References to recreational substances or altered states.
The Drugs motif first appears in the Beatles catalogue on 'She's a Woman' (1964).
Song count per year
% of each member's catalogue with this tag (by writing credit)
'Turn me on' – first Beatles drug reference per McCartney
'Day tripper' = casual/weekend acid user
LSD/psychedelic experience as subject
LSD trip with Peter Fonda, August 1965
McCartney confirmed song is about marijuana
'Take a drink from his special cup'
LSD-inflected dissociation
'Get high' read by many as drug reference
'Had a smoke and went into a dream'
McCartney later linked to LSD imagery
Lennon cited LSD trips as partial inspiration
'I need a fix 'cause I'm going down'
Written about LSD experience
'California grass'
'Shoot me' read as heroin reference
Updated
Book
The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics
Alan Aldridge
Book
Revolution in the Head
Ian MacDonald
Sheet music
Sheet Music Plus – Beatles Collection
Sheet Music Plus
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