songwriting as We Know It

As one-half of the Fab Four’s legendary songwriting duo, John Lennon dished out some very enduring and still memorable hits back in the 1960s. His talents continued to attract attention through his solo career, well after The Beatles came to an end. But while part of the famed band, he wrote some of their most loved songs, and many of those songs still pull in new fans today. Let’s look at just a couple of tracks written by John Lennon that changed songwriting forever.

“Strawberry Fields Forever”

This is one of Lennon’s most personal and emotional songs, and it’s a dreamy piece of work that listeners are still obsessed with after all these years. “Strawberry Fields Forever” utilized Lennon’s go-to surreal lyricism and fascinating studio editing techniques. The song itself is actually a mix of two different recordings, recorded in different keys. This was the track that inspired producers to expand their minds when it came to writing and producing pop songs.

“Strawberry Fields Forever” was a No. 2 hit on the UK Record Retailer chart. The psychedelic rock song also made it to No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

“Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” from ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’

Is it about LSD or is it not about LSD? Who knows? Lennon was pretty firm on the fact that this work from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band was inspired by his son’s childhood friend and not the psychedelic drug. But considering the song quite literally spells it out, one can’t help but wonder. This lush, psychedelic classic proved that songwriters could create a resonating, interesting musical world without following traditional lyrical tropes.

“A Day In The Life” from ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’

This one’s a favorite among many John Lennon fans, and the songwriting within is absolutely incredible. “A Day In The Life” was inspired by average events and real-world observations that Lennon made, and he managed to take those mundane subjects and turn them into a bizarre and almost unsettling examination of life through song. Yet again, Lennon challenged convention with an oddball song that became a retrospective classic.

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