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“Jealous Guy” – John Lennon
(Words/music: John Lennon, available on Imagine, Apple Records / EMI 1971)

Like many other great artists, John Lennon took moments that others might call mundane and coaxed out the inner beauty.  While “Jealous Guy” might feel a little over-sentimentalized (mainly because of those syrupy sweet strings in the background), his narrator hits the right emotional notes.  Specifically, the narrator hones in on the insecurity behind jealousy.  No matter how we dress it up, jealousy comes back to this deep-rooted feeling that we aren’t good enough (or, perhaps, that someone else is better).  Rather than fall into a cycle of anger that jealousy often starts, Lennon’s narrator opens himself up to his vulnerability by owning his jealous behavior and admitting to his flaws.  It’s this disarming sweetness that makes him human, and it makes the claim that a hurtful result could come from a place of love a little more believable.  After all, we’re all imperfect, and while good intentions alone won’t yield results, hiding from one’s failings won’t lead to growth either.

Today, six years after Elliott Smith died, I’m thinking not only about his songs but about “Jealous Guy” too.  While many might link the two songwriters together based on their premature deaths, I think of the types of characters both men created.  Both wrote songs about imperfect people who strove to be better, and while many focused on these characters’ flaws and thought of the songs as depressing, it’s an incomplete part of the picture.  Often, both Lennon and Smith balanced the low points with a pervading sweetness and often a sense of hope.  “Jealous Guy,” which Smith playfully covered on several occasions, acknowledges the narrator’s failure yet doesn’t mire itself in pity.  Instead, it’s a plea to remedy the situation and move forward – and hearing Smith’s voice rise as he sings these lines (and laugh as he invites the crowd to whistle along with him) underscores the hope that next time the narrator won’t make the same mistake.

More on John Lennon: Allmusic | Amazon MP3 | Emusic | Last.fm