I have been listening to The Beatles since 2000, when the '1' album was released - a collection of the group's number one hits from 1962 to 1970. Naturally, my discovery of the Beatles led to me listening to the member's solo works. 

John Lennon's work instantly impacted me and the way I feel about music. I connected to his songs in a way I had never associated with the arts before. I related to his words and the stories behind the music, feeling as though some songs were written about my own experiences and feelings. Lennon's style of writing was often autobiographical, whereby he used his art to express his emotions - good or bad. I adopted this style of writing very early on - I respected Lennon for it and I soon learnt that it allowed me to express myself - by writing from the heart. 

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One of the examples of my adoption of this process is 'Something That We Used To Be', which I composed in 2015. I took heed of Lennon's way in which he would style his wording in a manner that whereby a word or phrase would then be flipped - an 'up' would become a 'down', a 'left' would become a 'right', and so forth. This is one of my personal favourites amongst my song collection, created when I felt unsure which way was up. 

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We were blue when the skies were grey

We were summer when the winter came

We were up when we both fell down

It was something that we used to be

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We were two when we felt as one

We were warmth when the cold had gone

We were smiles when the World just cried

It was something that we used to be

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So while I sit around and I try to forget all the things that we used to say

Basking in my own self-pity when I know it will be okay

I close my eyes and all I see is a World and it don't need me

When you're left with nothing and you don't come running - it was something that we used to be

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We were love when all we knew was hate

We were open when they closed the gate

We were light when everything was dark

It was something that we used to be

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We were hope when everything was lost

We were there when all the lines were crossed

We were pain when all the hurt went away

It was something that we used to be

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(C) Adrian Young (2015)

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