75: Kicking Edgar Allan Poe

75. "I Am the Walrus" by the Beatles {#56; 12/67} [iTunes? Yes] {Video: I Am the Walrus. (First of all, this is an actual music video from the Beatles! Second of all, it's actually pretty good.)}

Who is your favorite Beatle?

For me, it's always been pretty simple. First, I'll eliminate Ringo right off the bat. Why? Because he is Ringo. And then, as much as I like George, he's out, too. He's a very talented and under-appreciated guy, but he is, was, and always will be the "third Beatle."

So that leaves John and Paul. I always liked Paul best. Paul seemed nice, I liked his solo work best, and, yes, he was the "cute" one.

John, on the other hand, seemed more angry, more hippie-ish, more arrogantly intellectual, and his marriage to Yoko broke up the band. Plus, he had the audacity to say that the Beatles were bigger than Jesus.

Nice jackets! (THANKS!)

And yet, here we are with "I Am the Walrus," one of my favorite Beatles songs. As much as I like Paul, this song shows just how brilliant/insane/funny/flippant/talented John Lennon was. Dang, this is a great song!

Of course the lyrics are the star of the show here, but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the orchestration backdrop to the song. I'm sure the violins and cellos here had more than a bit of influence on Jeff Lynne and his Electric Light Orchestra.

But yes, those lyrics:
"I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together."
"Yellow matter custard, dripping from a dead dog's eye."
"Sitting on a corn flake, waiting for the van to come."
"Man, you should have seen them kicking Edgar Allan Poe."
"If the sun don't come you get your tan from standing in the English rain."
"Mister city policeman sitting pretty little policemen in a row."
"Man, you've been a naughty boy, you let your face grow long."
"Boy, you've been a naughty girl, you let your knickers down."
"Elementary penguin singing Hare Krishna."
"I am the eggman. They are the eggmen. I am the walrus."
"Ho, ho, ho; hee, hee, hee; ha, ha, ha."
"Goo goo g'joob."

Nice work, John.
(On second thought, maybe I just like this song because I'm fond of the idea of someone kicking Edgar Allan Poe. That dude could've used good kicking.)

COMING UP NEXT: Hedonism: Is It Good?