At the time the Beatles became successful, Mike McCartney was still working as an apprentice hairdresser. However, he was also a member of the Liverpool comedy-poetry-music group The Scaffold, which included Roger McGough and John Gorman and had formed in 1962 (the year of The Beatles' first hit). McCartney decided to use a stage name, so as not to capitalize on his family connections to the Fab Four. After first dubbing himself "Mike Blank", he settled on "Mike McGear", using the Liverpudlian equivalent of "Fab". The band was subsequently signed to Parlophone, the same EMI label which recorded The Beatles.
The Scaffold recorded a number of UK hit singles between 1966 and 1974, the most successful being the 1968 Christmas number one single, "Lily the Pink". McCartney composed the band's next biggest hit, 1967's "Thank U Very Much". In 1968, he and McGough released a "duo" album (McGough & McGear) that included the usual Scaffold mix of lyrics, poems, and comedy.
The Scaffold ended up hosting a TV program, which limited the musical portion of their career, and they were dropped by Parlophone. McCartney then signed to Island Records and released a solo musical album entitled Woman in 1972, which again included many tracks co-written with McGough, and The Scaffold subsequently released their own album on the label, Fresh Liver.
The Scaffold then added several other members and released two albums on Island in 1973 as Grimms (an acronym for Gorman-Roberts-Innes-McGear-McGough-Stanshall). However, McCartney quit Grimms after the second album due to tension between himself and one of the poets added to the group.
McCartney then signed to Warner Bros. Records and in 1974 released his only "serious" musical album, McGear, in which he collaborated with his brother Paul and Paul's band Wings. Although four singles were released from these sessions, none of them became successful. However, also recorded during McCartney's sessions with Wings was a Scaffold "reunion" song, "Liverpool Lou", which became The Scaffold's last top-ten hit and led to their re-formation in 1974 and their last recording sessions of new material.
The Man Who Found God On The Moon
Mike McGear Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gliding 'long motorways, running a race
Sails in the sunset, fireworks explode (explode)
Motor planes plough through a night on the road (road)
Thinking of people, places I've been
Flashback's the name of a child I had seen
Selling little books for Krishna, flowers 'round her heart
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Thinking of people, places I've been
Flashback's the name of a man I had seen
The man who found God in his spacesuit
Was the man who found God on the Moon
You should have seen him flip, he nearly lost his grip
It was a total trip
(Hey-hey-hey, hey-hey-hey)
(Hey-hey-hey, hey-hey-hey, hey-hey-hey)
It was a spiritual awakening, a lunar landscape happening
Once in the life of the man who found God on the Moon
You should have seen him flip, he nearly lost his grip
It was a total trip
The men in balloons were floating through space
Gliding 'long motorways, running a race
Sails in the sunset, fireworks explode (explode)
Motor planes plough through a night on the road (road)
Thinking of people, places I've been
Flashback's the name of a child I had been
(Alright now, go now, now!)
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
(So there you are then, quite a difference. Yes, the answer is... LP)
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
Brought a breath of truth...
The song "The Man Who Found God on the Moon" by Mike McGear is a whimsical and poetic exploration of the state of the world and the search for spiritual truth. The song opens with imagery of men in floating balloons, reminiscent of the explorers of old, floating through space and running a race. The lyrics suggest that this race is not just a physical one, but also a search for spiritual enlightenment.
The lyrics then turn to the story of Annette, a child of God who spreads love and truth through her books and flowers for Krishna. Annette is a symbol of purity and goodness in a world that is mad and confusing. She brings a breath of fresh air into this world for a while, but the lyrics suggest that this is temporary and fleeting.
The song's centerpiece is the man who found God on the Moon, an event that is described as a "spiritual awakening, a lunar landscape happening." The lyrics suggest that this moment is transformative and life-changing, and that it represents the ultimate goal of the search for spiritual truth. The song ends with a repetition of Annette's importance and the idea of bringing truth into a mad world.
Overall, "The Man Who Found God on the Moon" is a dreamlike and existential exploration of the nature of humanity, spirituality, and the search for truth in a confusing and chaotic world.
Line by Line Meaning
The men in balloons were floating through space
A group of adventurous men were floating above the planet Earth in hot air balloons.
Gliding 'long motorways, running a race
They were observers of the busy roads and highways below, trying to outdo each other in speed.
Sails in the sunset, fireworks explode (explode)
The beautiful setting sun inspired them, and they set off fireworks in celebration.
Motor planes plough through a night on the road (road)
As the night sets in, they watched airplanes moving around on the roads.
Thinking of people, places I've been
The singer is lost in his thoughts - reminiscing of his past experiences and recalling familiar faces and places.
Flashback's the name of a child I had seen
Amidst all the memories, the singer recalls the name of a child he had met.
Annette was a child of God, loving from the start
The singer met a girl named Annette who believed in God and spread love throughout her life.
Selling little books for Krishna, flowers 'round her heart
Annette sold books about Krishna while donning flowers on her attire as a gesture of love and peace.
Thinking of people, places I've been
The singer's thoughts wandered again, this time remembering another person he had met in the past.
Flashback's the name of a man I had seen
The singer remembers the name of a man he had met.
The man who found God in his spacesuit
The man in question found God while wearing a spacesuit during his time in space.
Was the man who found God on the Moon
The same man also found God on the Moon, which was a significant spiritual experience for him.
You should have seen him flip, he nearly lost his grip
The experience was so intense that the man lost his balance and almost fell over.
It was a total trip
The experience was out of this world, euphoric, and life-changing.
It was a spiritual awakening, a lunar landscape happening
The experience was both a spiritual awakening and an encounter with a landscape on the moon.
Once in the life of the man who found God on the Moon
The man never experienced anything quite like this in his life.
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
The singer once again thinks about Annette and how she brought joy into his life.
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
Annette's love and devotion to God brought a sense of truth and peace into the singer's life for a brief moment.
So there you are then, quite a difference. Yes, the answer is... LP
The song ends with the singer seemingly acknowledging that the true meaning behind the lyrics may be difficult to understand or grasp, and the answer may lie in the LP (the album).
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
The singer repeats this line as a way of emphasizing the impact and importance of Annette's presence in his life.
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
The singer again repeats the importance of Annette's influence on his happiness.
Brought a breath of truth into this mad world for awhile
The singer continues to emphasize Annette's role in bringing some truth into his tumultuous life.
Annette made me happy, baby, Annette made me smile
The singer repeats this line one last time as a way of conveying his gratitude towards Annette for her positive impact on his life.
Brought a breath of truth...
The song ends abruptly after this line, leaving the listener to ponder on the impact of Annette's love and devotion to God on the singer's life.
Writer(s): Paul Mccartney, Linda Mccartney, Mike Mcgear
Contributed by Colin Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Kathryn Schauf
on Bored As Butterscotch
Woman Mike mcgear: I need lyrics