All The Behind-The-Scenes Drama Behind The Beatles’ Hit Song "Hey Jude"

Everybody: "Na na na na-na-na-naaaaa, na-na-na-naaaa, Hey Jude..." We've all sung along to the iconic Beatles hit "Hey Jude" and loved every second of it. But have you ever stopped to consider the lyrics in the first half of the song? Because it turns out that the track has hidden meanings that hint at the incredible drama going on behind the scenes at the time that it was written.

A monster hit

Make no mistake about it: "Hey Jude" was a monster when it was released. The band put it out in 1968 — among the first singles to be released from their Apple Records label — and it quickly stormed the charts. It took the top spot in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the U.K. In fact, "Hey Jude" remained at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for an impressive nine weeks in 1968. And if anything, it's only gotten more popular over time. But somehow the song still holds some mystery.

The origins of the song

For one thing, most people associate "Hey Jude" with the fabled Lennon-McCartney era of The Beatles' output. Yet "Hey Jude" was all Paul. John told David Sheff for his book All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview With John Lennon and Yoko Ono, “‘Hey Jude’ is a damn good set of lyrics and I made no contribution to that.” But when you find out what the song might actually be about, that is no big surprise.

A song for Julian

"Hey Jude" was born right at the time when John was breaking up with his first wife, Cynthia. The Beatle was also beginning a new life with Yoko Ono — and leaving his son Julian behind with Cynthia. This turn of events understandably kicked off the turbulent relationship he would have with Julian for the rest of his life. The drama was so intense that Paul did what he could to help — including writing a song.

Lennon the Hypocrite

And trust us, the situation was not good for anyone involved. “Dad could talk about peace and love out loud to the world, but he could never show it to the people who supposedly meant the most to him: his wife and son,” Julian told The Daily Telegraph in 1998. In fact, John’s oldest son seemed determined to portray the writer of “Give Peace a Chance” as a very different person behind the scenes.