The 9,000,000-selling lyric Paul McCartney wanted to throw out: “That’s collaboration”
Paul McCartney nearly discarded the line “The movement you need is on your shoulder” from “Hey Jude”, thinking it was only a placeholder. John Lennon persuaded him to keep it, calling it the song’s best line and describing the exchange as collaboration. The episode shows how Lennon’s judgement helped shape one of McCartney’s best-known songs.
McCartney began writing “Hey Jude” after hearing about the difficulties Lennon’s son Julian faced following his parents’ divorce. The article says the single sold nine million copies, despite not being tied to an album. McCartney later viewed the song as a reminder of Lennon and the life they had shared.
- Lennon convinced McCartney to keep a lyric he wanted to remove.
- The line became part of “Hey Jude”.
- The song later sold nine million copies.
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Paul McCartney and John Lennon were songwriting partners in the Beatles, the British band whose songs became known around the world. They often brought different ideas and judgements to their work, and their partnership helped shape many of the group’s best-known recordings.
McCartney began writing “Hey Jude” after hearing that Lennon’s young son Julian was having a difficult time following his parents’ divorce. The song was released as a single, separate from an album, and became one of McCartney’s most widely recognised songs.
The story also reflects how the former bandmates continued to influence each other’s work. McCartney later associated the song with Lennon and with the life they had shared.