Rocky Raccoon (The Beatles)

• 18 Aug 14:33
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"Rocky Raccoon" is a 1968 folk rock song by The Beatles from the double-disc album The Beatles (also known as The White Album). The song was primarily written by Paul McCartney, who was inspired while playing guitar with John Lennon and Donovan in India (where The Beatles had gone on a retreat).

The song, titled from the character's name, was originally "Rocky Sassoon", but McCartney changed it to Rocky Raccoon because he thought "it sounded more like a cowboy." Former 13th Floor Elevators' drummer Danny Thomas claims the name Rocky was inspired by Roky Erickson, the American rock band's then vocalist and guitarist. The Old West-style honky-tonk piano was played by producer George Martin. The lyrics describe a conflict over a love triangle.

During Take 8 of the song (featured on Anthology 3), Paul McCartney flubbed the line "stinking of gin," singing "sminking" instead. This caused him to laugh, exclaim "Sminking?!?", and make up the remaining lines in the song. In this take, McCartney sings that Rocky is from "a small town in Minnesota," rather than the album version's "black mountain hills of Dakota".

In Mojo magazine in October, 2008, McCartney acknowledged that the style of the...

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