Bryan Ferry: how Jealous Guy became a Roxy Music classic

The song became so big for Roxy Music that some fans think it is a Roxy Music song. 

The lyrics explain themselves clearly: I was a very jealous, possessive guy. Toward everything. A very insecure male. (John Lennon 1980)

Bryan Ferry said, "Our version caught the public's imagination. It was a big record in Europe for us. It has become a standard for me and Roxy Music." (source noise11)

“It was such a big record for us. It was a proper tribute record,” Bryan Ferry tells Noise11.com.

Roxy Music added the song to their European setlist in December 1980 as a tribute to John Lennon, who was murdered in New York on 8 December 1980. “We were due to play a show in Germany at a big arena,’ Bryan said. “We thought we should do something special because we were all John Lennon fans. His version is beautiful, very poignant. Donny Hathaway also did a very good version”.

“Our version caught the public’s imagination. It was a big record in Europe for us. It has become a standard for me and Roxy Music,” Bryan said.

The song was originally Child Of Nature, which Lennon taped a demo of at George Harrison's Esher bungalow before the recording sessions for the White Album.

John Lennon about the song: "My song, melody written in India. The lyrics explain themselves clearly: I was a very jealous, possessive guy. Toward everything. A very insecure male. A guy who wants to put his woman in a little box, lock her up, and just bring her out when he feels like playing with her. She's not allowed to communicate with the outside world – outside of me – because it makes me feel insecure.
John Lennon, 1980

All We Are Saying, David Sheff
The original lyrics were inspired by a lecture given by Maharishi about a "son of the mother nature", which also influenced Paul McCartney's song Mother Nature's Son. The similarity meant Child Of Nature was never seriously attempted by The Beatles, although it was performed during the Let It Be sessions in January 1969.

[Mother Nature's Son] was from a lecture of Maharishi where he was talking about nature, and I had a piece called I'm Just A Child Of Nature, which turned into Jealous Guy years later. Both inspired from the same lecture of Maharishi.
John Lennon, 1980