How Heavy is "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"?

Placed between "Something" and "Oh! Darling" on the Beatles' Abbey Road album, "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" may sound like a bright song, but it's actually rather dark in a comical way. Credited as a Lennon/McCartney collaboration, it was actually written by Paul McCartney. Recording of the song started on July 9, 1969 and it took almost one month to complete.

"Maxwell's Silver Hammer" features the fictional medicine major Maxwell Edison who goes on a killing spree for apparently no reason at all. His weapon of choice is a silver hammer, simply because McCartney felt that "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" sounded much better than "Maxwell's Hammer," and probably, "Maxwell's Silver Mallet."

To start, Maxwell calls Joan, his girlfriend, and invites her to the movies. Just before she leaves, he knocks on her door, and kills her with his silver hammer. In the next scene, Maxwell is playing the fool in class and his teacher punishes him by making him stay back in the class to write "I must not be so-o-oo..." fifty times. Suddenly, Maxwell creeps behind her and kills her with his silver hammer. Then, Maxwell is arrested. During his trial, two unidentified women, Rose and Valerie, scream for his freedom, but the judge, he disagrees. Just before he could read the sentence, Maxwell strikes again with his silver hammer, killing the judge.

When McCartney was asked about "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" in a 1994 interview, he replied that it was his "analogy for when something goes wrong out of the blue, as it so often does..." In 1980, John Lennon was unexpectedly murdered in New York. Interestingly, he was not involved in "Maxwell's Silver Hammer," ridiculing it as a classic example of Paul's "granny-style" writing.

Yet, "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" is one of the most enduring songs from that album. On another note, you can sell your silver hammer or silver items and receive instant cash for silver. Just contact a silver buyer today!