A Day in the Life Lyrics

[Verse 1: John Lennon]
I read the news today, oh boy
About a lucky man who made the grade

And though the news was rather sad
Well, I just had to laugh
I saw the photograph

He blew his mind out in a car
He didn't notice that the lights had changed

A crowd of people stood and stared
They'd seen his face before
Nobody was really sure if he was from the House of Lords


[Verse 2: John Lennon]
I saw a film today, oh boy
The English Army had just won the war
A crowd of people turned away

But I just had to look
Having read the book


[Refrain: John Lennon]
I'd love to turn you on

(Seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve…)
Alarm clock rings


[Bridge: Paul McCartney]
Woke up, fell out of bed
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup
And looking up I noticed I was late
Found my coat and grabbed my hat

Made the bus in seconds flat
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke

And somebody spoke and I went into a dream
[Interlude: John Lennon]
Ahh-ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah, ah-ah-ahh


[Verse 3: John Lennon]
I read the news today, oh boy
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire

And though the holes were rather small
They had to count them all
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall


[Refrain: John Lennon]
I'd love to turn you on

[Instrumental Outro]
(Seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve…)


Whistle
Studio chatter

(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)
(Never could be any other way)
(Never been so high
What’s that?)

How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

About

Genius Annotation

For “A Day in the Life,” John Lennon wrote the opening and closing sections, while McCartney contributed the bridge. For the climax, they hired an orchestra of 40 musicians, dressed them in tuxedos and funny hats, and told them they had 24 bars to ascend from the lowest note on their instruments to the highest note closest to E major.

The song has often been rated as The Beatles' best, with reviewers calling it “one of the most ambitious, influential, and groundbreaking works in pop music history” and “perhaps one of the most important single tracks in the history of rock music.”

Lennon took his lyrical inspiration from the death of Tara Browne, heir to the Guinness Family fortune, who died in a car crash at the young age of 21 and was a good friend of the band’s members. He also used random newspaper stories; for instance, the “4,000 holes” line was from a real story in The Daily Mail about potholes in Blackburn.

The official music video was uploaded to YouTube on October 28, 2015. It originally appeared in their 1995 Anthology mini-series, but was taken from previously unreleased footage of the original recording sessions.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did The Beatles say about "A Day in the Life"?
Genius Answer

Paul, who wrote the middle part of the song, commented on the performance of the 40 piece hired orchestra –

Listen to those trumpets — they’re freaking out!

Sourced here

When did critics first say this song was one of the greatest of all time?
Genius Answer

In 1967, Richard Goldstein called this song “a historic pop event” in a New York Times review.

Credits
Produced By
Acoustic Guitar
Percussion
Counting
Harmonium
Recorded At
EMI (Abbey Road) Studios, London, UK (January 19-20; February 3, 10, 22, 1967)
Release Date
May 26, 1967
View A Day in the Life samples
Tags
Comments