Working Class Hero
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| "Working Class Hero" | ||
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| Song by John Lennon | ||
| from the album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band | ||
| Released | 11 December, 1970 | |
| Recorded | September 26 - October 9, 1970 | |
| Genre | Rock/Pop | |
| Length | 3:48 | |
| Label | Apple/EMI | |
| Writer(s) | John Lennon | |
| Producer(s) | John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Phil Spector | |
| John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band track listing | ||
| I Found Out (3) |
"Working Class Hero" (4) |
Isolation (5) |
"Working Class Hero" is a song from John Lennon's first post-Beatles solo album, 1970's John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. Regarded as one of Lennon's most caustic and overtly political songs, it explores themes of alienation and social status from childhood to adulthood. It was controversial in that it was one of the first popular songs to include the word "fucking" (twice). The album's notes replaced the word with asterisks, and footnotes claimed that the obscenity was omitted from the printed lyrics at the request of EMI. In Australia the song was heard minus the offensive word. The song also demonstrates Lennon's dislike of the power of organized religion to sedate the masses in the section,
"Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV, and you think you're so clever and classless and free, but you're still fucking peasants as far as I can see."'
The sentiment from this verse is very similar to Karl Marx' quote that religion is "...the opium of the people".
One might find irony in the fact that Lennon grew up in Woolton, which is one of the most affluent and middle-class areas of Liverpool. However, it could be argued that Lennon is singing about being his status - that of being a hero to the working-class, rather than being a hero who is working class. Furthermore, Lennon's father Alfred "Freddie" Lennon was a merchant seaman, so in spite of John's relatively privileged upbringing, his roots were undoubtedly working-class.
Allegedly, many of the lyrics derive from his time during Primal Therapy and stem from his acceptance of life as opposed to the continual fight against it that society expects.
One other common interpretation of the lyrics is that of satire. He is saying in his lyrics that essentially no matter how hard you try to be what society wants which is a working class hero, it will never be good enough
[edit] Covers
Marianne Faithfull covered "Working Class Hero" on her 1979 album Broken English. David Bowie's band Tin Machine recorded a version of the song on their 1989 debut album. Marilyn Manson covered it on his 2000 single "Disposable Teens." In 2005, the ex Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne recorded a version for his collection Under Covers. It was covered by Mark Lanegan on the tribute album also titled Working Class Hero: A Tribute To John Lennon. Roger Taylor of Queen also covered this song on his 1998 album Electric Fire. Elbow covered the song in 2005. The band The Academy Is... also covered it in 2006 on their From the Carpet EP. The Manic Street Preachers recorded a cover of the song as a hidden track on their album Send Away The Tigers (2007).Green Day are covering the song for the upcoming CD release of Instant Karma, a tribute to John Lennon. The album is being produced to benefit Amnesty International, which is trying to end the genocide in Darfur, and also includes many other bands paying tribute to John Lennon.
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