Across the Universe is one of John Lennon's personal favorites. Written in India while practicing TM with Maharishi, the line 'Jai Guru Deva' translates to 'I give thanks to the guru'--a salutation at the ashram. While the lyrics are calming, the mood was short-lived. At the Get Back sessions, Lennon sang the line, 'Nothing's gonna change my world' before spitting the aside: 'F#cking wish it would.' Still, the song retains its beauty and charm.

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Strawberry Fields Forever (1967) is another Lennon psychedelic classic--a study of uncertainty tinged with the loneliness of the solitary rebel. Lennon at his most somnambulistic. The studio sessions again became legendary, devouring 55 hours of recording time and contributions from all, Strawberry Fields Forever is another creative peak--a singular vision and a stunning soundscape.

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Tomorrow Never Knows (1966) is one of the most extraordinary musical statements of all time. Taking LSD, Lennon wanted a serious voyage of self-discovery. He turned to a book, The Psychedelic Experience, which paraphrases The Tibetan Book of the Dead. The results were spectacular & Lennon hastened to capture them in song. The recording process is legend & reflects collaborative genius, a tape-looped sound from the future that still stuns today.

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Ticket to Ride (1965) expresses 'unusual emotional depth' & reflects a chance encounter with LSD. Spiked at a dinner party, Lennon, Harrison & their wives Cynthia and Patti, spent a roller-coaster night careening around London, 'dazzled & near hysterically under the influence.' In addition to the sound of the track, 'there is a narcotic passivity to the lyric; the girl who is leaving doesn't care.' An 'extraordinary precognition of the music to come.'

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Help! (1965), the title track to the Beatles' 2nd film, is pure Lennon autobiography. Having achieved fame & wealth, Lennon was stuck in depression in what he called his 'fat Elvis' period. Lennon's marriage to Cynthia was deteriorating & she disapproved of his drug intake. Originally brought to the studio as a slow blues, George Martin saw its potential and sped it up. A number one on both sides of the Atlantic, Help! transcends the film it was made for.

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