1 week Ago By Scarlett O'Toole,John O'Sullivan
Paul McCartney has shed light on the unexpected origins of the iconic Beatles track , Golden Slumbers. Featured on The Beatles' Abbey Road album, the song has been reinterpreted by various artists such as Neil Diamond and Mumford and Sons. While fans are well-acquainted with the tune from the Beatles, whose upcoming biopic has stirred major controversy, many were taken aback to learn that the lyrics were actually borrowed from a Victorian melody named Cradle Song.
In an episode of his podcast Paul McCartney: A Life In Lyrics, Paul - who wrote Let It Be after a family heartbreak - reminisced about penning the song. "That chorus that I've used as a chorus, literally, is the lyrics to an old Victorian song," he clarified. When asked if this was what's referred to as 'sampling,' Paul's response was more candid.
He simply retorted: "Well, it's called stealing." How a dad made a friend dig his own grave and kill himself after raping daughter, 6 Tommy Fleetwood's wife makes her feelings clear on 23-year age gap He attempted to rationalize the appropriation by confessing his inability to read music. "I don't read music," Paul conceded.
"I didn't know what the melody that went with this was. [I] put my own melody to it and just took these words." He further elaborated on the song in The Beatles' 1995 Anthology film.
Paul stated: "I can't read music and I couldn't remember the old tune." He added: "So I started just playing my tune to it..
. I liked the words so I kept that, and it fitted with another bit of song I had." The other piece was the popular number Carry That Weight.
The lyrics for Golden Slumbers were sourced from a song by playwright Thomas Dekker from his play Patient Grissil. The narrative revolves around a destitute woman who marries a wealthy marquess. Tragically, the narrative turns grim as the character inflicts psychological torment on her, to the extent of taking their infant from her.
The child is eventually brought back, and Grissil's father, Janiculo, tenderly hums a lullaby to soothe the baby’s cries. Indeed, Paul did borrow lines from Dekker's composition, but there are noticeable differences in the text. For instance, Dekker's original features "Golden slumbers kiss," whereas Paul modified it to read, "Golden slumbers fill.
" Furthermore, he contributed his own lines to the song, including the poignant: "Once there was a way to get back homeward/Once there was a way to get back home.".
