Inspiration behind Yesterday:
John Lennon recalls the song Yesterday being kicked around for months. Band members referred to this song as Scrambled Eggs, a tune without a title. This all changed when Paul McCartney woke up with the lyrics and melody in his head. Before this day was over, Paul recorded Yesterday alone on his acoustic guitar. When Paul brought Yesterday to the Beatles, (John, Ringo and George), they thought another guitar would serve as a distraction. Subsequently, Yesterday became a solo.
Biblical Application:
Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. 17 If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them, James 4:13-17.
Exegesis of Yesterday:
Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away
Now it looks as though they’re here to stay
Oh, I believe in yesterday
Yesterday was written at 57 Wimpole Street in London, England.
This is where Paul lived, staying in an attic room above his girlfriend’s family’s house.
Waking up with this song in his head, Paul begins Yesterday with a time of reflection.
Thinking about obstacles and troubles from his past, Paul learned lessons from former mistakes.
Suddenly, I’m not half the man I used to be
There’s a shadow hanging over me
Oh, yesterday came suddenly
Paul suddenly realized that he’s changed. Has fame and fortune influenced him negatively?
Something from Paul’s past is gnawing at him like karma coming back to haunt him.
Why she had to go
I don’t know, she wouldn’t say
I said something wrong
Now I long for yesterday
Paul opens up either about a broken relationship from his past or a recent death.
Paul clarifies this loss was an old girlfriend who severed their relationship without explanation.
Paul wishes he could go back in time to alter how he treated her and change what he said to her.
Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe in yesterday
When Paul was younger, loving his girlfriends was much easier and natural for him.
The loss of Paul’s previous relationship has taken a toll on him, wanting to go back in time.
Why she had to go
I don’t know, she wouldn’t say
I said something wrong
Now I long for yesterday
Since Yesterday was inspired by a dream, Paul is revisiting a broken relationship from the past.
Paul writes about needing time to heal before entering another relationship.
Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play
Now I need a place to hide away
Oh, I believe in yesterday
Music has a way of taking human beings back in time when life was less complicated and free.
Final Thoughts:
Yesterday was written before Paul McCartney’s divorce with Linda as well as before the Beatles broke up in 1970. Some suggest that Paul felt the members of the Beatles slowly drifting apart. Fame, fortune and greed have a long history of band breakups in the past. Whatever Paul’s true intentions, reflecting upon the past this time of year is essential to avoid making the same mistakes over and over again. Finally, before rushing into any relationship, take time to heal so that you become a vessel of love and not of regret.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 