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The Beatles — Happiness Is A Warm Gun
Album: White Album
Avg rating:
8

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1328









Released: 1968
Length: 2:42
Plays (last 30 days): 1
She's not a girl who misses much
Do-do do-do do-do
Oh, yeah

She's well-acquainted with the touch of the velvet hand like a lizard on a window pane
The man in the crowd with the multi-coloured mirror's on his hobnail boots
Lying with his eyes while his hands are busy working overtime
A soap impression of his wife which he ate and donated to the National Trust

I need a fix, 'cause I'm going down
Down to the bits that I left uptown
I need a fix, 'cause I'm going down

Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun

Happiness (happiness) is a warm gun (bang bang, shoot shoot)
Happiness (happiness) is a warm gun, mama (bang bang, shoot shoot)
When I hold you in my arms (oh, yeah)
And I feel (oo) my finger on your trigger (oh, yeah)
I know (oo) nobody can do me no harm (oh, yeah)
Because (happiness) is a warm gun, mama (bang bang, shoot shoot)
Happiness (happiness) is a warm gun, yes, it is (bang bang, shoot shoot)

Happiness is a warm — yes it is — gun (happiness)
(Bang bang, shoot shoot)
Well, don't you know that happiness (happiness) is a warm gun (is a warm gun), mama?
(Yeah)
Comments (183)add comment
From Wikipedia:

"Happiness Is a Warm Gun" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 album The Beatles (also known as "the White Album"). It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership.[2] He derived the title from an article in American Rifleman magazine and explained that the lyrics were a double entendre for guns and his sexual desire for Yoko Ono.

Despite mixed reviews for the White Album on release, "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" was positively received by music critics, who highlighted the song's complex structure and lyrics for praise. All four Beatles identified it as their favourite song on the album."
 dfphillips1 wrote:

Honestly, just because it's a Beatles tune doesn't mean that you all have to rate it highly. Not their best...



Yeah, solid 5.
Honestly, just because it's a Beatles tune doesn't mean that you all have to rate it highly. Not their best...
 Pyro wrote:

I always thought this song was about sex.  Seriously.


Apparently you're not the only one with nasty thoughts ;)

ThePoose wrote:

Come, now. The song drips with sexuality. down to the bits = ''bits'' is UK slang for genitals Mother Superior jumped the gun = she was in the female superior position when she lowered herself onto my penis And I feel my finger on your trigger = I feel my finger on your clitoris Happiness is a warm gun = A penis is a warm gun. It's hardly subtle.
 On_The_Beach wrote:

The psychiatrist will see you now.


Freud the fraud did a ton of damage
 ThePoose wrote:
Come, now. The song drips with sexuality. down to the bits = ''bits'' is UK slang for genitals Mother Superior jumped the gun = she was in the female superior position when she lowered herself onto my penis And I feel my finger on your trigger = I feel my finger on your clitoris Happiness is a warm gun = A penis is a warm gun. It's hardly subtle.

The psychiatrist will see you now.
 krich58 wrote:
Mother Superior jumped the gun...

Now who writes lyrics like that...Amazing.
 

exactly!
Mother Superior jumped the gun...

Now who writes lyrics like that...Amazing.
 gjr wrote:
nope - its about shootin' up smack.
 
Not according to the guy who wrote it (but then, what does he know?).

 SweTex wrote:


So did I for a long time...but are you sure it's not?
 
nope - its about shootin' up smack. 

 romeotuma wrote:


The original working title of the song was "Happiness Is a Warm Gun in Your Hand," which was inspired by a magazine containing the phrase, which in turn parodied "Happiness Is a Warm Puppy," a Peanuts book written and illustrated by Charles Schulz in 1962...

love it...


 
 
Wow - thanks for the information - I didn't know the details about this song!  And yeah, I love the song, too. Sometimes, romeotuma, you just come through with guns blazing. {#Sunny}
 Sloggydog wrote:

If this is a joke it is in very poor taste.
 
The joke is on us all.  {#Whisper} 
my mind always goes ——- aaahhh! when I hear this, not sure why, has the coooolest sound!
 Saliby_Br wrote:
Sorry....but not good
 
If this is a joke it is in very poor taste.
One of their best, IMO.
Sorry....but not good
Not one of my Beatle favs, I gave it an 8.
Very nice!
Happiness is a warm, bloody gun.
 Pyro wrote:
I always thought this song was about sex.  Seriously.
 

OK, and....
never heard anything sounding like this before or since...

...simply brilliant
{#Music}  Thank you, Bill!! 
 sabige wrote:
My all time favorite Beatles song, hands down.
 
Mine too! (and given the choices, that's saying a lot!)  {#Music}


 SweTex wrote:


So did I for a long time...but are you sure it's not?
 
I still think it is.  Interesting to see the "other takes" on it....

A real favorite of mine by the lads.

...from an album that is not my favorite.

...But it seems that alot of folks would turn this album into their favorite Beatles album by paring it down to a single disc LP (of course, there would be about as many versions as there are Beatles fans).

...But then, that would leave a disc's worth of material homeless!

...But then again, that would leave more for the compilations of unreleased stuff to include (or worse yet, would have expanded Specter's "Let it Be" into two releases).

Thank you, George Martin, for saving this album from itself.

 Pyro wrote:
I always thought this song was about sex.  Seriously.
 

So did I for a long time...but are you sure it's not?
Great little band and I wish them all the luck in the world. A 10.
I always thought this song was about sex.  Seriously.
Another cracker off the White Album.
THIS song is why there should be an 11.
My all time favorite Beatles song, hands down.

Vatican 'forgives' John Lennon


 nance wrote:


you hate the beatles.....people like them not because they are timeless but because of their music...has nothing to do with being timeless.....never heard of anyone who hated the beatles....
 
Lots of people do.  You're confused. They are still the greatest rock band. But don't get delusional.
we all need a FIX cuz we re goin down
Stylistically, the two are dead ringers, right down to the lead guitar riff.  

 thatslongformud wrote:
What's the Deal with the segue from Where is My Mind to this?
 


Oh My.......a 10. This one always makes me smile.
tapatia wrote:
While you're correct that there is no proof that this song was written/recorded under the influence, it's a safe bet that this song is about drugs - specifically, heroin.
I think you and the others are reading way too much into it. The Beatles themselves thought it was pretty funny how people read things into their lyrics. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's part of the fun to have your own interpretations and discuss it. I always saw this song as a pretty straight forward (although surreal) satire of drug addicts, gun lovers, and religious fanatics, and what they all have in common-- happiness found in a warm gun (the needle for the addict, the religion for the religious fanatic, the gun for the gun lover). It's well known Lennon didn't like the shooter mentality, as shown also in Bungalow Bill on the same album.
Go Johnnny Go....
nance wrote:
never heard of anyone who hated the beatles....
you don't know very many people then it seems :p
nance wrote:
never heard of anyone who hated the beatles....
Yeah true that... how can you "hate" the Beatles? Hum now.
dreadpixie wrote:
10 I hate the Beatles. Overrated with a sound that is not timeless. However, this song is great. Can't believe it.
you hate the beatles.....people like them not because they are timeless but because of their music...has nothing to do with being timeless.....never heard of anyone who hated the beatles....
10 I hate the Beatles. Overrated with a sound that is not timeless. However, this song is great. Can't believe it.
thatslongformud wrote:
What's the Deal with the segue from Where is My Mind to this?
The deal is Kim Deal. The Breeders, who include Kim Deal from the Breeders, covered this song on their debut album 'pod'.
Where was Mark David Chapmans mind when he shot John Lennon with a warm gun. thatslongformud wrote:
What's the Deal with the segue from Where is My Mind to this?
One of the all-time great dumb-ass songs. . .
thatslongformud wrote:
What's the Deal with the segue from Where is My Mind to this?
"Sometimes I segue is just a segue." -Sigmund Freud
curufinwe wrote:
Maybe I'm a minority of one, but I've always thought this song was tiresome. Glad someone (everyone?) else is enjoying it.
Curufinwe, I think you may be right, when I listen the album it goes by ok, but I guess it lacks luster out of context.
lawman wrote:
Flippin eck: is it just me, or my age and therefore my associations? Every, single Beatles track seems to be brilliant in its own right -- a 9 or a 10, in RP terms.
Its definitely not just you. And a very large amount of their work--though not all--is much liked by my 18 year-old daughter and her college friends. So I'd say that they were brilliant in their own right. Not all of their work rates a 9 or 10, but damn near all.
Happiness is a Beatles song !
On_The_Beach wrote:
Wrong album, my friend. That was "Yesterday and Today".
hmm ok
What's the Deal with the segue from Where is My Mind to this?
Flippin eck: is it just me, or my age and therefore my associations? Every, single Beatles track seems to be brilliant in its own right -- a 9 or a 10, in RP terms.
jpfueler wrote:
A buddy of mine way back had this album with the white pealed off and the butcher suited boys in a stack of baby dolls in real good shape.
Wrong album, my friend. That was "Yesterday and Today".
my gun's warm...but that's because it is out in the truck and the temp is 95. I need to go practice and heat it up from the inside. A buddy of mine way back had this album with the white pealed off and the butcher suited boys in a stack of baby dolls in real good shape.
curufinwe wrote:
Maybe I'm a minority of one, but I've always thought this song was tiresome. Glad someone (everyone?) else is enjoying it.
ya, also not my fav Beatles song...
Maybe I'm a minority of one, but I've always thought this song was tiresome. Glad someone (everyone?) else is enjoying it.
Perfect segue from the Pixies' "Where is my mind".
tapatia wrote:
Maybe we're both right about this - or wrong? See Wikipedia: (click here) Of note: After this, the song transitions into a Lennon song fragment called "I Need a Fix," built around an ominous-sounding guitar riff. Lennon's plea "I need a fix/cause I'm going down" in this section forms the basis for speculation that the song is about heroin addiction (indeed, sources have claimed that Lennon was addicted to heroin at this time;
I need a fix 'cause I'm goin' down would be too obvious a reference to drug use. I posit that he needs a sexual ''fix'' because his penis is becoming flaccid, or goin' down.
ThePoose wrote:
Come, now. The song drips with sexuality. down to the bits = ''bits'' is UK slang for genitals Mother Superior jumped the gun = she was in the female superior position when she lowered herself onto my penis And I feel my finger on your trigger = I feel my finger on your clitoris, which is the most common ''bit'' to trigger an orgasm Happiness is a warm gun = A penis is a warm gun. It's hardly subtle.
Maybe we're both right about this - or wrong? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happiness_is_a_warm_gun
clintiskeen wrote:
qn 1985 when John Lennon was shot some DJ in DC lost his job because he played this song right after the news came through it was the same city that fired Howard Stern
DC? Is that Down Carolina or Darkest Canada? Cause if you're saying Washington,DC I think you're wrong about the Lennon thing. Got a link? This city loves to condemn a DJ, to many out of towners with a little weight to throw around(back home in Bumfuck anyway,they get laughed at here). After an Air Florida flight crashed into the 14th Street Bridge in 1982,Howard Stern called them and asked the price of a one way ticket to the 14th St Bridge, 6 months later he got flushed out to New York.
tapatia wrote:
While you're correct that there is no proof that this song was written/recorded under the influence, it's a safe bet that this song is about drugs - specifically, heroin: I need a fix 'cause I'm going down Down to the bits that I left uptown I need a fix cause I'm going down Mother Superior jumped the gun Mother Superior jumped the gun Mother Superior jumped the gun Mother Superior jumped the gun Happiness is a warm gun Happiness is a warm gun, momma When I hold you in my arms And I feel my finger on your trigger I know nobody can do me no harm Because happiness is a warm gun, momma
Come, now. The song drips with sexuality. down to the bits = ''bits'' is UK slang for genitals Mother Superior jumped the gun = she was in the female superior position when she lowered herself onto my penis And I feel my finger on your trigger = I feel my finger on your clitoris Happiness is a warm gun = A penis is a warm gun. It's hardly subtle.
algrif wrote:
And that with out any proof that this was written or even conceived under the influence!! It's just a case of "If it wasn't for drugs, we wouldn't have the Beatles best tracks. Hooray for drugs. Give me another toke, would you?" !!!!!
While you're correct that there is no proof that this song was written/recorded under the influence, it's a safe bet that this song is about drugs - specifically, heroin: I need a fix 'cause I'm going down Down to the bits that I left uptown I need a fix cause I'm going down Mother Superior jumped the gun Mother Superior jumped the gun Mother Superior jumped the gun Mother Superior jumped the gun Happiness is a warm gun Happiness is a warm gun, momma When I hold you in my arms And I feel my finger on your trigger I know nobody can do me no harm Because happiness is a warm gun, momma
algrif wrote:
That despite all the well documented physical, emotional and financial damage caused by drug laws, you think that it is completely off-set as it has allowed a musician to make a reasonably good track.
There, fixed it for you.
bobringer wrote:
I probably do this every time this song comes on RP...
Me Too! I need a fix cause I'm going down...
I dig the BOLD simplicity of the fuzzy guitar. Does that make a simpleton?
I love this song
Rickvee wrote:
"Revolution No.9" doesn't spoil that?
You can burn the whole (double) album onto a single disc if you leave off "Revolution 9" and 2 other songs; I chose "Good Night" and "Don't Pass Me By". Now that's a great CD!
Great set, Bill. Thanks.
I probably do this every time this song comes on RP...
Aaahhh... one of my favorite Beatles songs, and one that isn't heard on any sort of radio very often.
May John Lennon rest in peace. One of his best...
ThePoose wrote:
Taken from my favourite LP of all time.
"Revolution No.9" doesn't spoil that?
By any other band, this would rate as one of the dumbest songs ever etched on vinyl - but the Beatles somehow make this cool.
eastcoast wrote:
Pure Lennon Genious!!!
Yes!!
Taken from my favourite LP of all time.
Pure Lennon Genious!!!
ruthless wrote:
The first time I heard stereo was on St. Pepper's album. I remember my brother & I sitting in front of the stereo console in amazement as the horses ran "across the room" from one speaker to the other. I don't remember which song it was....
"Good Morning Good Morning"
I like the first half of this song, but not the last bit . . . reminds me of the Manson Family and gives me the wiggins.
I love them... every song
Agree
queenjill wrote:
Interesting transition from the Pixies song. Kim Deal (bassist for Pixies) went on to form the Breeders, and they covered this song on their first album.
Hmm, didn't know that, cool. In any case I love both songs so it works for me!! :)
.... bang bang, shoooouit shooouit ...
Interesting transition from the Pixies song. Kim Deal (bassist for Pixies) went on to form the Breeders, and they covered this song on their first album.
Interesting choice for a playlist on Dec 8th. Right there with When the Levee Breaks played on August 29th. Provocative is good... I suppose. I miss John Lennon. And the New Orleans I used to know.
DrLex wrote:
I'm not sure if that's how you meant it, but it's impossible to get such stereo separation from a single mono mix. They probably instead created a new stereo mix using the original recorded tracks. But, in that time "stereo" meant putting one instrument in the left channel, another in the right, and others in the middle. This makes the songs sound totally unnatural on headphones because in the real world you'll almost never hear a sound in one ear exclusively. To properly listen to Beatles songs using headphones, without going back completely to mono, one should use a speaker simulator which crossmixes the channels with a certain delay.
The first time I heard stereo was on St. Pepper's album. I remember my brother & I sitting in front of the stereo console in amazement as the horses ran "across the room" from one speaker to the other. I don't remember which song it was....
On_The_Beach wrote:
The best! For me, this was the Beatles high-water mark. John and co. just never got any cooler than this song
Now, PLEASE.
Tonight, happiness is a cold turkey sandwich.
algrif wrote:
It's just a case of "If it wasn't for drugs, we wouldn't have the Beatles best tracks. Hooray for drugs. Give me another toke, would you?"
Well, (I'm neither advocating nor condemning anything) Paul himself attributed the greatness of Sgt. Peppers to pot.
hcaudill wrote:
Impossible without drugs.
Do I understand your sub-text correctly? That despite all the well documented physical, emotional and financial damage caused by drugs, you think that it is completely off-set as it has allowed a musician to make a reasonably good track. And that with out any proof that this was written or even conceived under the influence!! It's just a case of "If it wasn't for drugs, we wouldn't have the Beatles best tracks. Hooray for drugs. Give me another toke, would you?" !!!!!
Powerfully deep song, good choice
clintiskeen wrote:
qn 1985 when John Lennon was shot some DJ in DC lost his job because he played this song right after the news came through it was the same city that fired Howard Stern
So, obviously, D.C. has some redeeming qualities - even if "Happiness" isn't literally about guns.
The best! For me, this was the Beatles high-water mark. John and co. just never got any cooler than this song, or album. Taken literally, the song title turned out to be darkly ironic.
zaknafein wrote:
That's a byproduct of the stereo retrofits that have been done on the CD releases. The original mixes were mono, so when they go back and turn them into stereo, it sounds VERY weird. Personally, I find this retrofit to be a horrible bastardization of the orignal work, and would prefer they just left them in their original mono mixes.
I'm not sure if that's how you meant it, but it's impossible to get such stereo separation from a single mono mix. They probably instead created a new stereo mix using the original recorded tracks. But, in that time "stereo" meant putting one instrument in the left channel, another in the right, and others in the middle. This makes the songs sound totally unnatural on headphones because in the real world you'll almost never hear a sound in one ear exclusively. To properly listen to Beatles songs using headphones, without going back completely to mono, one should use a speaker simulator which crossmixes the channels with a certain delay.
gjeeg wrote:
August 1975. LSD. Listening to the White Album. I'm twenty one. I grew up with the Beatles. Saw them on TV in February 1964. Worshipped them. They shaped me. Then, by 1975 their hold lapsed. Then LSD. Happiness is Warm Gun. And I heard them all over again, for the first time, ever and forever and right now.
I was in the same place, same age although I had already been through my LSD phase by 1975. So glad to have grown up at that time.
Just doesn't do it for me...sorry
PeeBee wrote:
Don't need drugs to dig the song! hcaudill wrote:
Impossible without drugs.
I just assumed hcauldill meant the writing of this song was impossible without drugs. A contention I would probably agree with. ;-)
gjeeg wrote:
August 1975. LSD. Listening to the White Album. I'm twenty one. I grew up with the Beatles. Saw them on TV in February 1964. Worshipped them. They shaped me. Then, by 1975 their hold lapsed. Then LSD. Happiness is Warm Gun. And I heard them all over again, for the first time, ever and forever and right now.
I agree...oh yes...
PeeBee wrote:
Don't need drugs to dig the song!
No, but they help. Fantastic song. Did not realize until recently just HOW twised this song really is.
hcaudill wrote:
Impossible without drugs.
Don't need drugs to dig the song!
Impossible without drugs.
Great song! Have you ever heard the U2 cover?
emily dickinson might agree: "my life had stood- a loaded gun"... maybe.
jhawklyn wrote:
Not their best work...
Not their best work...
zaknafein wrote:
That's a byproduct of the stereo retrofits that have been done on the CD releases. The original mixes were mono, so when they go back and turn them into stereo, it sounds VERY weird. Personally, I find this retrofit to be a horrible bastardization of the orignal work, and would prefer they just left them in their original mono mixes.
??? Original mixes were mono ??? The Beatles aren't THAT old !!!
qn 1985 when John Lennon was shot some DJ in DC lost his job because he played this song right after the news came through it was the same city that fired Howard Stern
August 1975. LSD. Listening to the White Album. I'm twenty one. I grew up with the Beatles. Saw them on TV in February 1964. Worshipped them. They shaped me. Then, by 1975 their hold lapsed. Then LSD. Happiness is Warm Gun. And I heard them all over again, for the first time, ever and forever and right now.
My real problem is i'm deaf in one ear so I'm only hearing half the song. So I go to radiocrapshack and get a mono adapter to try to correct the situation, but I have to plug the thing in like half way to get it to work and then all the other songs on RP sound flat. WHAT TO DO?? Will someone, anyone, help me go from this to this .
SigmaBetaTooth wrote:
Has anyone ever noticed how almost every beatles track on RP has the left and right channels split up all funny?
Standard for The Beatles. I like the way Taxman sounds really loud with headphones. Same for Strawberry Fields Forever. Same for Rain. Same for ...well a lot.
SigmaBetaTooth wrote:
Has anyone ever noticed how almost every beatles track on RP has the left and right channels split up all funny?
Haha, yes, I've noticed because only one ear on my running headphones works, so I just get the instrumentals, which is actually kinda cool.
SigmaBetaTooth wrote:
Has anyone ever noticed how almost every beatles track on RP has the left and right channels split up all funny?
That's a byproduct of the stereo retrofits that have been done on the CD releases. The original mixes were mono, so when they go back and turn them into stereo, it sounds VERY weird. Personally, I find this retrofit to be a horrible bastardization of the orignal work, and would prefer they just left them in their original mono mixes.
SigmaBetaTooth wrote:
Has anyone ever noticed how almost every beatles track on RP has the left and right channels split up all funny?
Are you sure you aren't experiencing the Beatles in HIGH QUALITY audio for the first time?
Has anyone ever noticed how almost every beatles track on RP has the left and right channels split up all funny?
A penis is a warm gun. Not too subtle, John.
Oh YEAH! Has to be among the top requests in this world or the next... The opening 'She's not a girl, who misses much..." and when he begins growling, well, those are spine-tingling moments that still feel SO GOOD! ROCK ON!
More White Album!
nick_valensi wrote:
This song is just.... perfect... absolutely GODLIKE!
Yep had to rate it 'GODLIKE'
rosedraws wrote:
This song must have driven the parents absolutely crazy.
olsaltybastard wrote:
Nope, don't like it.
Makes me uncomfortable, but it's kind of intriguing.
This song is just.... perfect... absolutely GODLIKE!