Remembering When John Lennon and Paul McCartney Sang Back-up on a Pair of Songs by Their (Supposed) Arch Rivals in 1967

If you believed the media at the time, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones battled as sworn enemies within the 60s British pop scene. In truth, they were much more friendly, if still competitive, with each other.

As if to prove that point, John Lennon and Paul McCartney joined a Stones session in 1967. They even contributed to a pair of songs. Perhaps not surprisingly, those songs came off as flowery and psychedelic as anything the Stones ever did.

More Friends than Enemies

The Beatles beat The Rolling Stones out of the gate. That gave them the edge on a lot of milestones. They achieved British success sooner, conquered America quicker, developed as songwriters faster, and so on. But the Stones carved out their own identity as a more bruising, unforgiving alternative to the Fab Four’s lovey-dovey approach.

Even in The Stones’ earliest days, The Beatles were admirers of them. John Lennon and Paul McCartney even pitched in and gave one of their original songs to the group. The Stones made that song, “I Wanna Be Your Man”, a single in 1963.

By the time 1967 rolled around, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were established enough as songwriters that they didn’t need any help in that department. Still, when the opportunity arose, they gladly invited Lennon and McCartney to a recording session in July 1967, even asking them to participate.

The Word is “Love”

Like everybody else in the culture at the time, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were feeling the vibes of the Summer of Love. Even as the two men were dealing with the repercussions of drug arrests earlier in the year, the songs that they penned for two sides of a single in ‘67 were imbued with the era’s spirit.

The lyrics of “We Love You” could have been interpreted as a parody of the everything-is-love generation. But you could also see it as the Stones thanking their fans who had stuck with them through all of their personal turmoil.

The Stones intended “We Love You” to be the A-side, saving “Dandelion” for the B-side. “Dandelion” evolved from a much harder-edged demo to revel in flower-power sonics, including Nicky Hopkins’ harpsichord and Brian Jones’ Mellotron. If the backing vocals on both those songs sound familiar, you’ve got a good ear.

Uncredited Addition

It was publicized even at the time that John Lennon and Paul McCartney sang backing vocals on “We Love You”. They also chipped in with hand percussion. Since “Dandelion” was also recorded at the same session, many also surmised that John and Paul were in the mix there as well, even though they weren’t listed in the credits.

Those folks were correct. Allen Ginsberg, the famous beat poet who also visited that session, mentioned Lennon and McCartney helping with “Dandelion” in his writings. Many years later, Keith Richards confirmed it.

Interestingly enough, “Dandelion” became more of an item in America when the Stones’ record company flipped it and made it the A-side. The song even hit the Top 20 in 1967. In other words, radio listeners at the time grooved to it at the time, none the wiser that it represented a summit between the two top bands in the world.

(Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

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