Strawberry Fields Forever - The Beatles

Artist: The Beatles
Song: Strawberry Fields Forever
Year: 1967
Album: Magical Mystery Tour

This is either one of the greatest accomplishments of the sixties or an overwrought piece of self-indulging trash, depending on who you ask. I choose to think of this song as the former. It is the birth of studio innovation.

This song started out as a simple acoustic song and blossomed into the gem we all hear today. A friendly rivalry with the Beach Boys turned into a cavalcade of the finest music of the decade. The Rubber Soul album inspired the Beach Boys to record Pet Sounds. "Strawberry Fields Forever" and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band were the answer to that album.

This song was partially responsible for the shelving of the Beach Boys SMiLE album. When Brian Wilson heard "Strawberry Fields Forever", he felt that the Beatles had acheived the sound that the Beach Boys were trying to get.

There was a promotional film shot for this song. It can be argued that without this film, there would be no MTV in 1981. There would be nothing but live performance videos. It featured reversed film, stop motion animation and jump cuts. A truly innovative piece of film that has gone on to inspire thousands of artists.

This is one of the songs that inspired the Paul Is Dead hoax of 1969. At the end of the song, the words "cranberry sauce" can be heard. If you are in the right frame of mind, it could be thought of as, "I buried Paul" at the end of the song. In other mixes of the song, "cranberry sauce" is more clearly heard.

Lyrics:
Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.

Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see.
It's getting hard to be someone but it all works out, it doesn't matter much to me.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.

No one I think is in my tree, I mean it must be high or low.
That is you can't you know tune in but it's all right, that is I think it's not too bad.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.

Always, no sometimes, think it's me, but you know I know and it's a dream.
I think I know I mean a 'Yes' but it's all wrong, that is I think I disagree.

Let me take you down, 'cause I'm going to Strawberry Fields.
Nothing is real and nothing to get hungabout.
Strawberry Fields forever.
Strawberry Fields forever.