Lennon takes a playful but barely audible swipe at Brian Epstien in the fade out. Any guesses?
"BABY YOU'RE A RICH MAN" The Beatles, Magical Mystery Tour
RUMOR: On one of the tracks the line "Baby you're a rich man too" is sung as "Baby you're a rich fag Jew," a dig at Brian Epstein. Or some think it's "rich fat Jew" and claim it as evidence of Beatle anti-Semitism.
FINDINGS: Negative. The two stereo tracks are nearly identical. It's always possible to hear words as similiar-sounding words, but basically, the lyrics jibe with the published version.
QUOTED EXERPT FROM William Poundstone'sBig Secrets, (c) 1983.
I have to add my two cents to this thread. First, John DID have an anti-Semitic streak to him. I say this as a fan of Lennon's, not a Lennon hater. Suggest you read Larry Kane's book about the Beatle's 64 and 65 tours. Kane is Jewish and a huge Lennon fan, but he discusses the anti-Jewish sentiment in the group. I also suggest you read an early edition of "Lennon Remembers" where John made a very nasty anti-Semitic statement about the Eastman family, claiming that the Eastman's changed their name from "Epstein". But you won't find it in later editions of the book. I wonder why. As for "rich fag Jew" at the end of BYARM, one needs the original mono single to clearly hear it. Later pressings of the single won't help you much. You must have the original single. My theory as to why this line was at first masked (on the MMT vinyl album) and virtually eliminated on the remastered CD is that what was considered a semi-private, inside joke in May of '67 (when it was recorded), was deemed tasteless by August of '67, the month Brian died. Personally, I don't believe John was being unnecessarily mean. True, John was both anti-Semitic and a homophobe at that point in his life, but John's friendship with Brian was complicated, to say the least. For other reasons, I could make the case that the entire song, from start to finish, was about Brian. I think John added the "offending" phrase as a way of telling Brian, "Yes, Brian. This song is about you. Love, John" Strangely, it was not a dig at Brian, but a tribute. In the words of Dr. Winston O' Boogie: "You should have been there."
"BABY YOU'RE A RICH MAN"
The Beatles, Magical Mystery Tour
RUMOR: On one of the tracks the line "Baby you're a rich man too" is sung as "Baby you're a rich fag Jew," a dig at Brian Epstein. Or some think it's "rich fat Jew" and claim it as evidence of Beatle anti-Semitism.
FINDINGS: Negative. The two stereo tracks are nearly identical. It's always possible to hear words as similiar-sounding words, but basically, the lyrics jibe with the published version.
QUOTED EXERPT FROM William Poundstone's Big Secrets, (c) 1983.I have to add my two cents to this thread. First, John DID have an anti-Semitic streak to him. I say this as a fan of Lennon's, not a Lennon hater. Suggest you read Larry Kane's book about the Beatle's 64 and 65 tours. Kane is Jewish and a huge Lennon fan, but he discusses the anti-Jewish sentiment in the group. I also suggest you read an early edition of "Lennon Remembers" where John made a very nasty anti-Semitic statement about the Eastman family, claiming that the Eastman's changed their name from "Epstein". But you won't find it in later editions of the book. I wonder why. As for "rich fag Jew" at the end of BYARM, one needs the original mono single to clearly hear it. Later pressings of the single won't help you much. You must have the original single. My theory as to why this line was at first masked (on the MMT vinyl album) and virtually eliminated on the remastered CD is that what was considered a semi-private, inside joke in May of '67 (when it was recorded), was deemed tasteless by August of '67, the month Brian died. Personally, I don't believe John was being unnecessarily mean. True, John was both anti-Semitic and a homophobe at that point in his life, but John's friendship with Brian was complicated, to say the least. For other reasons, I could make the case that the entire song, from start to finish, was about Brian. I think John added the "offending" phrase as a way of telling Brian, "Yes, Brian. This song is about you. Love, John" Strangely, it was not a dig at Brian, but a tribute. In the words of Dr. Winston O' Boogie: "You should have been there."