Not now John

what is Not Now John about? I lisin to it and what dose it have to do with John mosly its about f--king every thing.

dont worry, youll understand in a couple of years, son

"John" is a reference to England itself (John Bull, the Brit equivilant of USA's Uncle Sam) and Roger is lamenting that having been victorious in WWII, England almost went bankrupt, and where they once were a world industrial giant, they were now foundering and being overtaken by competition from around the world. (wily Japanese, Vietnamese, Russian Bear. Swedes). So, in a nutshell, Rog is essentially telling England to quit whining and get back to work to restore itself to it's rightful place as a giant in the world economy.

At least that's my take.

That's a pretty damn accurate take.

wow, i had no idea. i can feel my mind expanding... need more pink floyd info. now that i think about it, i had never even really thought about the meaning of that song

too bad nobody told HIM to stop whining

It's also lampooning the attitudes of those who are complacent about the seemingly unstoppable machine of industrial consumption. Right before Roger played the song on his Radio KAOS tour, Billy showed a short news report about how the rainforest was being cut down to provide grain for beef cattle ("too many home fires burning, and not enough trees"). So it's heavily ironic in a way, especially the lines pertaining to the entertainment business ("who cares what it's about, as long as the kids go"). Even more so considering what immediately follows this song in the album's story: global nuclear annihilation.

There is also a punch or two about Rog in there (I believe).

'Not Now John' is a nice change from the rest of the album -- it was totally unexpected -- I mean, you go from 'The Final Cut' - which is depressing and just as sad as anything Floyd has previously recorded, and then, BAM! 'Not Now John' comes blasting in - it hits you at full force.

Absolutely incredible.

That was Roger's attempt to have a radio-friendly single, à la Another Brick, you know.

It doesn't sound like a song that would be put on the radio -- but out of the rest of the album, maybe it would be the best choice. Although 'Two Suns' would be a nice, laid-back radio tune.

Speaking of the radio, I heard 'Sheep' the other day! F@ck?ng Sheep, man! I couldnt believe it.

I think Roger obviously wanted "Not Now John" on the radio or he wouldn't have bothered with the edited version that replaces the F word.

By the way Steechy, "too bad nobody told HIM to stop whining"--very accurate, funny.

But he didn't bother with the edited version... only Dave worked on that, you can hear his voice over top of Roger's.

*Sigh* I can always depend on Botley with his pointless nitpicking. Okay:
But he didn't bother with the edited version... only Dave worked on that, you can hear his voice over top of Roger's.
I know this, Botley. But hm, well let's see why would that be, Botley?...um....maybe it's because DAVE SANG MOST OF THE SONG IN THE FIRST PLACE?! And do you honestly think they would work *together* on an edited version?
So, again, yes I think Roger wanted it on the radio or else wouldn't have *let Dave record the edit* (I'll change it for you Bot man); if Roger didn't want it on the radio he would have NEVER let Dave go ahead with the edited version, consolidating his "artisitic vision" and all that other crap. Roger was in charge then, now wasn't he?

By the way, I think any country that goes into bankruptcy stopping NAZIS has the right whine and moan about it.

Speaking of which, why didn't Roger just go ahead and sing all of the song instead of letting (or telling) Dave sing lead on the first couple verses? If my ears don't deceive me, that's Dave's only notable vocal work on the whole TFC album.