"Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" is a song written by John Lennon (credited to Lennon–McCartney) and performed by the Beatles on their 1968 album The Beatles, also known as "The White Album".
Origins[]
In 1980, Lennon said: "That was just a sort of nice line that I made into a song. It was about me and Yoko. Everybody seemed to be paranoid except for us two, who were in the glow of love. Everything is clear and open when you're in love. Everybody was sort of tense around us: You know, 'What is she doing here at the session? Why is she with him?' All this sort of madness is going on around us because we just happened to want to be together all the time."[1]
George Harrison said that the first part of song's title originated from a quote by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi;[2] however, as for the "... except me and my monkey" part, he attested that he did not "know where that came from" though McCartney believes it was a reference to Lennon's heroin habit.[3] "John started talking about fixes and monkeys", he said. "It was a harder terminology, which the rest of us weren't into." Looking back, Lennon said, "We sniffed a little when we were in real pain. We took 'H' because of what the Beatles and their pals were doing to us." [4]
Recording[]
An unreleased demo of the song, recorded in George Harrison's Esher home in May 1968, features all-acoustic instrumentation, and a vocal sung an octave lower than the released version. The released version of the song was recorded at Abbey Road Studios on 27 June 1968, and an overdub session on 1 July.[3]
Personnel[]
- John Lennon – vocal, rhythm guitar, percussion, handclaps
- Paul McCartney – backing vocal, bass guitar, bell,[5] percussion, handclaps
- George Harrison – backing vocal, lead guitar, percussion, handclaps
- Ringo Starr – drums, percussion, handclaps
- Personnel per Ian MacDonald[6] except as noted.
External links[]
- Chords of this Song at tabfan.com