Dark lyrics

Lyrical content dealing with violence, despair, alienation, or mortality

songs

Analysis

Song count per year

% of each member's catalogue with this tag (by writing credit)

Early1 · 6%

Mid-period8 · 44%

Late9 · 50%

Year

Album

Writer

Lead vocal(s)

#	Title	Year	Album	Lead Vocal(s)	Notes
1	Don't Bother Me	1963	With The Beatles	George	Unusually bleak for 1963 Beatles
2	Run for Your Life	1965	Rubber Soul	John	Murder threat as romantic stance
3	Think for Yourself	1965	Rubber Soul	George	Dismissal, ruin, misery
4	She Said She Said	1966	Revolver	John	Death, madness, dissociation
5	Love You To	1966	Revolver	George	Mortality, betrayal, social hostility
6	Eleanor Rigby	1966	Revolver	Paul	–
7	Tomorrow Never Knows	1966	Revolver	John	Dying, void, ignorance and hate
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8	A Day in the Life	1967	Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band	John, Paul	Indifference to death and war
9	I Am the Walrus	1967	Magical Mystery Tour	John	'dead dog's eye', 'untimely death'
10	Yer Blues	1968	The Beatles (The White Album)	John	Suicidal imagery, eagle picking eye
11	Revolution 9	1968	The Beatles (The White Album)	–	Violent fragments, naked exposure, broken images
12	I'm So Tired	1968	The Beatles (The White Album)	John	Sleepless distress, insanity
13	Happiness Is a Warm Gun	1968	The Beatles (The White Album)	John	Violence, addiction imagery
14	Helter Skelter	1968	The Beatles (The White Album)	Paul	"Helter skelter" as descent imagery; "coming down fast"
15	Only a Northern Song	1969	Yellow Submarine	George	'There's nobody there'
16	Maxwell's Silver Hammer	1969	Abbey Road	Paul	Cartoon-comic violence
17	Mean Mr. Mustard	1969	Abbey Road	John	Miser sleeps in a hole; shouts obscenities
18	Carry That Weight	1969	Abbey Road	Paul, John, George, Ringo	Burden of fame, band tensions