John Lennon, "Revolution," and the Politics of Musical Reception - 1 views
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Chanelle WAA on 16 Nov 10This article explores the topic of politics in the song, "Revolution" by the Beatles. The song was written by John Lennon in 1968, a time of political turmoil. The article compares this song with "Street Fighting Man" by the Rolling Stones. The article explains that the two songs have a similar political message, but the song by the Rolling Stones was more favorable by the public. The article also references some of tragic events in the late 1960s that helped form the message of the song "Revolution," including: The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, and many anti-Vietnam-war protests. The article analyzes the lyrics and composition of "Revolution" exposing Lennon's skepticism about American politics. The article also gives full lyrics to "Revolution 1" for the White Album. The song shows that the Beatles were anti-war and held a position on revolution. The song had both positive and negative reviews. One of the reviews states that the lyrics were bad, but the music itself was good. An essay cited in the article by Greil Marcus noted the song express freedom and movement and made by a great rock and roll band.