# Poll: Is “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” about LSD / drugs / psychedelia, or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [March 9, 2025, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334 "2025-03-09T15:24:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/61 "2025-03-12T00:44:43Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Did you also believe Elon Musk Did Snopes and wikipedia confirm the story? And of course Musk can change his mind about something like that. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/62 "2025-03-12T00:46:40Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > There is not a rolly eyes emoji big enough to reply to this. So, rather than accept the word of the artist who wrote and performed it, not to mention his son, and the art that brought out the song- the coincidence that “Lucy in the sky with Diamonds” has “LSD” in ti proves the opposite? ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/63 "2025-03-12T00:57:14Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Did Snopes and wikipedia confirm the story? What a joke. Snopes and Wikipedia did no investigative journalism, there are no deeper sources to cross-check. They simply reported that Lennon said what he said, which isn’t in dispute. That’s all we have to go on (except that he’s known to lie about the meaning of other songs). So again I’ll ask, the [Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/04/12/elon-musk-twitter/) confirmed that Elon Musk said his dog was Twitter CEO. He’s the owner, and they’re a major newspaper of record. Do you believe what he said? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/64 "2025-03-12T01:03:31Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > So, rather than accept the word of the artist who wrote and performed it, not to mention his son, and the art that brought out the song- One was a 3 years old and the other was someone who not only was loath to explain his songs to the press but also had an incentive to minimize the influence of drugs in his songs. As for not coming clean later, Lennon could not do that without depriving his son of perceived credit. That’s my theory but I’m not certain of it the way you seem to be certain of yours. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/65 "2025-03-12T01:05:01Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > What a joke. Snopes and Wikipedia did no investigative journalism, there are no deeper sources to cross-check. They simply reported that Lennon said what he said, which isn’t in dispute. You know, before making statements like that, maybe actually read the article = > **[Is 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' Code for LSD?](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds/)** > > It wasn't long before listeners discovered the "hidden" pun in the song's title, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." The initial letters of certain words spelled out the acrostic LSD. _John Lennon, while never denying that the song itself was inspired by the countless acid trips he had taken, quickly explained that the title, in fact, had been mere coincidence. It was taken, verbatim, from the name John’s four-year-old son Julian had given to a drawing he made at school (shown below), Lennon claimed; Lennon himself had no idea that the title formed the abbreviation LSD until it was pointed out to him by someone else after the album’s release…Philip Norman’s Beatle biography offers much the same reaction…Lennon’s response, as Schaumberg wrote…_ They checked a Rolling Stone Interview, Schaumberg, and.Philip Norman’s Beatle biography > [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Elon Musk said his dog was Twitter CEO. What the **fuck** does that have to do with this thread and subject? . ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/66 "2025-03-12T01:08:34Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > You know, before making statements like that, maybe actually read the article = Again I ask, what did they research beyond “what did Lennon say?” Nothing. There’s nothing to know beyond what Lennon said. He’s known to be dishonest, deceptive, or sloppy. His words don’t magically become more truthful just because someone else printed them. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/67 "2025-03-12T01:11:03Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Again I ask, what did they research beyond “what did Lennon say?” Nothing. Two Biographers. Didnt read the cite did you? As opposed to a coincidence in the title. Because that is all that the “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds is about LSD” people have to hang their hat on. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/68 "2025-03-12T11:05:07Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Because that is all that the “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds is about LSD” people have to hang their hat on. Well, no, there’s also the fact that the lyrical content of the song depicts what many people imagine an acid trip might be like. ---
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/69 "2025-03-12T11:45:11Z")
As D H Lawrence said, loosely paraphrased, “trust the pen, not the teller.” ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/70 "2025-03-12T12:01:25Z")
> [@GailForce](#): > > “trust the pen, not the teller.” Well, Teller would never lie to you, since he doesn’t speak. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/71 "2025-03-12T12:01:37Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > The Beatles never hid any meanings in a way that “clever” fans were supposed to be able to figure out. Their lyrics, and rock lyrics in general, are not coded word puzzles. True. In their (mainly John’s) 1968 song “Glass Onion,” they gently chided their fans’ searches for such coded meanings (“and here’s another clue for you all…the walrus was Paul…”) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/72 "2025-03-12T13:59:25Z")
There is another option: these are Schrödinger’s lyrics and the individual Beatles have been deliberately evasive in order to keep the discussion alive. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/73 "2025-03-12T14:55:54Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Two Biographers. Didnt read the cite did you? Yes. The sources effectively say “here’s what John Lennon said. We believe him.” That doesn’t magically mean Lennon was telling the truth. To suggest otherwise is the logical fallacy of _appeal to authority_, meaning a thing must certainly be true not on its own merits, but because of who says or published it. What you’re missing here is that nobody can really prove whether Lennon is telling the truth. That’s simply not a provable thing; only he knows it himself. Publishing someone’s words in Wikipedia or Snopes doesn’t magically turn it into truth; it’s just other people repeating what he said. They have no special infomation or insight that you or I don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/74 "2025-03-12T16:28:34Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > John Lennon, while never denying that the song itself was inspired by the countless acid trips he had taken, quickly explained that the title, in fact, _had_ been mere coincidence. It was taken, verbatim, from the name John’s four-year-old son Julian had given to a drawing he made at school (shown below), Lennon claimed; Lennon himself had no idea that the title formed the abbreviation LSD until it was pointed out to him by someone else after the album’s release…Philip Norman’s Beatle biography offers much the same reaction…Lennon’s response, as Schaumberg wrote… First off, the first sentence of your cite seems to undercut your position that the song wasn’t inspired by drugs. Second, although I’ll grant it’s theoretically possible that Lennon wrote the song without noticing the acronym, there is absolutely no way in hell that nobody pointed it out to him until after the album was released. That’s just not remotely plausible. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/75 "2025-03-12T16:52:13Z")
> [@Thing.Fish](#): > > Second, although I’ll grant it’s theoretically possible that Lennon wrote the song without noticing the acronym, there is absolutely no way in hell that nobody pointed it out to him until after the album was released. That’s just not remotely plausible. I heard Lennon was very angry when they refused to allow his now lost song “Hearing Every Reality Over Innocent Nothings” onto the final cut of the Abbey Road album 😁 ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/76 "2025-03-12T16:57:33Z")
And his controversial solo work, “Purple Angels Uttering Love Songs Under Colorful Kangaroo Skins”. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/77 "2025-03-12T17:00:58Z")
Haha, I was thinking about crafting a fake song from that exact phrase, but 9 letters seemed like too much work. Well done 👏 ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/78 "2025-03-12T18:04:14Z")
By all accounts he was not a good father. If he was telling the truth about the song coming from his son’s drawing that’s touching, if he was lying the reasons might also be sort of touching. Something to give his son even if it was a re-gift of sorts. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/79 "2025-03-12T19:08:11Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Well, no, there’s also the fact that the lyrical content of the song depicts what many people imagine an acid trip might be like. And no one disagrees that the song is psychedelic and was during their drug period. In fact Lennon said some of the lyrics were possible inspired by acid trips. But there are also ‘Day Tripper’,With A Little Help From My Friends’,‘Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey’, Getting Better’ and of course Come Together. But Lucy is about LSD due to a coincidence, of course. 🙄 > [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > What you’re missing here is that nobody can really prove whether Lennon is telling the truth. We have the drawing, and the fact he claimed it over and over until he died. A one off statement could have been one of their famous jokes. > [@Thing.Fish](#): > > First off, the first sentence of your cite seems to undercut your position that the song wasn’t inspired by drugs. I never claimed it wasnt psychedelic with drug imagery. The whole claim here is that is it about LSD due to the coincidence in the title. Lennon states the title was from the drawing, which still exists- did Lennon forge the drawing to bolster the lie? Hardly. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2025, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334/80 "2025-03-12T19:15:54Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > We have the drawing, and the fact he claimed it over and over until he died. According to the Wiki, it’s also backed up by Julian and Ringo Starr, who stated he was present when Julian said the phrase. We even know Lucy’s full name. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-is-lucy-in-the-sky-with-diamonds-about-lsd-drugs-psychedelia-or-not/1015334.md?page=5)