WIST Quotations

Lennon, John -- “Nowhere Man” (song) (1965) [with Paul McCartney]

Dave — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 13:08:39 +0000

He’s a real Nowhere Man,
Sitting in his Nowhere Land,
Making all his nowhere plans
For nobody.
Doesn’t have a point of view,
Knows not where he’s going to,
Isn’t he a bit like you
And me?

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
“Nowhere Man” (song) (1965) [with Paul McCartney]

Lennon, John -- “Beautiful Boy” (song) (1981)

Dave — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 12:29:33 +0000

Life is what happens to you
While you’re busy
Making other plans.

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
“Beautiful Boy” (song) (1981)

More analysis on this quote and its predecessors (going back to Allen Saunders in 1957) here.

Lennon, John -- “Can’t Buy Me Love” (song) (1964) [with Paul McCartney]

Dave — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:36:42 +0000

For I don’t care too much for money,
For money can’t buy me love.

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
“Can’t Buy Me Love” (song) (1964) [with Paul McCartney]

Lennon, John -- “Eleanor Rigby” (song) [with Paul McCartney] (1966)

Dave — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 11:06:35 +0000

All the lonely people,
where do they all come from?
All the lonely people,
where do they all belong?

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
“Eleanor Rigby” (song) [with Paul McCartney] (1966)

Lennon, John -- (Attributed)

Dave — Thu, 24 Jul 2014 13:25:32 +0000

Being honest may not get you many friends, but it’ll always get you the right ones.

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
(Attributed)

Frequently attributed to Lennon, but with no actual source ever provided.

Lennon, John -- The Way It Is, CBS television (Jun 1969)

Dave — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 13:42:51 +0000

Reality leaves a lot to the imagination.

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
The Way It Is, CBS television (Jun 1969)

Lennon, John -- Interview, Playboy (Sep 1980)

Dave — Tue, 24 Mar 2015 12:15:19 +0000

Songwriting is about getting the demon out of me. It’s like being possessed. You try to go to sleep, but the song won’t let you. So you have to get up and make it into something, and then you’re allowed to sleep. It’s always in the middle of the bloody night, or when you’re half-awake or tired, when your critical faculties are switched off. So letting go is what the whole game is.

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
Interview, Playboy (Sep 1980)

Lennon, John -- Interview, Bed-Ins for Peace, Montreal, Canada (1 Jun 1969)

Dave — Fri, 30 Dec 2022 00:26:50 +0000

When it gets down to having to use violence, then you are playing the system’s game. The establishment will irritate you — pull your beard, flick your face — to make you fight. Because once they’ve got you violent, then they know how to handle you. The only thing they don’t know how to handle is non-violence and humor.

John Lennon (1940-1980) English rock musician, singer, songwriter
Interview, Bed-Ins for Peace, Montreal, Canada (1 Jun 1969)
(Source)