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12.00pm
31 March 2008
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AFAIK George wasn’t in the habit of injecting cocaine in 1969, or any time. “Monkey finger” is more likely to refer to injecting heroin, if it means anything. Anyway, I don’t buy the idea that this song is about each Beatle. The connections are rather tenuous at best, but congratulations for trying to find meaning in the song. I don’t believe it has any.
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3.06pm
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29 November 2012
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I agree, Joe, I think snatches of the lyrics here and there might have meaning but overall, it’s gobbledy-gook ala I Am The Walrus …doesn’t make either song any less enjoyable, though!
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4.13pm
1 December 2009
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I’ve never bought that one-verse-per-Beatle explanation either, it doesn’t add up. The fact that the very first line begins “Here come…”, and every succeeding line begins with “He…”, should pretty much establish that the song is about one person. In other words, John introduces “Old flat top” immediately, and spends the rest of the song telling us about him. I think if John were going with such a formal structure, he would’ve been consistent and put a line of introduction into every verse. (It’s just as reasonable to believe that the song is describing 20 different individuals in a line or two each!) But people will believe what they believe in, I guess…to the point where they share the verse=Beatle theory yet disagree which verse is about which Beatle!
On the other hand…Maybe the notion can be taken a step further, and it could be argued that John thinks of the Beatles as a four-headed unit? Sure, why not. That way, interpreters can randomly apply the various lines to the various individuals as they see fit – without even having to worry about what verse they come from! Go ahead, have fun!
GEORGE: In fact, The Detroit Sound. JOHN: In fact, yes. GEORGE: In fact, yeah. Tamla-Motown artists are our favorites. The Miracles. JOHN: We like Marvin Gaye. GEORGE: The Impressions PAUL & GEORGE: Mary Wells. GEORGE: The Exciters. RINGO: Chuck Jackson. JOHN: To name but eighty.
1.23am
6 December 2012
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Here come old flat top
He come groovin’ up slowly
He got joo joo eyeballs
He one holy rollers
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker
He just do what he please
He wear no shoeshine
He got toe jam football
He got monkey finger
He shoot Coca Cola
He say I know you, you know me
One thing I can tell you is
You got to be free
Come together, right now
Over me
He bag production
He got walrus gumboot
He got Ono sideboard
He one spinal cracker
He got feet down below his knees
Hold you in his armchair
You can feel his disease
Come together, right now
Over me
He roller coaster
He got early warning
He got muddy water
He one Mojo filter
He say one and one and one is three
Got to be good looking
Cause he’s so hard to see
Come together right now
Over me
For reference.
Also known as Egg-Rock, Egg-Roll, E-George, Eggy, Ravioli, Eggroll Eggrolli...
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1.57am
1 November 2012
Offline The whole song if lyrically great, but that one line —
Hold you in his armchair you can feel his disease
— is a stroke of genius.
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2.18am
6 December 2012
Offline Here’s my opininon, if I look at it the “Beatle per verse” way:
Verse 1
Here come old flat top
He come groovin’ up slowly
He got joo joo eyeballs
He one holy rollers
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker
He just do what he please
Ringo. I looked at the other verses and this is the only one left for Ringo.
Verse 2
He wear no shoeshine
He got toe jam football
He got monkey finger
He shoot Coca Cola
He say I know you, you know me
One thing I can tell you is
You got to be free
Come together, right now
Over me
George. You got to be free- religion-wise(?); Coca Cola… hm… do you get the reference?
Verse 3
He bag production
He got walrus gumboot
He got Ono sideboard
He one spinal cracker
He got feet down below his knees
Hold you in his armchair
You can feel his disease
Come together, right now
Over me
John. Lots of references. Bag production- wasn’t that a company he created? Walrus gumboot- I Am The Walrus . Ono- it’s obvious. Feet down below his knees- I always found this line interesting. Perhaps it means his feet were below his knees in the sense that he was standing, not on the ground or on his knees begging, standing up for himself, etc.
Verse 4
He roller coaster
He got early warning
He got muddy water
He one Mojo filter
He say one and one and one is three
Got to be good looking
Cause he’s so hard to see
Come together right now
Over me
Paul. Roller coaster- Helter Skelter reference? Early warning, one and one and one is three- threats to leave the band?
There you go.
Also known as Egg-Rock, Egg-Roll, E-George, Eggy, Ravioli, Eggroll Eggrolli...
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10.38am
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline Paul wasnt threatening to leave the band then, if anything he was the one getting them organised and into the studio to record Abbey Road .
"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
10.04pm
6 December 2012
Offline meanmistermustard said
Paul wasnt threatening to leave the band then, if anything he was the one getting them organised and into the studio to record Abbey Road .
Oh. Oh well. The Helter Skelter reference still works.
Also known as Egg-Rock, Egg-Roll, E-George, Eggy, Ravioli, Eggroll Eggrolli...
~witty quote~
4.57pm
Reviewers
Moderators
1 May 2011
Offline Nowhere else to put my random thought so here is where.
Considering the divisiveness (flip me, thats the correct spelling!!) throughout the recording sessions of ‘The White Album ‘ and the Get Back sessions i wonder if the placement of ‘Come Together ‘ as the album opener was also some kind of statement of intent that the band were getting back to a sort of harmony in the studio and putting aside their differences whilst making the music (even if one mention of business had Ringo and George Martin running for the exit).
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Beatlebug"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
1.33am
10 August 2014
Offline meanmistermustard said
Nowhere else to put my random thought so here is where.Considering the divisiveness (flip me, thats the correct spelling!!) throughout the recording sessions of ‘The White Album ‘ and the Get Back sessions i wonder if the placement of ‘Come Together ‘ as the album opener was also some kind of statement of intent that the band were getting back to a sort of harmony in the studio and putting aside their differences whilst making the music (even if one mention of business had Ringo and George Martin running for the exit).
Hmm, an interesting sentiment. The song was written for Timothy Leary’s gubernatorial run according to John. It was sort of a throwaway song, stealing bits from Chuck Berry as well as himself, and I believe Come Together was Leary’s campaign motto.
Still, I like your reasoning better. Let’s just go with it 
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2.30pm
25 August 2012
Offline meanmistermustard said
Nowhere else to put my random thought so here is where.Considering the divisiveness (flip me, thats the correct spelling!!) throughout the recording sessions of ‘The White Album ‘ and the Get Back sessions i wonder if the placement of ‘Come Together ‘ as the album opener was also some kind of statement of intent that the band were getting back to a sort of harmony in the studio and putting aside their differences whilst making the music (even if one mention of business had Ringo and George Martin running for the exit).
Too bad this sentiment only yielded one more album. 
This is another one I’ve read that Paul helped elevate; he was the one who gave it its funky beat via his bass line. Yes, the opening line is lifted directly from the Chuck Berry song “You Can’t Catch Me ,” but that’s beside the point.
6.03pm
20 January 2016
Offline I always took this song as sort of mocking more conservative politicians who would stigmatize the counterculture.
It’s a great start of a great record, opening with a memorable percussion/base rhythm. One of their most catchy and listenable so
9.09pm
5 November 2011
Offline Funny Paper said
The whole song if lyrically great, but that one line —Hold you in his armchair you can feel his disease
— is a stroke of genius.
He’s actually singing
Hold you in his arms, yeah, you can feel his disease
But when they made the lyric sheets they got it wrong, but John ended up liking “armchair” better anyways
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6.49pm
8 January 2015
Offline It’s just silly words designed to catch out people who want them to mean something. Glass Onion Part 2. I used to love this song as a kid but now I get unsettled with John’s “Shoot me”, and can’t wait for the fun stompy choruses.
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8.30am
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20 August 2013
Offline 12 reasonable people on a jury.
After we made a decision on the case, we sat in the jury room until we were called back to the jury box for the decision to be read in open court. While waiting, we were just bantering about. One juror said that this country was going to need to come together, and the sooner the better. I said, “That reminds me of a Beatles song.” Twelve reasonable people started singing
Come Together , right now, over me.
We sounded fairly decent in that tiny jury room.
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9.44am
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15 February 2015
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Reasonable people love the Beatles. 
Crazy people, on the other hand, love Pink Floyd… 
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10.31am
22 December 2013
Offline Derek_Francis said
I always took this song as sort of mocking more conservative politicians who would stigmatize the counterculture.
I did read somewhere (can’t remember where) that John had originally targeted this to become another peace anthem, so I think that you’re onto something here… Makes sense when you read the title, but it was likely an unfinished idea that he abandoned for ‘Give Peace A Chance ‘ instead… Just listened to the ‘Live In New York City ‘ version the other day for the first time in awhile and it ripped… Had they come up with it a little earlier, this one would’ve sounded good on the rooftop with Billy Preston on the keyboards…:-)
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Reviewers
14 April 2010
Offline Derek_Francis said
I always took this song as sort of mocking more conservative politicians who would stigmatize the counterculture.Billy Rhythm said
I did read somewhere (can’t remember where) that John had originally targeted this to become another peace anthem, so I think that you’re onto something here…
Yep- read Joe’s article on the song. From the article:
Come Together , the lead song on The Beatles’ Abbey Road album, was conceived by John Lennon as a political rallying cry for the writer, psychologist and pro-drugs activist Timothy Leary.
The song was composed for Timothy Leary’s campaign to stand against Ronald Reagan as governor of California.
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