Comments on: What’s The New Mary Jane

By: peter chapman

peter chapman — Sun, 23 Sep 2018 15:28:38 +0000

An excellent find and probably the best possible explanation I’ve ever heard for the genesis of the song. Here is the poem in its entirety:

Alan Alexander Milne 1882-1956

What is the matter with Mary Jane?
She’s crying with all her might and main,
And she won’t eat her dinner – rice pudding again –
What is the matter with Mary Jane?

What is the matter with Mary Jane?
I’ve promised her dolls and a daisy-chain,
And a book about animals – all in vain –
What is the matter with Mary Jane?

What is the matter with Mary Jane?
She’s perfectly well, and she hasn’t a pain;
But, look at her, now she’s beginning again! –
What is the matter with Mary Jane?

What is the matter with Mary Jane?
I’ve promised her sweets and a ride in the train,
And I’ve begged her to stop for a bit and explain –
What is the matter with Mary Jane?

What is the matter with Mary Jane?
She’s perfectly well and she hasn’t a pain,
And it’s lovely rice pudding for dinner again!
What is the matter with Mary Jane?

By: Cindy Hamel

Cindy Hamel — Sat, 24 Feb 2018 15:51:17 +0000

In an interview in 1980, Lennon said he can see himself becoming a children’s author in his 60’s. He stated that Lewis Carroll, The Wind and Willows, and Treasure island had a big impact on him as a child. So I wasn’t surprised when reading a book about A. A. Milne the author of all the Winnie the Pooh books and found a poem in there : “What is the matter with Mary Jane? She’s perfectly well, and she hasn’t had a pain.”

By: MikeP

MikeP — Sat, 23 Sep 2017 01:55:19 +0000

“You Know My Name” is fun and silly (though I wouldn’t put it on my “A” list). “..Mary Jane..” is just typical Lennon nonsense gobblety-gook-noise of that period. I listened to it once when Anthology3 came out and have skipped it ever since.

By: MikeP

MikeP — Sun, 28 May 2017 02:39:51 +0000

From Wikipedia: “The planetary exploration probe Pioneer 10 is currently heading in the general direction of the star and should make its closest approach in about two million years”

I can hardly wait!

By: Travis

Travis — Fri, 21 Apr 2017 13:14:34 +0000

Agreed, although Paul didn’t really sell out until into his solo years (“granny” songs like “Honey Pie”, my vote for worst Beatles song ever, aside).
For the OP – John’s later compositions like “Because”, “A Day In The Life”, “Across The Universe”, “Happiness Is A Warm Gun”(pretty much every Lennon composition on The White Album), “I Am The Walrus”, etc were garbage? Well I guess I gimme garbage…all day long

By: Travis

Travis — Fri, 21 Apr 2017 13:06:57 +0000

OMG Someone mentioned Aldebaran…the cat’s out of the bag now! Beware!!

By: ANTONI ROBERT GADEA

ANTONI ROBERT GADEA — Tue, 18 Apr 2017 19:21:48 +0000

I could not disagree more with you. Garbage is most of Paul’s production towards the end. Too commercial. John’s compositions are brilliant allways.

By: Josiah

Josiah — Fri, 27 Jan 2017 09:44:31 +0000

I really like this after only two listens. It’s definitely best that they didn’t put it on the album, but I’m a sucker for psychedelia and I’d say the middle section is seriously awesome. Some bits being Revolution 9-ish. The actual bits with John’s vocals are crap though I find. Good little Avant-Garde that I’m glad found a place somewhere at least. Psychedelic right after they quit they business, but more avant-garde.

By: Simon

Simon — Wed, 25 Jan 2017 19:15:37 +0000

More Lennon self-indulgent twaddle. His contributions, especially in the latter half of the Beatles life was mostly garbage. This, Revolution #9, and a lot of lyrics were just cringe-worthy. No wonder Paul felt he needed to step up and carry the band forward. George is a bit of an odd-one when it comes to avant-garde with his apparent dislike of it, yet plays on all their tracks. Still this song is crap and too much the norm for Lennon at this time.

By: A Montreal Paul

A Montreal Paul — Tue, 13 Dec 2016 22:57:31 +0000

I like the sound effects at the end, but the song itself is pretty bad. At least Revolution 9 works as a sound collage. The song sounds like a songwriter shedding all his artistry and just strumming stuff at random.

By: Young Fred

Young Fred — Thu, 22 Sep 2016 04:41:28 +0000

Pretty interesting. I think it was wise enough to leave it out from the White Album and listen to it in another one if given a chance. Probably in the RARITIES Album.

By: John Schulien

John Schulien — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 13:34:40 +0000

I have my own theory on this song. The Beatles were fans of American musician Brute Force, who put out a music/humor album called “Confections Of Love.” They were fans to such an extent that they actually reached out to him in 1969 when Brute was unable to get his recording “The King Of Fuh” published in England and released it themselves on Apple Records.

One of the tracks on “Confections Of Love” is called “Brute’s Party”, and it has a certain structural similarity to What’s The New Mary Jane. Additionally, as Mark Lewisohn noted in The Beatles Recording Sessions, ‘For some equally strange reason John always sung “party” with an American drawl viz, “Pahr-tee'”

I think that there’s a strong possibility that John Lennon was so tickled by Brute’s album that he wrote What’s The New Mary Jane as a very loose riff off of “Brute’s Party.”

The song is on youtube. Give it a listen for yourself.

By: Michael Chantiri

Michael Chantiri — Wed, 06 Apr 2016 02:15:00 +0000

Where can I find this original mix?

By: BogeyMusic

BogeyMusic — Sat, 05 Mar 2016 00:17:57 +0000

With all the hype for this song through Lennon interviews, one was expecting a masterpiece of unknown. The Beatles included it on ‘Anthology 3’, thus causing me the afford every time I hear the nonsence piano intro to skip it. What a load of rubbish. Even ‘Revolution 9’ is more pleasant to listen to. They should’ve released ‘Carnival Of Light’ in its place!

By: John

John — Wed, 13 Jan 2016 23:49:53 +0000

Awfuil and I’m from Liverpool, sounds like he’s been too much on the Higson’s Bitter, never mind marigona .

By: jnoble

jnoble — Fri, 08 Jan 2016 23:03:01 +0000

this gets my vote for the worst piece of crap John or any of the other Beatles for that matter ever recorded with the intent of having it on an official release. Total nonsense even by John’s late period standards. Sounds like something a high school kid came up with while high playing his first guitar

By: Sgt. Bob

Sgt. Bob — Mon, 04 Aug 2014 04:37:59 +0000

I love this story and secretly like to be believe it’s true, like someone asked “waht’s the new strain we’re smoking?”

By: Donald Kirkbride

Donald Kirkbride — Sun, 16 Mar 2014 09:23:17 +0000

im sure jane asher was paul mccartneys girlfriend before he met linda also its possible the song refers to her as the kinks song waterloo sunset makes a reference to terry meets julie referring to terrence stamp and julie christie
possible the idea was borrowed from the kinks perhaps? then again maybe not?

By: Donald Kirkbride

Donald Kirkbride — Sun, 16 Mar 2014 09:13:13 +0000

I read somewhere that whats the new mary jane was released as a b side and some labels were misprinted as whats the news mary jane not sure which single it was a b side of though

By: eNothing

eNothing — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 23:39:32 +0000

I’ve always found this song to be interesting to listend to (perhaps not all that enjoyable though) for several reasons: 1. Lyrically the song reflects John Lennon’s own poetic genius and is a logical progression from his early beatles writing days. Remember that John published two very unusual books during 64 and 65 — “In His Own Write” and “A Spaniard in the Works” which, even in the “pre marijuana” stage of the Beatles career were very unusual publications, filled with surrealistic “doggerel” rhymes and clever sketches and drawings (John was actually an accomplished artist having attended Liverpool Art Institute for several years). He WAS a freak back then but just didn’t look the part.
2. The avant garde music comes from all of them (except Ringo) learning and experimenting with sounds and tape loops and distortion and echo and backwards tapes, etc. and so on – remember they were brilliant composers and were trying to absorb all that was going on around them. This is the first evidence I’ve ever heard of the infamous Magic Alex actually appearing on a recording, so that is VERY cool. We know about John and Avant Garde; we know about George and Avant Garde – what many DON’T know is that intellectually Paul was the most of all. Many of the tapes and sound effects on Sargeant Pepper came from Paul’s own experimentation, including the earlier backwards tape loops on John’s “Tomorrow Never Knows” which Paul brought from his home on Cavendish avenue in a plastic bag and arranged for Abbey Road engineers to hold up pencils to provide tension so they could be run through the machines there…

Bottom line, they were incredible and its great to get a rare one every once in a while!