Comments on: “Hey Jude” and the Death of Sixties British Pop

By: The Beatles and “Let It Be,” 6 March 1970 : OUPblog

The Beatles and “Let It Be,” 6 March 1970 : OUPblog — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 18:40:27 +0000

[...] It Be” falls into a subcategory of McCartney’s catalogue that includes songs like 1968’s “Hey Jude.” In both songs, McCartney seeks to sooth troubled minds. “Hey Jude” addresses the disruption [...]

By: Gordon Thompson

Gordon Thompson — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 15:08:36 +0000

Bill, good to see your comments. As someone who actually played on the same bill as the Beatles and had Brian Epstein as your manager (and producer), you have firsthand knowledge of the era.

Here’s to Liverpudlian birds, your neighbor’s cat, and whoever Cary Grant was addressing.

By: Bill Covington

Bill Covington — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 23:27:04 +0000

Hey Jude is in fact a metaphor for ‘a Judy’, a scouse term for a girl. An old lady who lived next door to me thought Hey Jude was a song about her cat. My mate said the song was inspired by Cary Grant ‘Judy, Judy,Judy!’ For goodness sake! Stop analyzing ‘Beatle’ lyrics for the meaning of life! For me the point of any song is the subjective response from the listener, with that in mind HEY JUDE is about a scouse ‘bird’, my neighbours cat and Cary Grant’s ‘Judy’. AMEN.

By: Gordon Thompson

Gordon Thompson — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 02:53:24 +0000

Yes, McCartney says, “I started with the idea of ‘Hey Jules,’ which was Julian, don’t make it bad, take a sad song and make it better…. I changed it to “Jude” because I thought that sounded a bit better.” (Miles 1997, 465)

But the point of my response was that you can make it be about anything you want. Interpretation is personal. A songwriter may have one idea in mind, but once the song is in the public ear, listeners will interpret it as they wish. Sure, we share an interpretive code with them and some may wish to prioritize the composer’s perspective; but a basic fundamental of what semioticians like Nattiez propose is that audiences create their own meanings.

By: Alice

Alice — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 22:10:54 +0000

No, actually it was originally called “Hey Jules” written by Paul McCartney on teh way to visit John at his house in Surrey. He changed the title later to Jude becuase he thought it sounded more like a country and western title. So no it’s not about a girl!

By: Gordon Thompson

Gordon Thompson — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 22:19:58 +0000

It’s about a female if you want it to be, but the inspiration was Julian Lennon and his attempts to deal with his parent’s divorce. Don’t feel bad: John Lennon thought it was about him.

By: sarah

sarah — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 04:32:54 +0000

hey jude isn’t it about a female??

By: BOOK: “Hey Jude” and the Death of Sixties British Pop « I read the news today: All Beatle news.

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:29:02 +0000

[...] Source: Oxford University Press [...]