Talk:Happiness Is a Warm Gun

Suicide?

I always thought this song was about suicide. John Lennon said that if he wanted to write a song about drugs it would be about drugs. The fix they are referring to is then an escape from the life or "abyss" they were talking about during the first verse. Toward the end of the song when the author sings, "When I hold you in my arms/And I feel my finger on your trigger/I know nobody can do me no harm/Because happiness is a warm gun, momma" the author is obviously personifying the gun that he or she is considering shooting himself or herself with.

Where is the information about the song's meaning one the page now from? It seams to me like it is an individuals opinion. This seems like individual research. -Thomas

If it is, it's fairly common. We were just talking about this song at the bar, and someone brought up the Yoko component; I had always assumed it was part of it too. 24.89.213.42 22:46, 12 September 2006 (UTC)

If a body listens to the "out takes" and "demos" John clearly sings about Yoko: Yoko Ono/ oh no? oh yes. So the song is in part about Yoko and the possible break up of the band. It was clearly documented at the time and recently shown on History Channel's Beatles Special that reporters were asking if "this was the last Beatles' album?" which the band denied. Considering the mental state of the band, drugs and suicide as an escape from the bickering and stress of public life, is acceptable, but without any real intention to do so. Remember, John just wanted it all to be over by that point, and Paul was already thinking of what he was going to do next. All of this is clearly documented in the Beatles books written by or about them.

Things I'd like to know are: "Mother Superior" because of the length of her habit? and the National Trust as slang for a toilet? Anyone have any information on that? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.113.49.126 (talk) 18:02, 20 December 2009 (UTC)

Disputed Inspiration

The section on the song's inspirations seems to be totally based on the writer's interpretation and speculation, not on actual fact. The Beatles Anthology has John saying that the title comes from a magazine cover that read "Happiness is a warm gun." I remember nothing about pacifism or American culture. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Drifternumber9 (talk • contribs) 22:26, 30 September 2006 (UTC)

Web address store

I have moved this here as it was not working.

• Song Lyrics

Then it started again, so I put it back! (RJP 20:52, 27 September 2005 (UTC))

Well it's still not working bud. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.81.141.247 (talk) 11:28, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

Vocals

Does Lennon sing the entire song? I always assumed the screaming at the end was McCartney, but wasn't sure. Wanted to make sure before i changed anything.

This song had a long-standing record for being my least favourite Beatles song, but I recently decided I love it! This song rocks! --Ian911299

No, John sings the entire song. Paul sings with John towards the middle of the song, but Paul never does a solo. The 'screaming' at the end is John again by himself.

And I agree, this song rocks. I think its the best song on the album.-12/30/06

Not to take anything away from Paul, he has a great scream, but John is the champion screamer of the band. Just listen to Well Well Well by John. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.81.141.247 (talk) 11:25, 25 February 2011 (UTC)

Capitals

Could someone owning the album please check whether they use capitals or not? Thanks. --217.235.229.14

On my version, the "is" is not capitalized (Happiness is a Warm Gun). The information from WMP capitalizes it, though (as in the current artcile title). - LeaHazel 12:46, 30 August 2006 (UTC)

Yoko Oh No Section

Should the "Yoko Oh No" Section from Anthology 3 perhaps be mentioned here? It might help display further proof as to the songs relationship to Yoko. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.64.56.157 (talk) 07:10, 15 July 2006 (UTC)

Paul's Favourite Song?

When did Paul say that this is his favourite song on the album? -Vladimir Lenin 17:04, 18 August 2006 (UTC)

Check The Love You Make: An Insider's Story of The Beatles by Peter Brown; my edition has it on page 315, but check the index on the edition you have for "The White Album". According to that, it's his favorite song on the album due to the fact that all four of them collaborated on it just like old times. agahnim 21:33, 22 January 2009 (UTC)

Heroin Use?

If you ask me this song is about Heroin and John's use of it.

Then it's a good thing your opinion can't be written into the article. John denied that the song was about heroin. He was open about his drug use, so there was no reason for him to lie.-12/30/06

Source? The song is clearly about Heroin to me.... come on, so many other beatles songs are about drug use... fixin a hole, got to get you into my life, Dr. Robert, Glass Onion, and I won't even say Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.159.192.132 (talk) 01:19, 22 January 2009 (UTC)

It's as much a song about heroin as it is about anything else. There's really no evidence for it being about heroin other than a million conspiracy websites without citations. Read the books about the Beatles; John and the others have always said that it was inspired by a magazine quote—"Happiness is a Warm Gun in Your Hand"—and by most accounts, John was just shocked that someone could be happy from firing a gun. You'll read arguments along the lines of "Yeah, well, that means you just shot something, just like you shoot up heroin!", but if John was ever shooting up it wasn't for years later, post-Beatles, and therefore that theory holds no ground. Even so, he and Yoko both said they never shot up—though Yoko has since contradicted this occasionally. A few other songs being about drugs doesn't mean that this one is about drugs. Now go away. agahnim 21:20, 22 January 2009 (UTC)

Even if John wasn't shooting up, it's general knowledge that that's how you do it. I've never shot up, but I know that's how it's done. Paul recently came out as saying, "Yes we were on drugs, and yes the songs are about drugs." At his age, and being one of only two Beatles left, richer than hell, and a knight to boot, he doesn't have anything to lose NOW as opposed to admitting the truth THEN. If he'd said, yeah we're on drugs THEN, he'd never be who he is NOW. Remember the FBI was keeping tabs on John up until he was shot mostly because he'd been giving money, aid and support to the IRA who were killing Brits at the time. Think Paul wanted that kind of attention?

There is no doubt what it's about. Any RS's that dare to state the obvious can and should be mentioned.zzz (talk) 09:24, 26 September 2014 (UTC)

It's OK to have no doubts. But it's not OK to have no sources, and that lack is the clincher. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:1700:EA01:1090:EC8A:1903:5014:53FE (talk) 07:40, 3 December 2018 (UTC)

I would wonder, though, how it could be that Lennon "denied that the song had anything to do with drugs" if he also, as stated in the first paragraph under "Composition", called a section of the song "the Junkie". Even if that's considered "merely a metaphor" or the like, that's still a "drug reference". 2601:545:8202:4EA5:D1B0:8907:F423:DDEA (talk) 08:19, 15 July 2019 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:The White Album.jpg

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BetacommandBot 03:52, 25 October 2007 (UTC)

Warm gun & female sexual organ

For decades I've believed warm gun in this song meant female sexual organ. Have I been misled? Nurg (talk) 04:33, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

I always thought it was a metaphor for masturbation71.171.46.243 (talk) 12:21, 28 January 2008 (UTC)

Instruments

A tuba can also be heard: [1]
Tambourine and organ also: [2]
Helpsloose 19:12, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

There is a tuba but not where you heard it, that's just George's fuzz guitar playing long bass notes. The tuba is in the "I need a fix" section, it doubles the basic bass notes, it is very noticeable on the mono mix. --151.42.174.102 (talk) 00:36, 25 February 2017 (UTC)

Radiohead trivia

The piece of Radiohead trivia seems slightly out of place in this article. It's a widely-known piece of information, but belongs in the Paranoid Android article not this one. Perhaps a more general comment about the influence on multi-part rock songs. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.112.234.78 (talk) 18:33, 24 January 2009 (UTC)

Structure?

Where is the source for this entire paragraph?

One of the most salient musical features of the song is its frequent shifts in meter. Beginning in 2/4 time, the song shifts to 3/4 time on "which he gave and donated to the national trust" and to 6/8 time for the guitar solo in the "I need a fix..." section. This gives way to 6/8, 3/4, and 4/4 measures in the "Mother Superior..." section before returning to 4/4 for the majority of the doo-wop style ending. During Lennon's spoken-word interlude, the song briefly switches into 6/4. The spoken word section has its roots in the song later on the album "I'm So Tired" because, exhibited in the song's home demo, is a spoken word section in 6/4 time that is almost exactly like the one in "Happiness is a Warm Gun."

First of all, the time signatures seem way off, the "national trust" section is not in 3/4 (try and count it out), and the lyric is "which he ate" not "which he gave". Where did this come from?70.91.35.27 (talk) 20:50, 11 February 2009 (UTC)Tim

Tagged with original research template. If nothing sources can be found for this, it'll have to go. Cycle~ (talk) 21:00, 21 February 2009 (UTC)

So someone took the tag off and still hasn't sourced any of this, so I removed it. If someone wants to put this back they need to provide a source.70.91.35.27 (talk) 15:58, 21 August 2013 (UTC)Tim

Meter gibberish

The third paragraph of the "Structure" section doesn't make much sense. To my ear, the song doesn't begin in 6/4, but rather in 4/4. (She's not... a girl... who misses much...) I'm not a music expert, so just wondering. Turbokoala (talk) 18:21, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

You're quite right. It starts off in 4/4 (shes not a girl who misses much). The "mother superior" section is either 10/4 or 5/4 depending on your point of view. The time signature part needs cleaning up, and citations preferably. The wikipedia list of songs that feature unusual time signatures actually requires that each entry have a citation. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 124.187.82.244 (talk) 07:06, 29 March 2011 (UTC)

Northern Songs, nowadays Sony/ATV Music Publishing, was founded by Lennon, McCartney, Epstein, and music publisher Dick James in 1963 to publish songs written by Lennon and McCartney and thus handle the band's creative output in a financially lucrative way.

There is no 5/4 or 5-whatsoever in their sheet music version of 'Happiness is a Warm Gun'. It's plain and simple 4/4, alla breve, 3/4, 6/8 and 6/4 which in the way they are used make the piece unusual and difficult enough to count without the alleged 5/4. I can clearly see where the 5/4 is coming from. But LISTEN to what it actually sounds like: Its sections of 4 + 4 + 2 (or maybe even 4+ 6). It's not 5 + 5....

Yes, the song is in the 'Examples in popular music' list of the 'Quintuple meter' article. It's wrongfully in there, even by the article's own definition. It at least belongs in the 'Partially in quintuple time' list. I have no access to the source the editor used, allegedly Japanese authors (or at least authors with Japanese sounding names) with renowned publisher 'Hal Leonard'. To me that sounds apocryphal at best. 'Hal Leonard' usually don't own the rights themselves (except for a lot of their original educational stuff). They acquire a license to something and turn it into whatever they like. 'FULL Star Wars OST for Ocarina with Simplified Melodies!" and sorts. Look at the 'Northern Songs Limited' original version, seemingly belonging to the public domain nowadays. The Wikipedia editor software won't let me insert an external link here. Google 'The Beatles - All Songs 1962-1974, Northern Songs Limited' and take a look at the score (published by the very composers, lyricists and producers) yourself. Korinthus (talk) 00:33, 30 December 2023 (UTC)

Other Uses

What is this nonsense about the title being spelled "Hapiness" on Rarities Vol. 1? There is no Beatles album entitled Rarities Vol. 1 and "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" wouldn't belong there anyway. There is a version of "Happiness" on Anthology 3 but the title is not misspelled. How about we just delete the whole sentence? Signinstranger (talk) 23:31, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

I am not sure if it is an official release, but i have seen a disc called B-sides and rarities vol 1 floating around on the internet. If i recall it was one of many beatles bootleg releases. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.24.142.225 (talk) 07:30, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

Infobox - Genre

What is up with the genres linked in the infobox... Hard Rock and Doo Wop?? Am I the only one that thinks that neither of those are particularly appropriate? --Entoaggie09 (talk) 22:37, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

Clearly the end of the song is a parody or in British, "a send up" of Doo Wop music which the Beatles made obsolete during the British Invasion —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.113.49.126 (talk) 18:09, 20 December 2009 (UTC)

James Joyce's Ulysses

Part two, chapter ten.

The eyes that were fastened upon her set her pulses tingling. She looked at him a moment, meeting his glance, and a light broke in upon her. Whitehot passion was in that face, passion silent as the grave, and it had made her his. At last they were left alone without the others to pry and pass remarks and she knew he could be trusted to the death, steadfast, a sterling man, a man of inflexible honour to his fingertips. His hands and face were working and a tremour went over her.

...

Mr Bloom inserted his nose. Hm. Into the. Hm. Opening of his waistcoat. Almonds or. No. Lemons it is. Ah no, that's the soap.

O by the by that lotion. I knew there was something on my mind. Never went back and the soap not paid.

--Oinopa (talk) 06:28, 2 March 2010 (UTC)

DOO-WOP.

i've deleted doo-wop from the genres. doo-wop is usually just vocals. MasterOfBucket (talk) 12:13, 22 November 2010 (UTC)

I agree that this song isn't doo-wop, but there's a difference between doo-wop and a capella. Plenty of doo-wop songs have instrumental backing. GoingBatty (talk) 17:50, 22 November 2010 (UTC)

can you name some? MasterOfBucket (talk) 22:10, 22 November 2010 (UTC)

Some quotes from Wikipedia's Doo-wop article:

• "instruments= Double bass - Electric guitar - Saxophone - Drums - Piano - Harmony vocals
• "When "doo-wop" was first being recorded in the late 1930s and 40s, usually instruments were included for the recorded version."
• "America tuned in to watch Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers perform their new smash hit "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" ... Curiously, the band backing up Frankie Lymon was Frankie Laine's own jazz band, and they were playing in the wrong key..."

Please enjoy the full article for lots of songs. GoingBatty (talk) 01:23, 23 November 2010 (UTC)

'When I hold you...' section

Speaking of the "sections" of this song, how about a mention that the "When I hold you..." narrative section of the song was something Lennon had originally written as an ultimately lost section of "I'm So Tired": "When I hold you...in your arms/When you show...each one of your charms/I wonder should I get up...'n go to the funny farm..." (then repeats "No, no, no!/You'd say, I'm putting you on/but it's no joke..."), as heard in the "Esher" demo of "I'm So Tired" (on bootleg), eh what?? 70.17.165.247 (talk) 20:27, 30 April 2012 (UTC)

==Why am I having a hard time finding my way to contribute to the "to do list"? I only wanted to suggest that a music clip of the song be added- the song is multi-faceted. --Leahtwosaints (talk) 15:55, 13 December 2012 (UTC)

Progressive Rock

Please can i add Progressive rock as one of this song's genres? This has every characteristic of prog, including unusual time signatures, odd structures, and complex musicianship. Y45ed (talk) 21:36, 1 September 2013 (UTC)

@Y45ed: - Could you please provide a reliable source that states that this song is progressive rock? Thanks! GoingBatty (talk) 01:01, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

Here's a helpful reminder for you. Notice that "asking politely" isn't covered. ChakaKong^{Let's talk about it} 12:55, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

Yes, i'm well aware of that, hence that not being my reason for my suggested genre addition. I was just being nice, something that you seem unable to be. It's called common manners. You're the one who's always telling me to start discussions before i edit something, but when i do you just come and say unnecessary things like that. Y45ed (talk) 19:20, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

You certainly should be well aware by now of how sourcing works here. Asking for permission to change genres without a reliable source doesn't cut it as "discussion". Even saying "please" won't convince anyone to support it. ChakaKong^{Let's talk about it} 20:32, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

I didn't say it to try and convince people to support it, i said it because it's just common manners. I don't know why I have to explain this to you, it's so blindingly obvious. Y45ed (talk) 19:19, 6 September 2013 (UTC)

My best suggestion to you is to take the advice given by the admin who blocked you. ChakaKong^{Let's talk about it} 20:45, 6 September 2013 (UTC)

Paul McCartney sings the lead vocals in the third section of "Happiness is a Warm Gun"

It is very clear Paul McCartney takes over the lead vocals in the third and final section of "Happiness is a Warm Gun", and I have read that in various articles. Only John Lennon sings the backing vocals, with the "Bang! Bang! Shoot! Shoot!" sung in a higher register in the left channel. Can this be researched and corrected in the article? Dkf12 (talk) 23:32, 15 September 2020 (UTC)

@Dfk12: You need to provide a reliable source to back up your claim. You'll have a hard time finding a source about The Beatles more reliable than MacDonald that's already cited in the article, and there are other notable sources that agree with MacDonald, such as Womack. The content of an article is determined by reliable sources, not opinions expressed here or unspecified sources. Secondly, the song was written by Lennon. In their later years the writer almost always sang lead vocals; the exceptions are usually when Starr sang lead for a Lennon-McCartney song, such as Good Night. And finally, most long-term Beatles devotees who followed them from 1963 to 1970 (myself included) would disagree based on the sound of the voice. It's clearly Lennon. On rare occasions their voices are similar, but not on this song. Sundayclose (talk) 00:43, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

@Dfk12: Agreed with Sundayclose. It's the other way around actually. Paul McCartney and George Harrison are singing the harmonies in the third section of the song which contain the "Happiness", "Bang bang shoot shoot", and "Oh yeah" parts, while John Lennon is singing all the other parts in the low tenor register that he normally sings in. Though he sings the second section of the song in a baritone register. ― C.Syde (talk | contribs) 00:54, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

I will look for better sources. I am a huge Beatles fan and it's very clear Paul McCartney is singing the lead vocals in the third section, and it is only John Lennon singing the "Bang! Bang! Shoot! Shoot" in a higher register in the left channel. I have seen this explained in various books around 30 years ago, before the Internet became a household item. I hope to find one book that lists the artists who sings in every song. Dkf12 (talk) 13:17, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

Sorry, but that is essentially not true. I don't know where you got your information from, but I assure you that it is incorrect. The lead singer sounds nothing like Paul McCartney. "Nothing". Pretty much everywhere that I've read contradicts your statements. And what I hear contradicts your statements also. ― C.Syde (talk | contribs) 13:24, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

I agree. And I can't fathom how anyone could hear it as McCartney's voice, to be honest. Lennon sings lead throughout – that's supported by dozens of reliable sources (no exaggeration). I notice from reading contemporary reviews of the Beatles' records that quite often journalists misattributed the lead singer roles; eg, The Guardian thought Lennon sang "Helter Skelter", the NME thought McCartney sang "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", a few reviewers thought Starr was lead vocalist on "Lady Madonna" and "Back in the USSR"; Harrison ends up singing songs he didn't write, apparently, while others sing his songs. Sometimes the reviewer would sheepishly correct themselves later (eg, Alan Smith in the NME a week or two after the White Album's release).

So there may be one or two sources that say McCartney sings lead in the final section of "Happiness", but none that I've seen, and it's difficult to imagine any authoritative source supporting this. Any reliable source that does would still be up against no end of (authoritative) sources that list only Lennon as lead vocalist. JG66 (talk) 13:39, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

No, sorry. That does sound like McCartney. Think of "I'm Down", which you have to agree was definitely Paul and yes THAT voice sounds like the one in the third section of "Happiness is a Warm Gun". Paul McCartney has sung some lead vocals in songs written by John Lennon, such as the vocal bridges in "A Hard Day's Night" that begin with "When I get home". In this case, John thought Paul could hit higher notes without going into the falsetto range. Why Paul sang the lead in "Happiness is a Warm Gun"? John was struggling to get a beginning to that section and maybe this take was more of a demo where they change places in who sings the lead. Dkf12 (talk) 13:50, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

If this is a joke, this is - no offence - absurd. The voice in the third section sounds nothing like the voice in "I'm Down". John's voice is significantly lower in "Happiness is a Warm Gun" for one thing. I am well aware that Paul McCartney sang the occasional lead parts in "A Hard Day's Night" and "Anytime at All". Haven't seen or heard any evidence regarding "When I Get Home" though. But since the evidence we have here goes against the claims that you've brought up, if I were you I would give up and save my energy.

I used to think it was ridiculous to assume that George Harrison had a higher tessitura and lighter timbre than John Lennon back in 2017. So I played all the tracks on my computer with those two singing to reassure myself that I was correct. However, I subsequently admitted that I was indeed mistaken, and that George simply lacked the confidence or experience to try hitting higher notes in the Beatles' early years. So I suggest that you admit that you made an error here. You also should understand that not all the information published in books is correct.

My Beatles book Ten Years That Shook The World contains multiple mistakes. It incorrectly credits Paul McCartney as the lead singer of "Eight Days a Week" and "Every Little Thing" when it was actually John Lennon that sang lead. It also incorrectly credits John as the lead singer of "Tell Me What You See" when Paul sang lead on roughly 50% of it (if John sang any lead parts of that song on his own, but for that particular song it is very difficult to distinguish the two, because there's one voice that is definitely Paul, and there's another separate voice that I was sure was Paul, but as of recently I think it might be John sounding more "Paul" like than usual) ― C.Syde (talk | contribs) 14:16, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

C.Syde65, not absurd! The voice in "I'm down" DOES sound similar to the voice of the lead vocal in third section of "Happiness is a Warm Gun". Listen to the line "You telling lies, thinking I can't see/You can't cry 'cause you're laughing at me" in the former, and compare that to "When I hold you, in my arms/I know, no one can do me no harm" in the latter. Very similar.

With respect @Dfk12: there's nothing more to be said unless you've got a reliable source or two – several, I'd say. As Sundayclose implied at the start here, Wikipedia is only concerned with reflecting what reliable sources state (WP:VERIFY). Wikipedia can be "wrong", in fact (to some), if the majority of third party coverage sees things in a certain way. Mark Lewisohn, Ian MacDonald, Tim Riley, Walter Everett, Jonathan Gould, Mark Hertsgaard, John Winn, and several others that I've come across, all list Lennon and only Lennon as the song's lead vocalist. Lennon never said McCartney sang part of it (but he did about "A Hard Day's Night", and explained why), and McCartney never said he did either. JG66 (talk) 14:59, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

I've read in books 30 years ago or so that said Paul McCartney indeed sang the lead. I believe one book was by Mark Lewisohn, and it's buried somewhere in my storage bin. If I can't find that book, I will search other sources on the Web. I just need to ask you all if that really sounds like John Lennon taking the lead. I say no, and the backing vocals do sound like Lennon. Dkf12 (talk) 15:11, 16 September 2020 (UTC)

Although it's time to end this discussion (we can argue for days about what a voice sounds like) unless there's a reliable source (more than one actually since there are already two in the article that confirm Lennon), Lewisohn does not say that McCartney had a lead vocal in Happiness is a Warm Gun. If there is disagreement we need a direct quotation with a page number from the book. Now, I hope we can move on. Sundayclose (talk) 19:18, 16 September 2020 (UTC)