LSD for Sale!

I would like to discuss a very important songwriter. His name is one we all know and could never forget. He had been making music from 1957 until he was murdered in 1980. He was best known as one of the primary songwriters for the legendary and revolutionary band best known as The Beatles. His name was John Lennon.

It was recently released that John Lennon’s original handwritten lyrics for “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” would be put up for auction. On Wednesday, April 13^th, it was expected that the lyric sheet would sell for over $200,000 next month at a sale in Beverly Hills.

The contents of the lyric sheet are:

1. The opening lyrics of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”.

2. A sketch of four people in a room with curtains draped over the window.

This song is very memorable to me. I’ve heard it millions of time since I was a child. The opening notes always bring a calm over me. Sometimes I like to think of it as a lullaby for adults.

“Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” was released in 1967 on the classic album “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”. Everyone, including the media and listeners, believed the song was a transparent metaphor for LSD [better known as acid]. Part of this belief was derived from the song’s title “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”; however, on many occasions, John Lennon claimed that they notion was false, though he and The Beatles were known to experiment with psychedelic drugs recreationally. He claimed that he initially did not notice the sequence of the letters when the song was written/released. However, this is still in debate. Many continue to believe the song is about LSD due to it’s mesmerizing melody and wildly creative lyrics.

According to Lennon and others, the muse for “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” was John’s son Julian. When we was a child, he drew a picture of one of his classmates. Her name was Lucy. Julian showed his drawing to his father and stated, “That’s Lucy in the Sky with diamonds”.

The classic song was noted as one of the most popular songs in Rolling Stone magazine. It ranked as no. 1 on the list of 500 greatest albums of all time.

In 2007, Lucy Vodden (originally O’Donnell) spoke out and revealed that she was the initial inspiration for the song. Unfortunately, she passed in 2009.

“The draft ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ lyrics will be sold at an auction scheduled for May 14 and 15 at the Saban Theater in Beverly Hills.”

Now, if only I can muster up $200,000...

Sources:

http://www.billboard.com/#/news/john-lennon-s-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-1005133172.story