John Lennon was often known for his surreal and psychedelic sayings. Some of them wouldn’t make any sense, while others were humorous quotes that made the other Beatles laugh. In the early days of The Beatles, Lennon shared a bizarre anecdote about the band’s origins that Paul McCartney later used as the basis for one of his solo albums.
Paul McCartney recorded ‘Flaming Pie’ shortly after ‘The Beatles Anthology’
McCartney released his 10th solo album Flaming Pie in 1997. The project debuted shortly after The Beatles Anthology, an extensive retrospective of The Beatles that included a book, a documentary, and a three-volume set of double albums. McCartney worked on the project with Ringo Starr and George Harrison and was inspired to create an album with a Beatles influence.
For Flaming Pie, McCartney worked with Electric Light Orchestra’s Jeff Lynne and former Beatles producer George Martin. He also brought in family and friends to help record songs, including Starr on drums and his son, James, on guitar. The album was a critical and commercial success, peaking at No. 2 on the U.K. album charts and the U.S. Billboard 200.
Paul McCartney based the title of the album on a John Lennon quote
In a 2020 interview with Global News, the “Let it Be” singer reflected on the experience of making Anthology and Flaming Pie. Paul McCartney explained that the title for Flaming Pie came from a story John Lennon would tell when asked how they came up with the name for The Beatles.
“When we had started off as The Beatles in Liverpool, there was this local music paper called Mersey Beat. John was asked to do a little explanation of where we were at at the time. He did this typical Lennonese thing and said, ‘It came in a vision — a man appeared on a flaming pie and said unto them, from this day on, you are Beatles with an A.’ And so it was. That was always the explanation when people asked us, ‘Well, why are you called The Beatles?’
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McCartney remembered this hilarious anecdote and imagined himself as the man who appeared on the pie.
“And so I just thought, I’m the man on the flaming pie!” McCartney explained. “I’ll write a song about that. It’s a little bit tongue-in-cheek. The character who is the man on the flaming pie, he’s quite cool. He’s quite mad. Anyone I mentioned it to just smiled.”
McCartney said ‘Flaming Pie’ was ‘Beatle-flavored’
During the interview, Paul McCartney explained that he would often listen to the work that he, John Lennon, and the other Beatles members made before working on the next album. Since he had recently finished Anthology, he was heavily influenced by the Beatles’ music while writing songs for Flaming Pie.
“It was quite Beatle-flavoured. There are always echoes,” he said. “You can’t help it. When you write, it’s you. And when you have just reassessed your life’s work you get an idea of where to go next.”
