Frank Zappa was never one to follow the crowd. Known for his razor-sharp wit, avant-garde compositions, and fierce independence, Zappa often took aim at the music industry’s biggest names — including The Beatles. While the Fab Four are widely celebrated for revolutionizing popular music, Zappa saw much of their work as overly commercial, even mocking their “peace and love” image with his satirical 1968 album We’re Only In It For The Money.
Yet, despite his outspoken criticism, Zappa admitted that there were a few Beatles songs he genuinely admired. In fact, there were only three: I Am the Walrus, Strawberry Fields Forever, and Paperback Writer.
Zappa’s Complicated Relationship With The Beatles
For Zappa, The Beatles’ cultural dominance represented a kind of mainstream “progress” that didn’t align with his own philosophy. He famously said:
“Everybody else thought they were God! I think that was not correct. They were just a good commercial group.”
While the world celebrated The Beatles’ artistic evolution, Zappa saw their psychedelic experiments as another form of mass-market appeal — polished and packaged for consumption. His assistant, Pauline Butcher, revealed that Zappa knew he could never compete in their lane:
“He worked out he wasn’t a pretty boy like The Beatles or The Rolling Stones. If he was going to get himself heard, he had to do something radically different.”
This meant cultivating an outrageous image — appearing in eccentric photo shoots, dressing in women’s clothes, and making provocative statements — all part of his strategy to stand apart.
The First Favorite: “I Am the Walrus”
In 1980, Zappa surprised listeners during a BBC Star Special broadcast by playing The Beatles’ psychedelic masterpiece I Am the Walrus. After the song finished, he quipped:
“Wasn’t that wonderful? … It makes you want to tighten your headband and stick a flower in the end of somebody’s gun.”
Given Zappa’s disdain for the counterculture’s drug-fueled idealism, his praise was laced with sarcasm — but it was praise nonetheless. Eight years later, Zappa even covered the song, proving his appreciation was genuine, even if begrudging.
The Psychedelic Pick: “Strawberry Fields Forever”
The second Beatles track Zappa admired was Strawberry Fields Forever, a song celebrated for its surreal lyrics, dreamlike production, and innovative use of studio technology. Producer George Martin once called it “a complete tone poem, like a modern Debussy” — a description that aligns perfectly with Zappa’s own experimental sensibilities.
Like Zappa’s compositions, Strawberry Fields Forever blurred the line between classical influence and rock music, creating an atmospheric, almost cinematic soundscape.
The Surprising Choice: “Paperback Writer”
The third song Zappa openly praised was Paperback Writer — a more straightforward, upbeat Beatles single compared to his other two favorites. Why this one? While Zappa never fully explained, it may have been the storytelling nature of the lyrics or the clever literary references that caught his attention. He even suggested that The Flying Lizards record their own version in the style of Summertime Blues — though they never did.
Zappa’s Respect Beneath the Criticism
When interviewed by author John Corcelli, Zappa summed it up plainly:
“The best Beatles songs were ‘Paperback Writer,’ ‘Strawberry Fields Forever,’ and ‘I Am the Walrus.’ I don’t like the rest too much.”
While his praise was limited, it revealed a side of Zappa that could still recognize brilliance in music he otherwise dismissed. His covers of I Am the Walrus and Strawberry Fields Forever also suggest that, beneath his sarcastic public persona, he had genuine respect for The Beatles’ creativity when it aligned with his own taste for the unconventional.
The Legacy of Zappa’s Beatles Picks
Zappa’s relationship with The Beatles remains one of paradox — equal parts critique and quiet admiration. His three chosen songs stand as a testament to his selective yet sincere appreciation for innovation in pop music.
As Zappa himself once said:
“A mind is like a parachute. It doesn’t work if it is not open.”
Perhaps, even for a man who claimed he didn’t like most of The Beatles’ work, that parachute was never fully closed.
Two days before the 88 show Poughkeepsie New York Jimmy Swarrart was on tv crying his eyes out “ I’ve have sinned” so I had to bring a blow up doll w a T-shirt that said I ❤️Jimmy Swaggart ……current events were always relevant at his live shows……good times….