The Beatles’ legacy is built on tireless work and hundreds of compositions, created in less than a decade. Their pursuit of musical greatness produced more hits than misses, but even the legendary John Lennon wasn’t immune to self-criticism, especially when reflecting on his earlier work.
It’s natural for artists to become dissatisfied with their creations once released into the world. Once a song leaves the artist’s hands, it’s up to the public to decide its fate. However, it’s rare for an artist to openly turn against their own work. Lennon, however, was brutally honest, and several of his compositions became targets of his dissatisfaction, with one song standing out as particularly regrettable: “It’s Only Love.”
Despite changing the face of music and shaping an entire generation, not every Beatles song was a source of pride for Lennon. Their transformation from early pop sensations to pioneers of psychedelic rock redefined contemporary music, and Lennon’s contributions cemented him as a rock god. But even gods have their doubts.
Lennon’s self-critical nature led him to boldly claim that every song could be improved. “I feel I could make every fucking one of them better,” he once admitted during an infamous 1980 interview with David Sheff.
In that same conversation, Lennon didn’t hold back. He openly expressed his regrets about his career, particularly about the songs he’d grown to dislike from both The Beatles and his solo work.
By 1980, Lennon had evolved—he was a married father who no longer identified with the younger version of himself who had penned some of these tracks.
During The Beatles’ intense seven-year run, they recorded over 300 songs. Not every track could be a masterpiece, and Lennon was especially hard on himself. He was notorious for criticizing Paul McCartney’s more lighthearted songs, dismissing some as “granny shit,” but his harshest critiques were often reserved for his own work. A standout among his least favorite tracks was the 1965 song “It’s Only Love,” from Help!, which he later conveyed his profound displeasure with.
While “It’s Only Love” has never been considered a standout Beatles track, few would place it among their all-time favorites. It’s often viewed as filler, a song included on the album to meet deadlines rather than for its artistic merit. Looking back, Lennon despised it from the start.
“It’s the most embarrassing song I ever wrote. Everything rhymed. Disgusting lyrics. Even then, I was so ashamed of the lyrics, I could hardly sing them,” he told British journalist Ray Connelly.
In another interview with Hit Parader, Lennon’s feelings were even more blunt: “That’s the one song I really hate of mine. Terrible lyric.”
The lyrics to “It’s Only Love” certainly didn’t match the emotional depth Lennon later became known for: “It’s only love, and that is all, Why should I feel the way I do? It’s only love, and that is all, But it’s so hard loving you.” Bland and uninspired, even for the time, Lennon’s disdain for the song didn’t soften over the years. By 1980, he was still calling it “lousy” and its lyrics “abysmal” in his conversation with Sheff.
On the other hand, Paul McCartney had a more relaxed attitude towards the song. While it wasn’t one of his favorites, he didn’t share Lennon’s harsh regret.
Reflecting on the track, McCartney told Barry Miles, “Sometimes we didn’t fight it if the lyric came out rather bland on some of those filler songs like ‘It’s Only Love.’ If a lyric was really bad we’d edit it, but we weren’t that fussy about it, because it’s only a rock ‘n’ roll song. I mean, this is not literature.”
McCartney’s pragmatic approach contrasted with Lennon’s perfectionism. To McCartney, rock ‘n’ roll wasn’t life or death—it was about creating songs, even if some didn’t hit the mark. While “It’s Only Love” might not have been a highlight, it was just a filler track, never meant to represent The Beatles at their best.
Though “It’s Only Love” hasn’t made it onto any of The Beatles’ major compilations, its place in their discography is ultimately minor. It stands as a reminder that even legendary bands produce forgettable tracks, and even legends like Lennon can be their own harshest critics.
