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God

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lockyfan:
I have never heard the song "God" unfortunately, but i think he was going through the whole

Hey I was a Beale but thats over now, this is me accept it and move on"  then the same on Imagine, he was attacking Paul yes with How do you Seep, but later said it wasnt really about Paul it was about himself.  Crippled Inside I love that song! because it is so tru, You could do all the things he said like Shine Your shoes and Wear Suit comb your hair and look quite cute hide your face behind a smile"  it is all again about his life as a Beatle, how he was hidden by that whole Brand name given to him by the fans, that he was saying he ccant hide who hereally is anymore

So it isnt that its a contradiction to Imagine, because some of the most horrible people on the earth still want peace an security in their life, which is what Imagine really is about.

dipper1967:
as Richard Ashcroft sang "but i'm a million diffrent people from one day to the next" sums up John, him, me and and the vast majority of people who inhabit this world of ours.

alexis:

--- Quote from: Kevin on April 17, 2009, 10:40:47 AM ---Maybe his contrary nature can be taken to show not that he was remarkably complicated but that he was remarkably normal. Lets face it, all of us are guilty of being contradictory in our thoughts and actions, constantly changing our opinions etc.
This is more obvious for John because he displayed his thoughts in such a public manner. Most artists don't bare their soul in this way and thus would appear to be less complicated. But then again maybe the very fact that John felt the need to express his thoughts so openly in its self shows how complicated he was?
Or how about McCartney writing endless love songs whilst being by all accounts a particularly cold and loveless man? Or Harrison preaching his world kharmic vision whilst bemoaning the taxman taking his worldly goods or making his viscious digs in Piggies.
Actually, I might be talking rubbish.

--- End quote ---

Wonderfully put, Kevin, IMO <Clapping hands icon here>. Though I think he was perhaps, in his mind, more tortured (and therefore(?) more Sybil-like) than most of us.

I think in the ways mentioned above he is the anti-Paul -very gruff, biting, hurtful on the outside, very vulnerable on the inside.

"God is a concept by which we measure our pain". One of the most powerful and thought provoking first lines of any song I have heard. I believe it may be worthy of discussion in an advanced seminary class!!

And then of course he goes off and records a song "God Bless Our Love", with no apparent irony in the least.

Awesome!

blmeanie:
post resurrection time, found this one on search after listening to God on drive to work this morning.

The main line, "God is a concept by which we measure our pain" just appeared to me in a different way in the context of all the world's hatred, including a good bit of religiously motivated hate.

I've never been a religious person, I have no problem with people that have deep faith either.  To me, faith is exactly as John sang, a way to measure (for some) how you are doing.  A barometer.  A concept by which we measure our pain.  Love that line.

By calling out all the names including Hitler, Jesus, Zimmerman, Elvis and of course the Beatles themselves, I believe he is just saying, we're all just people in the end, I think it is aligned well with the message in Imagine, just spun differently.

BeatleFan:
I think he's getting across the sentiment of this quote: "You're just left with yourself all the time, whatever you do anyway. You've got to get down to your own God in your own temple. It's all down to you, mate."

His 'Serve Yourself' parody song also had this same message. You have to believe in yourself, and get down to business in the here and now. Nobody else will do it for you. Which is absolutely true and self empowering.

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