John Lennon explained why “Revolution 9” was not a B-side for The Beatles. Instead, a different song addressing the same theme was released as a B-side. John Lennon desired that The Beatles’ “Revolution 9” be released as a B-side. The other Fab Four members had a different take on the song. As a result, The Beatles’ next B-side was not “Revolution 9,” but rather another song about the same issue. Why did The Beatles’ ‘Revolution’ instead of ‘Revolution 9’ become a B-side? An interview from 1969 is included in the book Lennon on Lennon: Conversations With John Lennon. During the conversation, John talked about his plans for “Revolution 9.” “See, while all The Beatles were on vacation, we’d started doing ‘Revolution [1]’ — the song ‘Revolution [1]’ that’s on the album, and I wanted to put that out, along with ‘Revolution 9’ as the B-side,” he explained. “It was just, literally, the others wouldn’t let me.” Instead, “Hey Jude” was released as the band’s second single. “Hey Jude” is considerably more commercial. “Revolution,” not “Revolution 9,” was the song’s B-side. John stated that he was most interested in releasing “Revolution” because of its nonviolent message.
John Lennon was concerned that he could have pressured the other members of the band to finish ‘Revolution 9′. John discussed the different tastes of The Beatles. “You see, because we’re all different, we all have different concepts of how far you go,” he said. “I say, ‘Go as far as you can.’ I don’t know what the others say. I can’t quote for the others, but we don’t all think the same. “That’s why we make individual music,” he added. “See, like on The Beatles double album, ‘Revolution 9’ is the track I’m interested in. I had to impose that on them, really.” John went on to describe how he “imposed” “Revolution 9” on his bandmates. “I was just putting it together, and George and Ringo were nipping about, getting tapes and cutting them and all that, and we’re just doing it,” he recounted. “I just had the feeling… Perhaps it was my paranoia. I really felt like I pushed it on them, on the Beatles’ product.”
How ‘Revolution 9′ by The Beatles fared in the United States and the United Kingdom. Because it was not a single or a B-side, The Beatles’ “Revolution 9” did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The White Album, its predecessor, topped the Billboard 200 for nine of its 215 weeks on the list. “Revolution 9” was also not a hit in the United Kingdom, according to The Official Charts Company. The White Album, on the other hand, debuted at No. 1 in the United Kingdom and remained there for 37 weeks. The White Album peaked at No. 18 and was on the charts for two weeks in 1987. “Revolution 9” is a classic avant-garde track, albeit receiving less attention than John would have desired.
