A Day in the Life

"A Day in the Life" is a song by The Beatles and the final track on the group's 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Credited to Lennon/McCartney, the song comprises distinct segments written independently by John Lennon and Paul McCartney with orchestral additions. While Lennon s lyrics were inspired by contemporary newspaper articles, McCartney s were reminiscent of his youth. The decisions to link sections of the song with orchestral crescendos and to end the song with a sustained piano chord were made only after the rest of the song had been recorded. The supposed drug reference in the line "I d love to turn you on" resulted in the song initially being banned from broadcast by the BBC. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked "A Day in the Life" at number 26 on the magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Since its original album release, "A Day in the Life" has been released as a B-side, and also on various compilation albums. It has been covered by other artists including Bobby Darin, Neil Young, Jeff Beck, The Bee Gees, Phish and since 2008, by McCartney in his live performances.