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44 Years Ago today Lennon said it

Posted by: Jeff Woods | Mar 4 2010 10:40AM
Updated: Mar 4 2010 10:50AM

Ever wish you could reach out an pull the words back into your mouth.

We all do.

Today in '66, came the words that would get Lennon in deep doo-doo.

John was doing an interview with a woman named Maureen Cleave of the Evening Standard (UK), and said "Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink… We're more popular than Jesus now—I don't know which will go first, rock and roll or Christianity."

Nobody noticed in England, or if they did, they didn't get their panties in a bunch. Then, when quoted by American teen magazine called 'Datebook', several months later, it hit the fan. I almost cry everytime I see shots of those punters burning original Beatles records.

It was yet another reason for the Beatles to quit touring.

And another bit of inspiration for a new Beales song, here with lyrics.

Enjoy,

Jeff

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COMMENTS (17)

Phil
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 9 2010 5:35PM
A gross over reaction to an accurate statement. John was not talking theology or even 'greatness' for that matter. The simple reality is that we live in a global village with multiple medias that can communicate ideas across the globe in seconds. Jesus didn't have that advantage. In their time in the spotlight, many millions know the likes of Britney Spears, Cher, Marilyn Manson, Tom Green, Tiny Tim, etc. etc. ... It took centuries of evangelization for Jesus to be known by that many people.

Jeff Woods: Pragmatic view, I like it. Cheers Phil.

jon
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 8 2010 5:02PM
Ummm, if we were to say 'do the math'... with regards to Jim K's numbers, the Beatles would have sold 36.1 billion copies over the same time period as compared to the bible's 2.5 billion. nuff said.

Elaine
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 8 2010 7:36AM
for sure, I like them a lot better now than I did then!

Uncle Too Too
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 6 2010 11:01AM
I was born a Roman Catholic , but fortunetly Confirmed a Beatles supporter . I have more respect for John's mussings than I do the behaviour of Catholics, then or now . Room in the closet for the radicals . Miss you John . P.S. Wondering if you recorded a slow version of "Help" on a 45 . Let me know .

Jeff Woods: apparently not (a slower version) although John had apparently wished he had. cheers

Christina
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 5 2010 3:47PM
Yes so he did. I miss him terribly. But I just want to comment how much I enjoyed this little music video clip with the lyrics, and thinking all the while how great and endearing that the 2 pals recorded the song together without anyone else (not even George or Ringo), on a song about John and Yoko no less, how well Paul drummed and harmonized just enough, how great John's guitar sounded. Thanks.

Jeff Woods: great point, just the two of them, John and Paul, kinda makes it that much more special. gracias

Jason
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 5 2010 3:04AM
so is this the reason for the comments they play over and over with John Lennon saying "I didn't say we were bigger than Jesus ... or better than Jesus - I was just sayin'.." ? was this some attempt at recovering their image in the media in a later interview?

Jeff Woods: it was a bit of a back pedal, yes. there's a photo that's been published, I can't recall if it's by Harry Benson or Bob Gruen, of John's face, right after the news broke. he looks like he's seen a ghost.

laurel
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 5 2010 1:58AM
I remember it well...they were my favorite band, and John was my fave fab...people get sooo uptight when you attack their GOD..it's worse than attacking them...personally..love all the old videos ..

Jeff Woods: :)

Darryl
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 11:52PM
John's hatred against religion and Christianity caused him to do and say many stupid things. His interview (with I forget whom) about this song where he aggressively claimed to speak for everyone was about the most arrogant statement I've ever heard from a musician. John fought against God his whole life. People's private views about God are their own but when they take up the banner and make a public career out of it, well, others will find it offensive. And then everyone's shocked when he's murdered by some deranged lunatic. Coincidence?

Jeff Woods: Yes, he pushed, and he got pushed back, to say the least. On a somewhat related note, I'm reminded of the Lennon song 'God' in which his point is that we put our gods on pedestals and at the end of the day, one ultimately has to be in himself. I was watching the news last night about the 'Freedom Party' Dutch leader Geert Wilder, who in the Netherlands, faces prosecution for allegedly inciting racial hatred with remarks that include describing the Koran as a fascist book and demanding that it be banned. Mr Wilders, who compares Islam to fascism and the Koran to Adolf Hitler's book 'Mein Kampf', has been under 24-hour protection for the past five years after receiving death threats over his views. The far-right politician has apparently accused Islam of being 'incompatible' with democracy today after arriving in London to show his anti-Islamic film Fitna at the House of Lords. He is now on course to win the most Parliamentary seats in the country's June 9 election. And, explaining his controversial views last October, Mr Wilders said: ‘I have a problem with the Islamic ideology, the Islamic culture, because I feel that the more Islam that we get in our societies, the less freedom that we get.’ I haven't read into his views deeper than that, however, there's more here for anyone who would like to: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1255658/Geert-Wilders-arrives-Britain-major-gains-Dutch-polls.html#ixzz0hK050kOy Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1255658/Geert-Wilders-arrives-Britain-major-gains-Dutch-polls.html#ixzz0hJzUATs2 Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1255658/Geert-Wilders-arrives-Britain-major-gains-Dutch-polls.html#ixzz0hJzMWADe

Jim J
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 11:07PM
A good friend of mine was selling Beatles memorabilia, especially Beatles record albums to customers in the Southern United States in the later half of the 1970's. Sales were brisk and he made a decent buck off of it. Supply and demand.

Jeff Woods: Indeed

serge
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 10:49PM
Seems like if someone tells it like it is, people seem to take it the wrong way. Then like today. I guess the truth hurts.

Jeff Woods: Nothing cuts quite like the truth, that much is true.

Jim K
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 5:03PM
Current tally, world wide sales: Bible 2.5 billion Beatles 750 million. Granted the Bible had a 1900 year head start.

Jeff Woods: Me laughing.

Norman
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 4:48PM
John Lennon was one of the greatest icons of our times. He wasn't afraid to change the face of music or to try to change the world or challenge our perceptions of it. He didn't shrink from the limelight. It didn't overwhelm him or make him diffident. He was himself -straight-shooting and quick-witted, charming, unashamed and well aware even of his own self-contradictions. Our lives are all so much incalculably richer for his existence and poorer for his absence. (thanks Jeff for all your Beatles postings)

Jeff Woods: Thanks for your comments Norman. Yes, he was all those things. And as David Bowie once told me, he also had the ability to really cut people down with his sharp tongue. It wasn't something John was proud of. I'm also reminded of something I heard years ago, that men as S#@$ 'til they're 40. I'll be John would concur, as a man that barely made it to that age, and fully knowing he was just finally getting it together.

strangedays
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 2:18PM
@ Young Gun: I definitely agree--it is closer to sacrilege to burn a Beatles record than to "insult" Jesus. And I'm Catholic (albeit a very liberal Catholic)! hah :)

Jeff Woods: Hah indeed. Cheers Heather.

Young Gun
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 2:00PM
I love that quote, Lennon is one of my heroes. I suppose it's ironic that I find burning Beatles records closer to sacrilege than "insulting" Jesus...

Jeff Woods: thanks for this.

Lola
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 1:50PM
Sorry, I can't remember the exact quote - just the Maureen Holloway version!

Jeff Woods: I was totally kidding (to your earlier comment)!

Emily
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 1:38PM
I wonder if John was correct. If he said television was more popular than Jesus, would he have gotten into as much trouble in the Bible Belt? This was really the ending to The Beatles right here was it not? (John & Yoko)

Jeff Woods: Quote or no quote, the Beatles had a shelf life together as a band, in my estimation. Cheers Emily.

Lola
RE:44 Years Ago today Lennon said it
Mar 4 2010 11:14AM
Do you think that Elton John was borrowing a page out of Lennon's book when he recently declared that "Jesus was a gay man"?

Jeff Woods: No doubt. But didn't he say 'Gay Lord'. That's a step up, not just gay, but Lord of ALL ... Not that there's anything wrong with that.



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