Free as a Bird

A little while ago, whilst watching The Beatles: Anthology, I first heard a song by the Beatles circa 1977/1994 (read on). The song, Free as a Bird –originally not more than a demo tape by Lennon held by Yoko Ono– was written partially by John Lennon, in 1977, and finalized/rewritten in 1994 by the three other Beatles.

I had not understood the meaning of this song ’til now, so I’ll try and show you what I think the song means.

Free as a bird,
it’s the next best thing to be.
Free as a bird.

Here, John is saying that there’s something better than just roaming around doing what you will with life. This doesn’t refer to freedom, like freedom of speech, or the right to choose, blah blah blah, it refers to being able to get up in the morning, and just go for a walk if you feel like it, rather than going to work, or having a family to worry about. I think it refers to being a bachelor, or just living on your own, with no one else to worry about.

Home, home and dry,
like a homing bird I’ll fly
as a bird on wings.

Here, they’re saying that being home, and with family is what is really important. It’s nice to be loved, and to wake up to someone you care about. He’s saying that while he is free during the day, to do what he will, he still has to care about his family. And at the end of the day, he rushes home to be with them, because while being alone and doing what you will can be nice, spending time with those you care about is better.

Whatever happened to
the life that we once knew?
Can we really live without each other?

Here, Paul is singing about how he has broken up with who he lives with, or who he cares about, and has gone back to being “free as a bird.” He’s wondering if he could possibly live like this, as it’s only “the next best thing to be.”

Where did we lose the touch
that seemed to mean so much?
It always made me feel so…

Here, Paul is saying how he can’t live without whoever he broke up with anymore, and he’s longing for them, and his life as a partner to someone back, saying that he felt free in that manner as well, free to love.

The song then continues on, finally coming to a close with a fade out, until the end, when we hear an odd song being played on a ukulele, and John saying “Turned out nice again, heh heh heh.” backwards, which apparently the remaining Beatles hadn’t noticed was on the track.

So there you have it, my take on the Beatles’ “Free as a Bird”, which you can find the lyrics to here. As for the song itself, either go out and buy the Beatles: Anthology, or be the sick pirate that you are, and fire up your favourite P2P program. Shame! ;)

April 23, 2006 · Filed Under Uncatagorized

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