A Creepy Song by The Beatles
A friend of mine wrote a post about the Beatles song Eleanor Rigby (that's the one that goes "Ahhhhh, look at all the lonely people"), and I left a comment that the song, with its dark themes of loneliness and death and its brooding music, was kind of creepy.
But as soon as I mentioned that, I thought, "And yet, that song is not the creepiest Beatles song, by far."
An Even Creepier Song by The Beatles
There is a song that is much creepier than that, called "Maxwell's Silver Hammer". This song is about a medical student ("Maxwell Edison, majoring in medicine") who is basically a serial killer, murdering people by bludgeoning them with a hammer. What's more creepy than the subject matter is that the lyrics are set to an upbeat tune, and everything is treated as giddy little romp:
Bang, bang, Maxwell's silver hammer came down upon her head;
Bang, bang, Maxwell's silver hammer made sure that she was dead
Jeez, at least "Eleanor Rigby"'s music is somber and gives one a bit of a warning that the song isn't about a cheerful subject. But hey, peppy and industrious serial killer Maxwell isn't even the worst character The Beatles invented:
The Creepiest Beatles Song Ever
That honor goes to the guy singing "Run for Your Life", another Beatles song disguised as good-time rock, until you actually consider the lyrics:
You better run for your life if you can, little girl
Hide your head in the sand, little girl
Catch you with another man, that's the end, little girl
Um, yeah. And just in case you thought "the end" might just mean the end of the relationship: No. The first two lines of the song make that plain:
Well, I'd rather see you dead, little girl
Than to be with another man
The reason I think this is even creepier than the song about the med student who shyly asks a girl on a date so that he can smash her skull in is that "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" is still a pretty fanciful situation.
The ruthlessly possessive and violent guy in "Run for Your Life", however, is all too real for hundreds of thousands of women who have been stalked, and sometimes attacked, even killed, by a jealous, abusive, obsessed ex-lover. For the Beatles to couch this as a fairly light-hearted pop song really did a disservice to the subject of violent domestic abuse and stalking. The singer talks about a woman he supposedly loves, but it's clear he knows nothing of love, only fear and control.
To me, that's not just creepy, it's horrifying.
On a serious note:
If you or a loved one is suffering from domestic violence, help is available. Speak with someone today.
National Domestic Violence Hotline
Hours: 24/7. Languages: English, Spanish and 200+ through interpretation service
Call 1-800-799-7233 or Text START to 88788
More info: https://www.thehotline.org/
Image credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/beatles-statue-sculpture-liverpool-7767458/
