The Beatles Lyrics, album "Wings Over America"

RINGO 1968: 'It sounds like Elvis, doesn't it? No, it doesn't sound like Elvis… it IS Elvis.
Even those bits where he goes very high.'

JOHN 1980: 'Paul.
Good piano lick, but the song never really went anywhere.
Maybe I helped him on some of the lyrics.'

PAUL 1986: ''Lady Madonna' is all women.
How do they do it? – bless 'em.
Baby at your breast, how do they get the time to feed them? Where do they get the money? How do you do this thing that women do?'

PAUL circa-1994: 'The original concept was the Virgin Mary, but it quickly became symbolic of every woman – the Madonna image but as applied to ordinary working-class women.
'Lady Madonna' was me sitting down at the piano trying to write a bluesy boogie-woogie thing.
It reminded me of Fats Domino for some reason, so I started singing a Fats Domino impression.
It took my voice to a very odd place.'

PAUL 1970: 'The album was finished a year ago, but a few months ago American record producer Phil Spector was called in by John Lennon to tidy up some of the tracks.
But a few weeks ago, I was sent a re-mixed version of my song 'The Long And Winding Road' with harps, horns, an orchestra, and a women's choir added.
No one had asked me what I thought.
I couldn't believe it.
The record came with a note from Allen Klein saying he thought the changes were necessary.
I don't blame Phil Spector for doing it, but it just goes to show that it's no good me sitting here thinking I'm in control because obviously I'm not.
Anyway, I've sent Klein a letter asking for some things to be altered, but I haven't received an answer yet.'

JOHN 1980: 'Paul again.
He had a little spurt just before we split.'

PAUL circa-1994: 'It's rather a sad song.
I like writing sad songs, it's a good bag to get into because you can actually acknowledge some deeper feelings of your own and put them in it.
It's a good vehicle, it saves having to go to a psychiatrist.
Songwriting often performs that feat – you say it, but you don't embarrass yourself because it's only a song, or is it? You are putting the things that are bothering you on the table and you are reviewing them, but because it's a song, you don't have to argue with anyone… It's a sad song because it's all about the unattainable; the door you never quite reach.
This is the road that you never get to the end of.'

JOHN 1980: 'That's Paul.'

PAUL circa-1994: 'I think of this as totally by me.
It was slightly country and western from my point of view.
It was faster, though.
It was a strange uptempo thing.
I was quite pleased with it.
The lyric works.
It keeps dragging you forward… it keeps pulling you to the next line.
There's an insistent quality about it.'

PAUL 1968: 'It's simple in concept because you couldn't think of anything else to put on it.
Maybe on 'Pepper' we would have sort of worked on it until we could find some way to put violins or trumpets in there.
But I don't think it needs it, this one.
You know, it's just… There's nothing to the song.
It is just one of those 'pick it and sing it' and that's it.
The only point where we were thinking of putting anything on it is where it comes back in the end… sort of stops and comes back in… but instead of putting any backing on it, we put a blackbird on it.
So there's a blackbird singing at the very end.
And somebody said it was a thrush, but I think it's a blackbird!'

JOHN 1980: 'I gave him (Paul) a line on that one.'

PAUL circa-1994: 'The original inspiration was from a well-known piece by Bach, which I never know the title of, which George and I had learned to play at an early age – he better than me actually.
Part of its structure is a particular harmonic thing between the melody and the bass line which intrigued me… I developed the melody based on the Bach piece and took it somewhere else, took it to another level, then I just fitted words to it.
I had in my mind a black woman, rather than a bird.
Those were the days of the civil-rights movement, which all of us cared passionately about.
So this was really a song from me to a black woman, experiencing these problems in the states… 'Let me encourage you to keep trying, to keep your faith, there is hope.' As is often the case with my things, a veiling took place.
So, rather than say 'Black woman living in Little Rock' and be very specific, she became a bird, became symbolic, so you could apply it to your particular problem.'