"Taxman" is a song by the English rock band
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
from their 1966 album ''
Revolver
A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...
''. Written by the group's lead guitarist,
George Harrison
George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...
, with some lyrical assistance from
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
, it protests against the higher level of
progressive tax
A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases.Sommerfeld, Ray M., Silvia A. Madeo, Kenneth E. Anderson, Betty R. Jackson (1992), ''Concepts of Taxation'', Dryden Press: Fort Worth, TX The term ''progre ...
imposed in the United Kingdom by the
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
government of
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...
, which saw the Beatles paying over 90 per cent of their earnings to the Treasury. The song was selected as the album's opening track and contributed to Harrison's emergence as a songwriter beside the dominant
Lennon–McCartney
Lennon–McCartney was the songwriting partnership between English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is the best-known and most successful musical collaboration ever by records sold, with the ...
partnership. It was the group's first topical song and the first political statement they had made in their music.
The Beatles began recording "Taxman" in April 1966, a month after Wilson's landslide win in the
1966 general election. Coinciding with the song's creation, Harrison learned that the band members' tax obligations were likely to lead to their bankruptcy, and he was outspoken in his opposition to the government using their income to help fund the manufacture of military weapons. Drawing on 1960s soul/R&B musical influences, the song portrays the taxman as relentless in his pursuit of revenue and name-checks Wilson and
Ted Heath
Sir Edward Richard George Heath (9 July 191617 July 2005), often known as Ted Heath, was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1974 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 to 1975. Heath a ...
, the leader of the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
. The recording includes an
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
-influenced guitar solo performed by
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
.
"Taxman" was influential in the development of British
psychedelia
Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...
and
mod
Mod, MOD or mods may refer to:
Places
* Modesto City–County Airport, Stanislaus County, California, US
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Mods (band), a Norwegian rock band
* M.O.D. (Method of Destruction), a band from New York City, US ...
-style pop, and has been recognised as a precursor to
punk rock.
The Jam
The Jam were an English mod revival/ punk rock band formed in 1972 at Sheerwater Secondary School in Woking, Surrey. They released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December 198 ...
borrowed heavily from the song for their 1980 hit single "
Start!
"Start!" is the eleventh UK single release by the band The Jam and their second number-one, following "Going Underground"/" Dreams of Children". Upon its release on 15 August 1980, it debuted at number three, and two weeks later reached number o ...
" When performing "Taxman" on tour in the early 1990s, Harrison adapted the lyrics to reference contemporaneous leaders, citing its enduring quality beyond the 1960s. The song's impact has extended to the tax industry and into political discourse on taxation.
Background and inspiration
George Harrison
George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...
wrote "Taxman" at a time when
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
discovered they were in a financially precarious position. In April 1966, a report from the London accountancy firm Bryce, Hammer, Isherwood & Co. advised them that despite the group's immense success, "Two of you are close to being bankrupt, and the other two could soon be." In his 1980 autobiography, ''
I, Me, Mine
''I, Me, Mine'' is an autobiographic memoir by the English musician George Harrison, formerly of The Beatles. It was published in 1980 as a hand-bound, limited edition book by Genesis Publications, with a mixture of printed text and multi-colour ...
'', Harrison says: Taxman' was when I first realised that even though we had started earning money, we were actually giving most of it away in taxes; it was and still is typical." As their earnings placed them in the top
tax bracket
Tax brackets are the divisions at which tax rates change in a progressive tax system (or an explicitly regressive tax system, though that is rarer). Essentially, tax brackets are the cutoff values for taxable income—income past a certain point ...
in the United Kingdom, the Beatles were liable to a 95%
supertax introduced by
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...
's
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
government; hence the lyric "There's one for you, nineteen for me".
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
helped Harrison complete the song's lyrics. Lennon recalled in 1980: "I threw in a few one-liners to help the song along, because that's what he asked for. He came to me because he couldn't go to
Paul ">cCartney because Paul wouldn't have helped him at that period." Lennon said he was reluctant to agree to Harrison's request, since it was "enough to do my own and Paul's
ongs, but he did so "because I loved him and didn't want to hurt his feelings".
Aside from the financial imposition, "Taxman" was informed by Harrison's consternation that the vast sums the Beatles paid in tax were being used to fund the manufacture of military weapons. Harrison voiced this concern in his "How a Beatle Lives" interview with
Maureen Cleave
Maureen Diana Cleave (20 October 1934 – 6 November 2021) was a British journalist. She worked for the London ''Evening Standard'' from 1958 conducting interviews with many prominent musicians of the era, including Bob Dylan and John Lennon. O ...
of the ''
Evening Standard
The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.
In October 2009, after be ...
'', in late February, in addition to railing against all forms of authority and speaking out against the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
. He likened Wilson to the
Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...
character the
Sheriff of Nottingham
The Sheriff of Nottingham is the main antagonist in the legend of Robin Hood. He is generally depicted as an unjust tyrant who mistreats the local people of Nottinghamshire, subjecting them to unaffordable taxes. Robin Hood fights against him, ...
.
The song includes references to "Mr Wilson" and "Mr Heath", the latter being
Ted Heath
Sir Edward Richard George Heath (9 July 191617 July 2005), often known as Ted Heath, was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1974 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 to 1975. Heath a ...
, the leader of the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
. In June 1965, during his first term as
prime minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, Wilson had nominated the four Beatles as
Members of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBEs). An unprecedented award for pop musicians, the MBEs recognised the group's sizeable contribution to the national economy, as their international breakthrough in 1964 created an export market for British pop for the first time. The band's international success also benefited the country's tourism and fashion industries, and entertainment generally; the surge in exports revenue extended to film and other commercial artistic pursuits, and by early 1966, recognition of London as the "
Swinging City" of international culture. According to author
Ian MacDonald
Ian MacCormick (known by the pseudonym Ian MacDonald; 3 October 1948 – 20 August 2003) was a British music critic and author, best known for both ''Revolution in the Head'', his critical history of the Beatles which borrowed techniques from a ...
in his discussion of "Taxman", the substantial tax the Beatles paid to Britain's
Treasury
A treasury is either
*A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry.
*A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or in p ...
was the "price" they paid for their MBEs.
Recording
The Beatles had hoped to record their ''
Revolver
A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...
'' album in a more modern facility than
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
's London studios at
Abbey Road
''Abbey Road'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It is the last album the group started recording, although ''Let It Be'' was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly re ...
and were especially impressed with the sound on records created at
Stax Studio in Memphis.
Brian Epstein
Brian Samuel Epstein (; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967) was a British music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967.
Epstein was born into a family of successful retailers in Liverpool, who put him i ...
, the band's manager, investigated the possibility of recording at Stax, but the idea was abandoned after locals began descending on the Stax building, as were alternative plans to use either
Atlantic Studios
Atlantic Studios was the recording studio of Atlantic Records. Although this recording studio was located at 1841 Broadway (at the corner of 60th Street), in New York City, Atlantic Recording Studios was initially located at 234 West 56th Street ...
in New York or
Motown
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
's
Hitsville USA
"Hitsville U.S.A." is the nickname given to Motown's first headquarters and recording studio. The house (formerly a photographers' studio) is located at 2648 West Grand Boulevard in Detroit, Michigan, near the New Center area. The house was purch ...
facility in Detroit. McCartney later said that only "Taxman" and his own
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
-inspired "
Got to Get You into My Life
"Got to Get You into My Life" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, first released in 1966 on their album ''Revolver''. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is a homage to the Motown Sound, wit ...
" might have sounded better recorded in an American studio, but otherwise, the Beatles "found a new British sound almost by accident" on ''Revolver''.
The Beatles began recording "Taxman" on 20 April, but the results were left unused. Ten new takes were taped on 21 April, the four tracks being filled with
Ringo Starr
Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...
's drums and McCartney's bass and Harrison's distorted rhythm guitar, followed by overdubs of McCartney's lead guitar, Harrison's lead vocal, and Lennon and McCartney's backing vocals. Beatles biographer Robert Rodriguez writes that although EMI engineer
Geoff Emerick
Geoffrey Ernest Emerick (5 December 1945 – 2 October 2018) was an English sound engineer and record producer who worked with the Beatles on their albums '' Revolver'' (1966), '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (1967) and ''Abbey Road ...
provided a withering account of Harrison's initial efforts to work out a solo, this was more reflective of Emerick's personality and is not borne out in McCartney and Harrison's recollections. McCartney said that he was discussing his idea for the solo with Harrison, and Harrison invited him to play it on the recording. Harrison said he was happy to have the song recorded for ''Revolver'' and was not fussed about who played the guitar solo. He added: "I was pleased to have him play that bit on 'Taxman'. If you notice, he did like a little Indian bit on it for me."
The chanted names of Wilson and Heath replaced two rapidly sung refrains of "Anybody got a bit of money?" heard in take 11 of the song. The intro – a spoken "One, two, three, four" – was added during an overdubbing and mixing session on 16 May. The song's ending was created on 21 June. This consisted of the section containing the guitar solo being spliced onto the end of the recording, replacing a formal ending after Harrison's final vocal line, and continuing into a fadeout.
Composition
![Harold Wilson](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Harold_Wilson.jpg)
The song is in the key of D major and in 4/4 time.
The recording begins before the actual song with coughing and counting (pointedly cut short, as the real count being heard in the background).
The counting is delivered by Harrison in a "grim, miserly voice", according to Beatles biographer Jonathan Gould, and contrasts with a traditional count-in before a live performance. Gould sees "subtle self-mockery" in this gesture, since it reflects how in the space of three years, the Beatles' focus had moved "from the dance floor to the
counting house
A counting house, or counting room, was traditionally an office in which the financial books of a business were kept. It was also the place that the business received appointments and correspondence relating to demands for payment.
As the use of ...
". Author
Steve Turner describes "Taxman" as a "smart little
pop art song" due to the references to Wilson and Heath and its drawing musical inspiration from
Neil Hefti
Neal Paul Hefti (October 29, 1922 – October 11, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger. He wrote music for '' The Odd Couple'' movie and TV series and for the '' Batman'' TV series.
He began arranging professionally in ...
's "
Batman Theme
"Batman Theme", the title song of the 1966 ''Batman (TV series), Batman'' TV series, was composed by Neal Hefti. This song is built around a guitar hook reminiscent of spy film scores and surf music. It has a twelve bar blues progression, using ...
", from the 1966 television series ''
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
''.
The chords stress the flat VII scale degree (C-natural in the key of D major) and frequently involve a major/minor I chord (D/Dm) in the harmony, which consequently evokes either
Mixolydian
Mixolydian mode may refer to one of three things: the name applied to one of the ancient Greek ''harmoniai'' or ''tonoi'', based on a particular octave species or scale; one of the medieval church modes; or a modern musical mode or diatonic scal ...
or
Dorian modes. There is one flat-III (F chord) near the end, but unusually no V (A) chord.
According to musicologist Dominic Pedler, the composition is also notable for its use of both a 5th-string
voicing of the
dominant seventh sharp ninth chord
In music, the dominant 79 chord ("dominant seven sharp nine" or "dominant seven sharp ninth") is a chord built by combining a dominant seventh, which includes a major third above the root, with an augmented second, which is the enharmonic, same ...
to embellish the tonic D7 chord at the end of each two-line verse (at 0:12 and 0:19 secs), and a 6th-string form to create a complementary "jarring dissonance" with the lyrics in the subdominant (IV) G chord (to a G79) at 1:29 (after the solo) on "'Cause I'm the taxman, yeah – I'm ''the taxman''". Gould sees the band's exclamation of the word "Taxman!" before the solo as accentuating the comic comparison between the tax collector as a "civil servant superhero" and the
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
character
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
.
McCartney's bass line has been considered to imitate
Motown
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
bassist
James Jamerson
James Lee Jamerson (January 29, 1936 – August 2, 1983) was an American bass player. He was the uncredited bassist on most of the Motown Records hits in the 1960s and early 1970s (Motown did not list session musician credits on their releases u ...
in its active lines and glissandi (at 0:55–1:08). In the third verse McCartney doubles his own pentatonic bass line while outlining the jarring Iflat7 chord in octaves (at 1:32–1:44).
''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' has described the completed track as "skeleton
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...
– Harrison's choppy fuzz-toned guitar chords moving against an R&B dance beat", with McCartney contributing a "screeching-raga guitar solo".
The solo uses what musicologist
Alan Pollack describes as "fast triplets, exotic modal touches, and a melodic shape which traverses several octaves and ends with a breathtaking upward flourish".
Walter Everett considers that the solo is in the same
Dorian mode
Dorian mode or Doric mode can refer to three very different but interrelated subjects: one of the Ancient Greek ''harmoniai'' (characteristic melodic behaviour, or the scale structure associated with it); one of the medieval musical modes; or—mos ...
that Harrison had recently adapted for his
sitar
The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form in ...
part in "
Love You To
"Love You To" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album '' Revolver''. The song was written and sung by George Harrison and features Indian instrumentation such as sitar and tabla. Following Harrison's introduction ...
".
MacDonald writes that "Taxman" suggests the rhythmic influence of contemporaneous hit singles by
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...
,
Lee Dorsey
Irving Lee Dorsey (December 24, 1924 – December 1, 1986) was an American pop and R&B singer during the 1960s. His biggest hits were "Ya Ya" (1961) and " Working in the Coal Mine" (1966). Much of his work was produced by Allen Toussaint, with ...
and
the Spencer Davis Group
The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numbe ...
, while music journalist
Rob Chapman views Harrison's guitar riff as similarly American R&B-derived, citing also the Stax Records band
Booker T. & the M.G.'s. According to MacDonald, McCartney's solo "goes far beyond anything in the Indian style Harrison had done on guitar, the probable inspiration being
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...
's ground-breaking solo on the
Yardbirds' '
Shapes of Things
"Shapes of Things" is a song by the English rock group the Yardbirds. With its Eastern-sounding, feedback-laden guitar solo and anti-war/pro-environmental lyrics, several music writers have identified it as the first popular psychedelic rock ...
'". McCartney recalled that he approached the part wanting to add something "feedback-y and crazy" and likened its style and attitude to early-period
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
.
Release
EMI's
Parlophone
Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...
label released ''Revolver'' on 5 August 1966, with "Taxman" sequenced as the opening track, before "
Eleanor Rigby
"Eleanor Rigby" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album ''Revolver''. It was also issued on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine". The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to L ...
". According to Beatles biographer
Nicholas Schaffner
Nicholas Schaffner (January 28, 1953 – August 28, 1991) was an American non-fiction author, journalist, and singer-songwriter.
Biography
Schaffner was born in Manhattan to John V. Schaffner (1913–1983), a literary agent whose clients includ ...
, having an unprecedented three compositions on a Beatles album – "Taxman", the fully Indian-styled "Love You To", and "
I Want to Tell You" – established Harrison as a third "prolific" songwriter within the band. Music critic
Tim Riley states that in Harrison's off-tempo delivery and sneer, the spoken count-in on "Taxman" announced the "new studio aesthetic of ''Revolver''". He views this as a contrast with the shouted "One, two, three, four!" that introduced the band's "live sound" on "
I Saw Her Standing There
"I Saw Her Standing There" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. It is the opening track on the band's 1963 debut UK album ''Please Please Me'' and their debut US album '' Introducing... The B ...
" in 1963, at the start of their debut album, ''
Please Please Me
''Please Please Me'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom, following the success of the band's first two s ...
''.
"Taxman" was the Beatles' first topical song and the first political statement they had made in their music.
Music historian David Simonelli, in his book ''Working Class Heroes'', groups it with "Eleanor Rigby" and the band's May 1966 single tracks "
Paperback Writer
"Paperback Writer" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. Written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership, the song was released as the A-side of their eleventh single in May 1966. It topped sing ...
" and "
Rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...
" as examples of the Beatles' "pointed
social commentary
Social commentary is the act of using rhetorical means to provide commentary on social, cultural, political, or economic issues in a society. This is often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change by informing the general populace ab ...
" that consolidated their "dominance of London's social scene". He likens this aspect to
the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
' development at this time, whereby a group's songs "had to comment on the values that marked affluence in Britain". In a 1968 interview, Lennon referenced "Taxman" as part of the Beatles' anti-authoritarian outlook; he said it was an "anti-establishment tax song" and that the band still protested against having to pay the government unless it was for a "communal or Communist or real Christian society". He was taken aback when the Dutch interviewer, Abram de Swaan, criticised the song's message and insisted that taxes should be high to benefit the whole of society.
The omission of "Taxman", along with any other Harrison-written track, was one of the main complaints that fans levelled against the Beatles' 1973 double LP ''
1962–1966'', released three years after the group's break-up. In 1976, following the expiration of the band's contract with EMI/Capitol, "Taxman" was included on Capitol's themed Beatles compilation ''
Rock 'n' Roll Music''. Later that year, Capitol – ignoring Harrison's wishes that none of his Beatles-era songs appear – also included it on ''
The Best of George Harrison
''The Best of George Harrison'' is a 1976 compilation album by English musician George Harrison, released following the expiration of his EMI-affiliated Apple Records contract. Uniquely among all of the four Beatles' solo releases, apart from p ...
''.
When Harrison published his autobiography in 1980, Lennon was deeply hurt by the minimal coverage afforded him in the book. Responding to this in a 1987 interview, Harrison said: "He was annoyed 'cos I didn't say he'd written one line of the song 'Taxman'. But I also didn't say how I wrote two lines of '
Come Together
"Come Together" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on their 1969 album ''Abbey Road'' and was also released as a single coupled with "Somethin ...
' or three lines of 'Eleanor Rigby', you know – I wasn't getting into any of that."
Critical reception
Writing in ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'',
Richard Goldstein described ''Revolver'' as "revolutionary" and the Beatles' "great leap forward", and highlighted "Taxman" as "the album's example of political cheek, in which George enumerates Britain's current economic woes". He added that by naming both Wilson and Heath as "the villains", the Beatles "lay it right on the non-partisan line". In their joint album review in ''
Record Mirror
''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper between 1954 and 1991 for pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after the ''NME'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK album chart was published in ''Re ...
'', Richard Green characterised the track as "Big beat rock 'n' roll", adding, "I liked it. Good idea", while
Peter Jones found it "
bit repetitive" but "Loved the wild, strident guitar mid-way". ''
KRLA Beat
''KRLA Beat'' was an American rock music magazine that operated between 1964 and 1968. It began in October 1964 as a free newsletter distributed by the Southern Californian radio station KRLA, before being reworked as a more reportage-focused titl ...
''s reviewer said it was "One of the best and most commercial George Harrison compositions for some time", adding: "It is also one of the best, most concise satirical comments on British society and the current tax situation (not to mention our own!) to come along from ''anyone'' for some time."
Paul Williams of ''
Crawdaddy!
''Crawdaddy'' was an American rock music magazine launched in 1966. It was created by Paul Williams, a Swarthmore College student at the time, in response to the increasing sophistication and cultural influence of popular music. The magazine ...
'' found it succeeded as a humorous song unlike "
Yellow Submarine" but that the Indian-style instrumental break was "out of place" unlike on "Love You To". He said that lines such as "Ha-ha, Mr Wilson" were "delightful" and dubbed the song "Batman goes protest".
Ian MacDonald writes that, while Harrison was "rightly praised" for his composition, "Taxman" benefited from the whole group's creativity. He highlights McCartney's bass part as "remarkable" and his guitar solo as "outstanding".
Alex Petridis of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' considers it "faintly mind-boggling" that the Beatles departed from their usual approach to album tracks by issuing "Yellow Submarine" as a single from ''Revolver'', saying that "Taxman" was one of the songs that would have been more worthy.
"Taxman" was ranked 48th in ''
Mojo
Mojo may refer to:
* Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* ' ...
''s list of "The 101 Greatest Beatles Songs", compiled in 2006 by a panel of critics and musicians.
In his commentary for the magazine, singer
Joe Brown cited the track as a "brilliant example" of how, just as Harrison's guitar playing was often crucial in Lennon and McCartney's compositions, he was never selfish in his musicianship but was instead motivated to "get the best for the song" each time. Brown added: "everyone
schipping in with guitar parts and harmonies... There's no fat at all on it. And,
t'svery funny."
On a similar list compiled by ''Rolling Stone'' in 2010, the song appeared at number 55, where the editors described it as "a crucial link between the guitar-driven clang of the Beatles' 1963–65 sound and the emerging splendor of the group's experiments in psychedelia".
In 2018, the music staff of ''
Time Out London
''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide.
In 2012, the London edition becam ...
'' ranked "Taxman" at number seven on their list of the best Beatles songs.
In 2015, the editors of ''
Guitar World
''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists – and fans of guitar-based music and trends – that has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original art ...
'' ranked "Taxman" at number three in their list of "The Beatles' 50 Greatest Guitar Moments". They praised the solo as "a stunningly sophisticated creation, drawn from an Indian-derived Dorian mode and featuring descending pull-offs that recall Jeff Beck's work on the Yardbirds' 'Shapes of Things'" and said that while McCartney had played lead guitar on some previous Beatles tracks, "Taxman" was when he "
ame #REDIRECT AME #REDIRECT AME
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{{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from ambiguous page ...
into his own as a guitarist". In 2001, when
chose ''Revolver'' as its all-time greatest rock 'n' roll album, "Taxman" was among the four tracks, along with "Eleanor Rigby", "
to support the contention that "If pop music were destroyed tomorrow, we could re-create it from this album alone."
In his book ''Psychedelia and Other Colours'', Rob Chapman highlights "Taxman" as an example of the Beatles' widespread influence on rock music's developments during the 1960s. He says that Harrison's guitar riff "runs like an unbroken thread through the development of English psychedelia" and is also present "as a trace element in many a
-pop mutation". Writing in ''
recognised his incorporation of dissonance in the melody to "Taxman" and "I Want to Tell You" as having been "revolutionary in popular music" in 1966. Gilmore considered this quality to be "perhaps more originally creative" than the
and brought to the Beatles' work over the same period. ''Revolver'' has been recognised as having inspired new subgenres of music, anticipating
stated that he would be using a tape of "Taxman" in his campaign rallies. This was in response to his Democratic opponent,
, adopting a personal anecdote from his past as a student in England, detailing how he defended Starr in a Liverpool pub brawl, as part of his campaign rhetoric. In early 2002, according to musicologist Russell Reising, "one of the largest
preparation companies in the United States" used a version of "Taxman" in their television commercials. In 2006,
introduced an amendment to make "Taxman" the state song of Virginia, stating that taxes were an important part of Virginia history. He gave the example of
's strong opposition to British taxation during the American Revolution. The measure did not pass.
''
'' reporter Aamna Mohdin describes "Taxman" as "the mother of all tax protest songs" amid a wealth of creative works that convey "the misery of taxes".
'' stated that the Beatles' legacy endures in the "world of tax" through the song, which had become the "karaoke favourite" of
, and through "the 'Beatles clause' – a targeted anti-avoidance rule aimed at preventing entertainers from converting highly taxed income to lower-tax capital receipts". While debating the merits of reintroducing supertax in the UK, the writers warned against a return to the level imposed by Wilson, which they said, in support of Harrison's contention, "wasn't a fair
system. It was outright theft." Cultural commentator Christopher Bray finds "Taxman" highly amusing and describes Harrison as "one of the Sixties' greatest poets of sybaritic hedonism". However, he cites the song, along with
", as reflective of how the generation that had benefited from the implementation of postwar
in Britain were too quick to take them for granted by 1965, an approach he sees as enabling
's "neo-liberal revolution" of the 1980s.
The Beatles chose not to perform any of the songs from ''Revolver'' in concert, and Harrison first played "Taxman" live on his 1991 Japanese tour with
. He took to introducing it as "a very old song written in 1873". In other comments at that time, he said its message was relevant "regardless if it's the Sixties, Seventies, Eighties,
Nineties", since "There's always a taxman." Harrison changed much of the lyric, updating the politicians to
, and including a new bridge that ended with the lines "If you wipe your feet, I'll tax the mat / If you're overweight, I'll tax your fat."
fully explored the song's soul traits. Writing for
in his selection of "bizarre Beatles covers". Recorded in 1992 at the
nightclub in New York, the five-minute track contains "fiery" improvisation, according to Ingham, who deems it a "witty, intense, unsettling" interpretation.
in November 2002. On the 2003 ''
, is an homage to the Beatles' song, dealing in similar lyrical themes.
" BBC music critic Chris Jones describes it as "'Taxman' in all but name, but done so wonderfully as to negate any gripes".
of ''Rolling Stone'' similarly writes that the Jam "hijacked" the original recording's key "eccentric force ... in Harrison's hydraulic-R&B rhythm guitar", but did so "with love".
game's popularity. Titled "Pac-Man", it was first released on the 2017 compilation ''
''.
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