Preacher Ken’s musical topic yesterday was the Beatles’ classic, “Help.” It was interesting to hear what Lennon was thinking when he wrote the lyrics. Here is what he said:
“‘Help!,’ is real, I meant it. The lyric is as good now as it was then. It’s no different, you know, and it makes me feel secure to know that I was aware of myself then. It was just me singing help and I meant it. I don’t like the recording that much; we did it too fast, trying to be commercial. When ‘Help’ came out, I was actually crying out for help. Most people think it’s just a fast rock ‘n’ roll song. I didn’t realize it at the time, I just wrote the song because I was commissioned to write it for the movie. But later, I knew I really was crying out for help. So it was my fat Elvis period. You see the movie – He, I, is very fat, very insecure, and he’s completely lost himself. And I am singing about when I was so much younger and all the rest, looking back at how easy it was. Now I may be very positive, yes, yes, but I also go through deep depressions where I would like to jump out the window, you know. It becomes easier to deal with as I get older, I don’t know whether you learn control or, when you grow up, you calm down a little. Anyway, I was fat and depressed and I was crying out for help.”
Minutes to Memories 