 When released in August, the song was viewed by the political left as a betrayal of their cause and a sign that the Beatles were out of step with radical elements of the counterculture.The release of "Revolution 1" in November indicated Lennon's uncertainty about destructive change, with the phrase "count me out" recorded instead as "count me out – in".Lennon was stung by the criticism he received from the New Left and subsequently espoused the need for Maoist revolution, particularly with his 1971 single "Power to the People".