What does Hey Jude mean?

Beatles: Hey Jude Meaning

Album cover for Hey Jude album cover

Song Released: 1968


Hey Jude Lyrics

Hey, Jude, don't make it bad
Take a sad song and make it better
Remember to let her into your heart
Then you can start to make it better

Hey, Jude, don't be afraid
You were made to go out and get her
The minute you let her under your...

  1. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Oct 11th 2009 !⃝

    Judas is a key slang word for heroin meaning "a friend that betrays you" Jude is short for Judas. The genius in the song in in the double meanings. Yes, cleverly written for a Lennon's son. Was Lennon betraying the group...some would say yes. Is there overtones of a double meaning...yep. Did certain Beatles experiment with drugs...duh.

  2. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 9th 2009 !⃝

    I think it is about drugs, you take a sad song(person) and make it better, what do drugs do? make you better

  3. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 11th 2009 !⃝

    ...How could Hey Jude not be about Heroin...

  4. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 26th 2009 !⃝

    IT IS ABOUT HEROIN! Ask Paul..I did

  5. sledgehammer
    click a star to vote
    Jun 18th 2009 !⃝

    Some of you guys have some pretty odd interpretations about the Beatles and some of you get so defensive. I've been listening to the beatles for about 30 years now and although Hey Jude is definately not one of my favorite tunes (it's gotta be the forever na na na thing at the end) I noticed something while I was watching a documentry on WWII. Could the title Hey Jude be a comparison of the way John Lennon was treating Julian & Cynthia to the way Hitler was treating the Jews? Jude is the German word for Jew. Let's see here; abuse, ostricize, disowned, second class. Also let us not foget that John treated Brian Epstien (who had a crush on John) deplorably, teasing and flirting with him. Personally I believe that by this time Paul and John were developing a very real hatred of one another. I would not be surprised if Paul were appalled by the way John treated Julian. I've found that most of the Beatles songs after say 66 were about a bunch of ideas sort thrown together in a colage rather than one thing or theme.

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 26th 2009 !⃝

    Paul changed the song title from Hey Jules to Hey Jude because he thought that it would be easier to sing.

  7. m320753
    click a star to vote
    May 11th 2009 !⃝

    to all the heroin believers learn to spell the word right. thesong does have a mystical meaning it to most people written as a note to john's normal son, not that half nut yoko raised. but it was written also for paul who could not stand her both in reality but also paul knew it would be the end of the beatles as a group. that little ugly devil wotshipping who poisoned john's mind and turned him against paul and to a lesser degree george and ringo it was she who supposedly sold her soul in a book on john i read a few years back. so yes it was about julian, it was about paul himself and it was about what yoko had done and was to do later

  8. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 5th 2009 !⃝

    hey this is paul. i actually wrote this song because when john was divorcing his wife for Yoko, i wrote this for his son, Julian. i wanted this song to basically say to him that he should accept Yoko into his new family and not to be afraid to do so. Also that once he does so, it might be better.

  9. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 1st 2009 !⃝

    It's easy to find meanings in this song
    "let it out and let it in"
    it could be about his penis during sex
    it could be a needle going in and out
    or it could be about Lennon's son, which seems way more plausible

  10. hyampom
    click a star to vote
    Feb 20th 2009 !⃝

    In 1969 we all pondered the meaning of those mysterious, esoteric songs. Hey Jude came up and I remember some obscure interview with Lennon and Ringo where it was said in an almost comic vein that it was a song about his penis. If you read the lyrics it actually makes sense. Maybe it has a double meaning--advice to his son and advice to his penis.

  11. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Feb 18th 2009 !⃝

    I believe that truly the song was written to John. Even though Paul said it was for Julian. I guess Paul's pride wouldn't allow him to admit that it was written to John because at the time he wrote it he was in good terms with Yoko. In the song Paul makes reference to her. Paul is saying you were made to go out and get her, her being Yoko, Jude being john going through the sadness of divorce at that time. Why would Paul sing to a 8 year old boy to go out and get her? Paul was only a simple man when it came to writing he had no hidden meanings.

  12. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 12th 2009 !⃝

    my interpretation is that it was in fact written by Sir Paul McCartney as a way to comfort Julien ( John lennon and his first wife's Cynthia's son) as his parents were going to divorce. But let me say this; one person cannot break up a band. the band must have been experiencing other problems they couldn't work out. They were more than just best friends, they were brothers in peace and love. And anyway, John Lennon obviously saw something in Yoko Ono he fell in love with. Is it so much to ask for a little understanding and compassion? She lost her husband and the father of her child (son at least). The rest lost a friend, bandmate, and brother. The world lost an amazing musician, and a voice for peace and understanding the world will miss for all time. Show some respect people.

  13. sisterpaul
    click a star to vote
    Dec 17th 2008 !⃝

    Nice interpretation fastfordfocus!!
    One of the best I've heard. The Beatles are all about real love and getting back to God in my book. Wish I would have come up with that universal message myself.

    Have you seen "Across the Universe"? Interesting enough, the main character's name is Jude, and fits in with your interpretation, as he evolves spiritually in the movie. That is just one level of many messages in this beautiful and multidimensional film.

  14. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Dec 16th 2008 !⃝

    This song is about when Paul Mcartny was raping John Lennon's son Julian.
    As you can see by the lyrics, he says "Hey Jude, don't make it bad" he means not to resist.

  15. fastfordfocus
    click a star to vote
    Dec 4th 2008 !⃝

    I'm kinda of an interpretation newbie, so bear with me.

    I don't really know anything about the Beatles and I just heard this song for the first time the other day. My girlfriend played it for me. She said that the author was on LSD when they wrote this song and after she told me that, the song really made a lot more sense. You have to think about it in that way to really get the meaning. He's obviously peaking as he rights the song (peaking is when the LSD is taking full affect and you are most connected to god and the spirit realm) This is very important to my interpretation.

    So, I think that this song is mostly about meeting god for the first time, before death. You have born into a certain form (your body) and you've spent many years coming into yourself, and getting acquainted with that aspect of your existance. But, likely, you've spent far to much energy focusing on that physical aspect of who you are and not nearly enough energy figuring WHO your mind-soul is or trying to make a connection to god, the spirit giver.
    The "Jude" he refers to is obviously god, and "her" refers to mother earth. The world, as in the line, "don't carry the world upon your shoulders" actually refers to all the people in the world.

    The ultimate message of this song is that even god gets sad and lonely sometimes. He gets sad because so many of his children are out of touch with him. He wants to have a spiritual connection with all of us, but very few of us actually pursue it in a truly honest way. He's asking god not to punish the world for not knowing him, because it isn't anybody's fault. People just don't know any better.

    This is what the song is about. Ultimately, though, it is a call to action. He is really trying to spread the message so that people understand and begin the journey. He wants us all to share a deep spiritual relationship with god.
    IT'S NOT ABOUT HEROIN!!!




More Beatles songs »


 


Latest Articles

 


Submit Your Interpretation

[ want a different song? ]




Just Posted

Rock Show anonymous
Don't Go anonymous
Tek It anonymous
Taking Over Me anonymous
All The Good Girls Go To Hell anonymous
Wingriddenangel anonymous
I Spoke to The Devil in Miami anonymous
This Woman's Work anonymous
Action! Not Words anonymous
Everybody Loves Me, Baby anonymous
Fall in to Sleep anonymous
Lemon Boy anonymous
Drama Club anonymous
Gravity anonymous
Our First Time anonymous

(We won't give out your email)