What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Marian Faithfull was reportedly bisexual– Jagger’s bird was a swinger.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Though the Stones and the Beatles were friends, there was a constant rivalry between then and Lennon often felt that the Beatles were always creatively ahead of the Stones.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

The word “Bird” is British slang for “girl,” most likely referencing Mick Jagger’s girlfriend, Marianne Faithfull, who made it big with a cover of a Stones' song, “As Tears Go By.”

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Although John Lennon never said what inspired “And Your Bird Can Sing,” it is widely believed to be about the rivalry between the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. The “bird” referenced is thought to be Marianne Faithfull, Mick Jagger’s girlfriend.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

A reference to Huey’s Pop It, Lock It, Drop It

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

The Power of Myth is a book and six-part PBS documentary series focusing on the work of mythologist Joseph Campbell. In the book and series, Campbell discusses the universality of certain myths and their place in the modern world.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

A reference to Jiminy Cricket, the character who acts as Pinocchio’s conscience in the Disney film “Pinocchio).” Unlike Jiminy, however, the speaker’s own conscience is not nearly as dedicated to keeping him in line, choosing instead to “look the other way.”

Have you ever tried to approach a cricket that’s making noise? As soon as they sense you coming they quiet down as if they just vanish when you turn your attention towards them; otherwise they sing the night away.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

Potentially a reference to the song “Middleman” which appears later on the album.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

The first day of May is also known as May Day, a phrase that is also used as an international distress signal (derived from the French phrase m'aider meaning “help me”).

This line may also be referencing three other things.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maypole A mysterious pagan ceremony that is thought to have sexual implications.
And the superhuman race of the Tuatha De Danann in Ireland were established and wiped out both on may 1st hundreds of years apart.
http://www.slideshare.net/kodyt/the-tuatha-de-danann
The band Mayday

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.

What is this?

The Genius annotation is the work of the Genius Editorial project. Our editors and contributors collaborate to create the most interesting and informative explanation of any line of text. It’s also a work in progress, so leave a suggestion if this or any annotation is missing something.

To learn more about participating in the Genius Editorial project, check out the contributor guidelines.

Loading...

A reference to the New Age “spiritual vortices” that are said to exist in Sedona, Arizona, where visitors may feel a sudden burst of beneficial energy.

This video is processing – it'll appear automatically when it's done.