Julia (2:52)
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“Julia” is a song by The Beatles. It is the final song on side two (and disc one, in the CD era) of the band’s 1968 album, The Beatles (The White Album). It was written by John Lennon, and features Lennon on vocals and acoustic guitar. It was written during the Beatles’ 1968 visit to India, where they were studying under the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It was here Lennon learned the song’s finger-picking guitar style (known as ‘Travis-picking’) from the Scottish musician Donovan. No other Beatle sings or plays on the recording. While Paul McCartney made several “solo” compositions attributed to the group, dating back to his famous song “Yesterday”, this is the only time that Lennon played and sang unaccompanied on a Beatles track.
“Julia” was written for John’s mother Julia Lennon (1914-1958), who was knocked down and killed by a car driven by an off-duty police officer when John was still only 17 years old. It was also written for his future wife Yoko Ono, whose first name, which literally means “child of the sea” in Japanese, is echoed in lyrics such as “Oceanchild, calls me.” An alternative theory suggests that the song was written for Julian Lennon, John’s son.
The first two lines of the song – “Half of what I say is meaningless/ But I say it just to reach you, Julia” – were adapted from the poem “Sand and Foam,” by the Lebanese poet Kahlil Gibran. The original line is: “Half of what I say is meaningless; but I say it so that the other half may reach you.
“Julia” was written for John’s mother Julia Lennon (1914-1958), who was knocked down and killed by a car driven by an off-duty police officer when John was still only 17 years old. It was also written for his future wife Yoko Ono, whose first name, which literally means “child of the sea” in Japanese, is echoed in lyrics such as “Oceanchild, calls me.” An alternative theory suggests that the song was written for Julian Lennon, John’s son.
The first two lines of the song – “Half of what I say is meaningless/ But I say it just to reach you, Julia” – were adapted from the poem “Sand and Foam,” by the Lebanese poet Kahlil Gibran. The original line is: “Half of what I say is meaningless; but I say it so that the other half may reach you.
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Added by VickLennon
This is just a video test...my friend told about YOUTUBE and we uploaded this video just for fun. And I know it's the original song im not trying to fool anybody. Look my VIDEO RESPONSE to the video
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Albums featuring this track
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The White Album
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The Beatles (The White Album)
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Shouts
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casseroles wrote:
so beautiful
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jonyboyxx3 wrote:
So depressing beauttiful
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whoredkidneys wrote:
This is the most beautiful song I have ever heard.
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cumgum wrote:
windy smile.
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colorfuldreams wrote:
her hair of floating sky is shimmering, glimmering, in the sun... :3~
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violent_purple wrote:
So melancholy and uplifting at the same time.
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RoomForSymmetry wrote:
Such a beautiful song...but it makes me miss someone a whole lot (guess what her name is?)
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Cheezdude wrote:
My girlfriend is named Julianne. This is a perfect song.
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johnny7gun wrote:
i have read so many times it must be true, that John Lennon frequently contradicted himself about the origins of songs....and i am sure he did say it could also have been about Yoko...but i still dont believe when he was writing it, he was thinking about anyone other than his mother.....if you are going to stretch it for the sake of it....his father was a seaman...so could he not have been the ocean child? IT WAS ABOUT HIS MOTHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OK ? ive calmed down now...and no... i dont have issues with yoko. :-)
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Ondri- wrote:
Beautiful.
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davosmavo wrote:
Best John song.
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electrikalstorm wrote:
oh god, john's sorely missed....
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Isabelasoares wrote:
I could listen to this song.. forever
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keisuh wrote:
Julia is John's mum I guess
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Josusv wrote:
God , Their voice .
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davidbowiegirl wrote:
Great song
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Nicoeitor wrote:
no hay cancion mas relajante que esta
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c_lombard wrote:
Beautiful.
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marcelodylan wrote:
metade do que eu digo é besteira mas é só para te conquistar, Julia.
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sourJane wrote:
and this one is just beautiful.
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Recent Activity
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wawabugga, goldgoldsheep, andpantomime and 10 other people loved The Beatles – Julia. 3 hours ago
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csldvd added Julia to the playlist sabato. Saturday morning
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csldvd, Ackibear and otacon4781 loved The Beatles – Julia. Saturday morning
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Ninifar wrote about Julia in Songs of The Beatles (Alphabetical order). Friday evening
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GripweedLennon and Salivall loved The Beatles – Julia. Friday evening
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weaversclever added Julia to weaversclever’s library. Thursday morning
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chaser311 added Julia to chaser311’s library. Wednesday evening
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chaser311 added Julia to the playlist AmazingNESS. Wednesday evening
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thrjill, MikeyBlitz, revolvingdora and 7 other people loved The Beatles – Julia. Wednesday afternoon
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martinsship tagged Julia with ‘julia’. Tuesday morning
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