‘Memories’ and ‘Howling at the Moon’

I wrote last about John Lennon’s unreleased demo ‘Tennessee,’ inspired by the playwright Tennessee Williams. Lennon subsequently wrote a snippet of another unreleased song called ‘Howling at the Moon,’ playing it on electric guitar (The Lost Lennon Tapes (TLLT) November 28, 1988).

The lyrics were as follows:

Sometimes I get the feeling

Daylight has come too soon

Hoping for something better

Howling at the moon

The song has the chord changes that would subsequently be used at the start of ‘Grow Old With Me.’ 

From there, as Elliot Mintz, the host of TLLT explains, “Still later, after reworking the ‘Tennessee’ lyrics and putting those verses together with the ‘Howling at the Moon’ bit, John retitled it 'Memories.'” (TLLT, November 28, 1988, 47:00).

Played on piano, it is here, in this unreleased demo, that the opening chords and cadence that would ultimately be used in ‘Grow Old With Me’ can first be heard.

One version of the lyrics of ‘Memories’ reads, in part:

Memory, memory, you're meaning less to me

Watching late night movies on TV

Motionless I see them as they drift before my eyes

Crystal-clear and sparkling

Reflecting through my mind

Wondering, wondering, Is that really me?

Running ‘round in circles like a fool

Ah, with such absurdity

It's a wonder I survived

Ah, the angels have been good to me

I'm glad to be alive

Sometimes, I think the daylight

Daylight has come too soon

Hoping for something that’s better

Than howling at the moon