Day in the Life
The Beatles Lyrics


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I read the news today, oh boy
About a lucky man who made the grade
And though the news was rather sad
Well, I just had to laugh
I saw the photograph

He blew his mind out in a car
He didn't notice that the lights had changed
A crowd of people stood and stared
They'd seen his face before
Nobody was really sure if he was from the House of Lords

I saw a film today, oh boy
The English Army had just won the war
A crowd of people turned away
But I just had to look
Having read the book
I'd love to turn you on

Woke up, fell out of bed
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup
And looking up, I noticed I was late
Found my coat and grabbed my hat
Made the bus in seconds flat
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke
And somebody spoke and I went into a dream

I read the news today, oh boy
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire
And though the holes were rather small
They had to count them all




Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall
I'd love to turn you on

Overall Meaning

The Beatles' "A Day in the Life" is one of their most iconic songs, hailed by many as a masterpiece. The song begins with the famous lyrics "I read the news today, oh boy," which set the tone for the rest of the song. The first verse tells the story of a man who "made the grade," but ends up dying in a car accident because he was not paying attention to the road. The second verse is about a film that the singer saw about the English Army winning the war, but people didn't really care about it. The final verse is about the singer's mundane day, waking up late, catching a bus, and having a smoke, before being transported into a dream.


The lyrics have been interpreted in many different ways. Some people see the song as a commentary on the apathy of society, as seen in the second verse where people don't care about England winning the war. Others see it as a reflection on the absurdity of daily life, as seen in the final verse where the singer's mundane day turns into a dream. The song is also infamous for its final chord, which is a massive orchestral chord that was created by all four Beatles and a 40-piece orchestra.


Interestingly, the lyrics of "A Day in The Life" were inspired by two separate newspaper articles that John Lennon and Paul McCartney had read. The first article was about the death of a wealthy man named Tara Browne who had died in a car accident. The second article was about the city of Blackburn, Lancashire, which had many potholes that were being counted by city officials.


Apart from being a cultural phenomenon, "A Day in The Life" has also been recognized for its technical and musical innovations. The song features a 40-piece orchestra, which had never been used in a rock song before. The song also has a unique meter, switching between 4/4 and 3/4 time signatures. The famous orchestral chord at the end of the song was created by using multiple pianos, organs, and guitars all playing the same chord simultaneously.


Line by Line Meaning

I read the news today, oh boy
I saw some depressing news today


About a lucky man who made the grade
The news was about someone who achieved success


And though the news was rather sad
Despite the sad nature of the news


Well, I just had to laugh
It was so sad that I had to laugh it off


I saw the photograph
I saw a picture of the lucky man


He blew his mind out in a car
The man died in a car crash


He didn't notice that the lights had changed
He was too distracted to notice the change in traffic lights


A crowd of people stood and stared
Onlookers had gathered to watch


They'd seen his face before
People recognized the man


Nobody was really sure if he was from the House of Lords
People speculated about his identity


I saw a film today, oh boy
I watched a movie today


The English Army had just won the war
The movie was about the war's outcome


A crowd of people turned away
Many viewers lost interest


But I just had to look
But I was still interested


Having read the book
I had previously read the material that the movie was based on


I'd love to turn you on
This line is nonsensical and open to interpretation


Woke up, fell out of bed
This line describes someone's morning routine


Dragged a comb across my head
The person combed their hair


Found my way downstairs and drank a cup
They went downstairs to have a cup of coffee


And looking up, I noticed I was late
They realized they were running late


Found my coat and grabbed my hat
They picked up their belongings


Made the bus in seconds flat
They caught the bus quickly


Found my way upstairs and had a smoke
They went back inside and smoked a cigarette


And somebody spoke and I went into a dream
They daydreamed after hearing someone speak


Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire
The news reported on the number of potholes in the area


And though the holes were rather small
Even though the potholes were not significant


They had to count them all
Authorities had to count every pothole


Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall
A ridiculous statement implying that there are many potholes which would equate to the capacity of the popular music venue


I'd love to turn you on
This nonsensical line remains open to interpretation




Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: John Lennon, Paul McCartney

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

@gutgolf74

@@potato-whiz
Well, there are still people not convinced that the earth is round and Trump is a crook and a dangerous person...
While in both cases the evidence is even bigger than this one, you can rest assured: It's literally impossible to be John.

Why it shouldn't be John:
It's Paul's part, end of story. No need for John to sing lead on Paul's part in Paul's dream.
That's also why we only see PAUL during this part in the official video to ADITL. No John AT ALL - but he returns right when HIS part, the last verse, starts.
They were finished recording John's vocals for ADITL 2 weeks before and just returned for recording Paul's part on February 3rd. John NEVER sang this part when he had the chance to.
Also, note the position of the voices in the stereo-picture: John is on the right, Paul on the left. The "aaahs" start on Paul's side and move over to cue John's return.
Why it couldn't be John:
Since -- in contrast to Emerick's fairy-tale - there is absolutely no cut between the "dream" and the "aaah", it must be still the same lead singer, Paul. You can even hear him take a breath between the "dream" and the "aaah" on the isolated vocal track.
Since John is doing his trademark NASAL high falsetto in the background AT THE SAME TIME it's impossible for him to also do the lead aaah.
Also, the lead aaah doesn't sound like John AT ALL.
It's a chest voice that would have been too high for him to do. Please name a single example where John sings like that - I bet you can't! Note how the example of "Mother" from this video is a FALSETTO part!! That's only proving it's Paul doing the "aah".
With Paul you only have to go as far as "Lovely Rita" to find a very similar example.
There are many experts who very thoroughly listened to all the actual reels and went through all the paperwork and wrote very highly praised books, like Kevin Ryan and Brian Kehew (from the book "Recording the Beatles", p. 444): "Though many have understandably attributed this vocal to John Lennon in the past, isolation of the vocal reveals it to be Paul. As the part progresses, his voice takes on a more nasal tone; this, in combination with an application of Repeat Echo similar to that already applied to John's, does much to give an impression of it being Lennon."
Or John C. Winn, who actually pointed out all the little differences between every single mix every made of any Beatles song: (from the book "That magic feeling - The Beatles' recorded legacy, p. 86): "Paul then corrected his vocal blunder by taping a new vocal on track 2, also adding some soaring "aahs" over the circle-of-fifths segment that linked back to the final verse".
And of course Sam Okell, who did the freaking Sgt. Pepper's REMIX: "Paul's main vocal track is in stereo, because we gave it some spread with the Waves S1 Stereo Imaging plug-in, so it has a different sound than John's lead. We also split off two little bits to be able to pan them left and right. His fourth vocal track is the 'aaah' section, and below it is an 'Aah delay' aux track." "Inside Sgt. Pepper's": Sound On Sound. SOS Publications Group. 26 October 2021



All comments from YouTube:

@arsonne

This song feels like the end-credits for life.

@Rfoz51

Funny you should say that - this was played at a funeral I attended, just surreal and so weird!

@pr.paradox1970

SO TRUE

@lindaklase3821

Yes, Paul’s death November 9, 1966. And replacement with Billy Shepherd aka Billy Shears. Ringo sings Billy Shears.

@ots1634

ew, i gotta turn it off- that depresses/scares me

@jona.scholt4362

@2:49 would be the part I agree with the most regarding the end of the world comment.

277 More Replies...

@gracie30ish

my dad used to play the beatles while he makes breakfast for us before we go to school..so this background music is on while i tie my shoes put on my uniform and go wait for the school bus and now I'm old and he's gone and everytime i play the beatles I'm back to those mornings.

@abhishekarya9474

Grace wow ☺

@yejulee2417

Your comment got me tearful.

@buddyholly3527

Grace I'm sorry for your loss and that's a sad but at the same time a beautiful story

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