Paul McCartney can be a hard one to pin down under the spotlight. Unlike his former bandmate, John Lennon, who often took on the role of the more outspoken and brash of the two, McCartney is nown to be measured and self-preserved.
McCartney is known to hold the work of himself and bandmates, Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison close to his heart, and not often disclosing any negativity towards their body of work. Despite their impressive cannon of music, artists are bound to have a few songs that don’t sit right with them in the years that follow their release and Lennon was not shy in sharing his least favourites. However, McCartney is a little harder to read – but after a bust-up with his bandmates, there was a song that he didn’t feature on, and that could may well be a sore spot for the bassist.
She Said, She Said was a track that Lennon brought to the studio pretty much finished. McCartney shared his feelings about this in Barry Miles’ Many Years From Now.
McCartney said: “John brought it in pretty much finished.
“I’m not sure, but I think it was one of the only Beatles records I never played on. I think we’d had a barney or something, and I said: ‘Oh, f*** you!’ and they said: ‘Well, we’ll do it.’ I think George played bass.”
The song is loved by Beatles fans due to its connection the the Swinging Sixties and the use of psychedelics.
It was inspired by actor Peter Fonda and came to fruition during an intense acid trip, with Lennon and Harrison the driving forces behind the track.
Many have attributed this harsh exchange to McCartney’s disconnection from the musical material.
With a song being taken to him that was largely finished and also referencing taking acid, it is not surprising to see how this song is not one of his most favoured.