John Lennon: Come Together Meaning
Come Together Lyrics
He got joo-joo eyeball he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker he just do what he please
He wear no shoeshine he got toe-jam football
He got monkey finger he shoot...
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1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:John is using stream of conscience writing.He became connected with the universal conscienceness. Jungian theory. Each lyric is a clue that is predicting the future of a musician who will help bring the world closer together through his music. People will know that the song "come together" was written about him and actually fortold his prescence on the music scene. Dream interpretation techniques help disclose the clues. This guy will be older. (coming up slowly) He will have the support of women like John did Yoko. (ono sideboard) He will be into Jesus. (holy roller). Flattop only wears tennis shoes. (He wears no shoeshine). (Early warning refers to alcohol drug problem.HE learned he was an alcoholic at a very young age.
He is a comedian.(got to be joker).(Got to be good looking he's just so hard to see)Means he takes no credit for his accomplishments.very humble.He understates himself so much you don't know he's there. A very highly spiritual person.
( MOjo filter)is a dream symbal which means he's a cofee drinker.Jo is coffee.Filter is cofee filter.Toe jam football means exactly what it says he jammed his toe kicking footballs.When this person arrives on the scene it will be obvious the song is about him.No hair below his knees refers to a skin graft above his knee from a an accident where he almost lost his leg.(got feet below his knee. Hold you in his armchair till you feel his disease means) Means he wants to comfort people so badly its causes an uneasiness around him.This guy is all about love.(walrus gumboot)means ,He is the walrus.He goes around in secret before his time.He knows who he is but nobody else does.look up gumboot in the dictionary.( muddy water)means he'a been in a lot a trouble and had a lot of problems in his life and has overcome it all.( He says I know you AND YOU KNOW ME refers to all people are alike in that we experience the same problems and must realize that we all are going through the same things. We're not really that different.We have a lot in common.(Monkey finger) is a dream symbol that refers to his harmonica.A harmonica is a mono key instrument the size of a finger.monokey finger.
This guy is the walrus. -
2TOP RATED
#2 top rated interpretation:Just randomly came across the lyrics (which I never really understood) and had a gut feeling it was a John message to the other Beatles. Come Together was written at the time they were doing anything but Coming Together (Abbey Road). Come Together Right Now, OVER ME is him speaking through his lyrics to the others that he is the leader not Paul, and it is he they should fall in line with.
Look at each stanza:
1.Here come old flattop he come grooving up slowly
He got joo-joo eyeball he one holy roller
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker he just do what he please (George)
2. He wear no shoeshine he got toe-jam football
He got monkey finger he shoot coca-cola
He say I know you, you know me
One thing I can tell you is you got to be free
Come together right now over me (Ringo)
3. He bag production he got walrus gumboot
He got ono sideboard he one spinal cracker
He got feet down below his knee
Hold you in his armchair you can feel his disease
Come together right now over me (John)
4. He roller-coaster he got early warning
He got muddy water he one mojo filter
He say one and one and one is three
Got to be good-looking ’cause he’s so hard to see
Come together right now over me (Paul)
Only the Ringo one feels like a bit of a stretch, though 'monkey finger' would be a good nickname for a drummer who wears rings.
What do you think? -
Come Together is about the men coming together who serve on an aircraft carrier. All the descriptions are nicknames and slang used for parts and equipment used aboard ships.
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John at one point says “it’s gibberish, no body would want that for a campaign…”
He acknowledges that Leary asked him to write a sing with his campaign slogan “Come Together”. He couldn’t make the lyrics work and therefore he took it to his band.
McCartney changes bass slows it down.
Having just watched Get Back, much of what we’d heard about how the band was getting along was not accurate at that time.
The wonder of that documentary is how much fun they had together. Lennon was a really funny, goofy guy, more than George.
I don’t doubt that some of it is gibberish random references with no deep story. Skin grafts and Yoko in a hospital bed, jammed toes playing football. It could all be true Occam’s razor is the principle that the simplest answer is often true.
John and Yoko were passionate about peace. John was on heroin heavily in the late sixties. I don’t think he was a mystic or Jesus figure and there isn’t always code in his work. That said, artists and craftsmen have left insider jokes or Easter eggs in their work for centuries.
Relax, take it for what he said it was… -
Everyone should come together regardless of who they are and what they're into..
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Back in the 60's Timothy Leary's philosophy in programned expierment use with phycedelics, where many got caught for a while between genius and madness to become intelligent schizophrenics to write songs in coded quantum mechanics by mixing up a scramble egg way of thinking. Timothy Leary inspired the idea in this strange and unusual great song to JOHN LENNON still playing with the BEATLES written in the high holy days of the 60's that was for some that came into this song to make sense in ''come together'' basically in[mind and soul] from the trips they were on together for a party reason, a group, or as a individual. Expiermenting with certain drugs influenced many writers to think and write out of the so called box,especially then in the states where there was this created need for the youth to ''come together'' as a peace movement against the war and away from the claws of the establishment that did not want to see a holy spiritual rise against government and religion that the media helped along with some LSD and pot use that influenced John's ego towards developing a Messiah Complex. John lennon then was politicalized as a radical agnostic in some strange way the way JESUS of long ago was labeled by the religious and government leaders that did not want anybody to be a godly threat over them. Even though John said this song is a nonsense gobbledygook joke played on with words to make the song. There were still many questions to be asked, by who ever listens to them if to take him serious that he is describing his band mates and he being the hungry oyster eating Walrus, but could also be masquerading a yogi, a guru, or even the Pope[vica of Christ] in this song for all to assimilate by ''hold you in his armchair, yeah, you can feel his disease, come together, right now over me''. Anotherwords according to john there was always room for somebody else to be above him. Now if there are some other meanings in this song only John really knew and it could change throughout time to make your own interpretation, but I think John wanted on the overall for who ever listens and wishes to ''come together'' to know and see the big picture in oneself as wholeness for attaining a peace of mind to feel free in it, and not to be used as a Global Bloody Gook that some people wanted to make out of it's meaning.
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Here's a new twist. The song was recorded in 1969 at the height of the free love era. What many people seem to forget is there was also a huge Jesus movement at that time as well. If you take out the typical gibberish lyrics that Lennon was known for writing you've got Jesus in the midst. Most of the time it's the first 2 lines or so that are gibberish with the rest having a deeper possible meaning
He one holy rollers
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker
He just do what he please (opinion of many about Jesus when he walked the earth)
He wear no shoe shine - Sandals?
He got monkey finger - He pointed his finger at the Pharasees
He say I know you, you know me
One thing I can tell you is
You got to be free
Come together, right now
Over me
He one spinal cracker - Pharasees known for breaking peoples backs with laws
He got feet down below his knees
Hold you in his arms yeah
You can feel his disease - He was a healer
Come together, right now
Over me
He roller coaster - Jesus had a temper
He got early warning - he knew it all
He got muddy water - Water of baptism
He say one and one and one is three - The Trinity
Got to be good looking
Cause he's so hard to see - Not sure but it works
Come together right now
Over me - Meaning Jesus -
This song is a criticism of Uncle Sam, which represents the United States. Specifically, it is criticizing U.S. imperialism.
References to the United States permeate the lyrics. Flat top refers to a soldier. The U.S. uses its army to impose its will on others: "He just do what he please." Joo Joo eye balls and monkey finger refer to Uncle Sam's army poster, staring and pointing his finger, saying, "I WANT YOU!"
Other references make it clear he is referring to the United States: "toe jam football" Football is a uniquely American sport. He's one Holy Roller. The Holy Rollers are uniquely American. He shoot Coca Cola. Coca Cola was invented in the U.S. and is again uniquely American. "He shoot" makes it clear that the reference here is to U.S. imperialism, that is to say the U.S. using its military might to impose their will on other countries. He one "spinal cracker...," again if you don't subjugate he will crack your spine, or in other words use force to subjugate you. He got Ono sideboards. Lennon's wife Yoko Ono is Japanese. The Japanese are sidekicks of the United States, supporting all of the U.S's. imperialist adventures. "One thing, I can tell you is you gotta to be free"... Fighting for "freedom" was the excuse given to invade Vietnam, and get involved in the Korean War and was still the excuse given to invade Iraq. Of course, the Beatles didn't know about Iraq then, but the idea still holds. Finally, "come together right now over me" means worship me,i.e. do not fight U.S. imperialism, just accept it.
Sorry if I ruined your superficial interpretations of this song, but if you really want to understand and appreciate the Beatles, you have to know what they're saying. -
well, if it was just nonsense, no one would care. bottom line, the song is great nonsense. apparently, even nonsense takes craft. and then again, the music is part and parcel of the song, its funk, probably one of the funkiest of beatles tunes ever, grounds the nonsense and gives a kind of comprehesion, the song makes sense musically
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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John Lennon was inspired by Leary's campaign title "Come Together, Join the Party".
I think some of the lines have something to do with each of the Beatles. For example,
"He's one holy roller" refers to George Harrison.
"He got monkey finger, he shoot Coca Cola" refers to Ringo Starr, who's known as the funny Beatle.
"He got Ono sideboard, he one spinal cracker" refers to John Lennon
and "Got to be good-looking cause he's so hard to see" refers to Paul McCartney, who's known to be the good looking Beatle. -
Is there anymore information you can give on this subject. It answers a lot of my questions but there is still more info I need. I will drop you an email if I can find it. Never mind I will just use the contact form. Hopefully you can help me further.
- Robson -
If you listen closely to "Give peace a chance", the original recording made at the Queen Elizabeth hotel. He ad libs the phrase "Come Together" a few times near the end of the song, while he was giving shout outs to those listening in the room. He was referring to us that had come with Leary to ask him to write "Come together join the party" earlier that day, for Tim's calf. campaign. John didn't want to get political so he changed it to "come together over me"
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I feel and I think I felt when the song was first released that it's just a riff song as someone says Chuck Berry slowed down where I can Imagine John Lennon sat strumming away at the guitar in long haired freaks house waiting for him to show up with the dope marijuana (which he probably produces) the house is very bare of furnishings in the countryside somewhere Lennon is very observant of mannerisms as a synical joker himself and is refering to the caracter he sees in front of him as a tight pocketed skeletel boned, sharp shady business man type jewjew holly roller (a player) that boasts cocaine drug use among other observations such as his awareness and paranoia towards the law (early warning roller coaster, among other comments that Lennon makes toward his feet, hands and to where he even hides the stash(in his welligtons) when he holds you in his arms its not the warmth that you recieve from a real friend he's saying get it together come on where's the good vibe that's spreading among everyone
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And the refrain 'Shoot' was originally 'Shoot Me', but the 'Me' was dropped and overlaid with percussion.
'Come Together' -- or rather 'Come Together, Join The Party' -- was written as a slogan song for Timothy Leary's campaign to become Governor of California (perhaps as an alternative to the Far Right leanings of Reagan, but who knows?), per Leary's request to Lennon. Lennon agreed to write the song. The words 'Come Together' were Leary's idea and his campaign slogan.
Leary had wild ideals and a pro-drug stance, which would be part of his policies in his ludicrous campaign -- one which was simply idiotic (in any time, not just during the hippy-dippy, let's-not-deal-with-reality but do drugs instead to escape it, late 1960s), and would never have won favour over anybody but drug-addled hippies and biker gangs -- most, if not all, whom did not vote anyway. Of course Leary's campaign went nowhere. 'The Man, baby. Don't support The Man.' 'But it's Timothy Leary!' 'So what? He's trying to be The Man! Anyone trying to be The Man can't be trusted!' 'But he's on our side.' 'Not when he's The Man he won't be, Daddy. Dig?' (Okay, that part I invented. But I could easily see it being said.)
Plain and simple. The 'Come Together' lyrics by Lennon are just gobbledygook. Not for the Timothy Leary (campaign song)version but for The Beatles version. As with any drug-addict the perception of life (and one's mind) becomes gobbledygook. But Lennon had the gift of imagination; and lyrics; and humour; and forethought; and wit. (Did I mention I'm a John Lennon fan?) Think how many Lennon/McCartney lyrics have often been misinterpretted -- e.g., Helter Skelter by Charles Manson. But Lennon knew such a song with such lyrics -- as pertains to Leary's campaign song -- weren't going to assist Leary in his campaign. Lennon tried, though, and wrote the song anyway.
After Leary decided against using the song (whatever it was -- lyrically or otherwise), it was later written and slowed down (tempo-wise) and recorded entirely in the studio. But the song and lyrics we all know was not the song Lennon wrote for Timothy Leary, but for The Beatles -- based on Leary and Leary's campaign slogan idea. If it has meaning, which it probably has little, it is based on rhyme-scheme and made up words and phrases. There, of course, may be underlying digs towards Leary and the Drug Culture at the time, but purely in an lyrically ambiguous way -- much like the writing of Steely Dan. No hard feelings. I think Lennon and McCartney and the rest were simply salvaging a song idea that evolved into something else entirely.
-Terence Gunn. -
I have no idea as to what the song is about but I can tell what they probably meant by certain lyrics. When they sing one and one and one is three could be a clue to the paul is dead hoax. When they sing hold you in his armchair you could feel his disease could mean having sex to the point of climax. He shoot coca cola could be slang for cocaine. Another paul is dead hoax clue could be when they sing got to be good looking cause he's so hard to see.
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There's one major flaw in this interpretation: it's "Hold you in his arms, yeah, you can feel his disease", not "armchair"! If you listen to John performing this live, he actually just sings "arms"...
No doubt you used the lyric bag from 1966-70, in which case that's even funnier - just look at "Strawberry Fields Forever"...
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