Read about it here:
Don’t get me wrong. I love me some Beatles. But, let’s face it, Paul wrote the pop stuff, and John wrote the weird and serious stuff. When they broke up, you just had to know that Paul was going to continue to make great pop songs. But, for all I can tell, John could have just given it all up and disappeared to the mountains or something, never to be heard from again. (When he finally got sober, he actually did kind of disappear, for 5 years, and made no music. He said it was some of the happiest times of his life.)
But thank god that he didn’t just disappear immediately after the Beatles broke up, because we never would have had this amazing album. Controversial and daring, soaring and simple, John bares his soul for the world to see in ways he couldn’t quite bring himself to as a Beatle. I really can’t say enough good things about this record. If there is any doubt, listen to these three songs:
“God”
“Mother”
“Working Class Hero”
Mike B.