John Lennon Said Bob Dylan Wrote ‘Artsy-Fartsy Crap’

After The Beatles discovered Bob Dylan, his music inspired much of John Lennon’s writing. Lennon spoke highly of the American artist, and they began spending time together. Lennon pointed to a Beatles album that took particular inspiration from Dylan. He said he realized Dylan was writing “artsy-fartsy crap” and getting away with it. He wanted to try doing the same thing.

A black and white picture of Bob Dylan holding a guitar and blowing into a harmonica. John Lennon leans against a fireplace mantle. — Bob Dylan and John Lennon | Bettmann/Contributor via Getty; John Downing/Getty Images

John Lennon noted the way people spoke about Bob Dylan’s work

When reflecting on his work in The Beatles, Lennon said Magical Mystery Tour was one of his favorite albums because of its absurdity.

“Magical Mystery Tour is one of my favorite albums, because it was so weird,” Lennon said, per The Beatles Anthology. “‘I Am The Walrus’ is also one of my favorite tracks — because I did it, of course, but also because it’s one of those that has enough little bitties going to keep you interested even a hundred years later.”

He explained that he took inspiration from Dylan while working on the album.

“In those days I was writing obscurely, à la Dylan, never saying what you mean but giving the impression of something, where more or less can be read into it,” he explained. “It’s a good game. I thought, ‘They get away with this artsy-fartsy crap.’ There has been more said about Dylan’s wonderful lyrics than was ever in the lyrics at all. Mine too. But it was the intellectuals who read all this into Dylan or The Beatles.”

He said he realized he could mimic Dylan’s style to receive more praise for his writing.

“Dylan got away with murder,” Lennon said. “I thought, ‘I can write this crap too.’ You just stick a few images together, thread them together, and you call it poetry.”

Imitating Bob Dylan made John Lennon a better songwriter

Lennon characterized Dylan’s influence as copying Dylan’s “artsy-fartsy crap,” but Dylan did make Lennon a better writer. Lennon once said that Dylan helped him write songs that were more subjective. Before meeting Dylan, many of Lennon’s songs were about youthful romance. Afterward, he began to look inward.

Songs like “Norwegian Wood,” “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away,” and “In My Life” all took inspiration from Dylan. His influence added depth and reflection to Lennon’s writing.

Did John Lennon and Bob Dylan get along?

Lennon met Dylan alongside the rest of The Beatles in 1964. While the whole band enjoyed spending time with Dylan, the American artist reportedly focused most on Lennon. After their first meeting, Lennon and Dylan saw each other several other times, though they stopped spending time together by the end of the 1960s.

“John was a very good friend of Dylan’s,” filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker said, per the book The Ballad of Bob Dylan: A Portrait by Daniel Mark Epstein. “John just loved him. And vice versa. They adored each other.”

Over the years, Lennon grew increasingly critical of Dylan’s music. When they were spending time together, though, he was very fond of him.

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