Classical music is not everyone’s cup of tea – some even dismiss it as boring and outdated – but its ties to modern music are closer than many people would initially believe. Some modern musicians even drew direct inspiration from the likes of Beethoven, Mozart, and Bach while writing their most iconic songs. In this article, we will uncover 10 popular songs that were inspired by classical music.
1. Procol Harum – A Whiter Shade Of Pale
Songwriter Gary Brooker loosely based Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade of Pale” on Bach’s “Air on a G String”. According to himself, he played the first two bars of the classical piece, forgot where it went, and carried on in his own way. Still, “Air on a G String’s” influence on the song is clearly noticeable.
Read more: The Story Behind βA Whiter Shade of Paleβ by Procol Harum
2. The Beatles – Blackbird
Paul McCartney and George Harrison learned “Bach’s BourrΓ©e in E minor” as kids to show they had more ‘in them’ as musicians than just three chords. A segment of the BourrΓ©e – which was actually wrong according to McCartney – became the basis of “Blackbird”. McCartney may have been wrong about the piece though, because “Etude, Op. 60, No. 19” by Fernando Sor sounds a lot more similar to “Blackbird” than “BourrΓ©e in E minor”.
3. Elvis Presley – Can’t Help Falling In Love
Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love” was written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss for the 1961 movie Blue Hawaii. For the song, they borrowed the melody of the 18th-century French love song “Plaisir d’amour” by Jean-Paul-Γgide Martini. Presley’s version is more hopeful than the original, which opens with the lines ‘The pleasure of love lasts only a moment/The grief of love lasts a lifetime.’
Read more: The Story Behind βCanβt Help Falling in Loveβ by Elvis Presley
4. John Denver – Annie’s Song
The beginning of John Denver’s “Annie Song” is identical to the first horn in Tchaikovsky’s “Symphony No. 5, II”. It does seem accidental, as producer Milt Okun only pointed it out to him after he wrote the song. Or maybe it was nestled in Denver’s subconscious mind, because Tchaikovsky’s “Symphony No. 5, II” is an extremely moving piece of classical music.
Read more: The Story Behind βAnnieβs Songβ by John Denver
5. The Beatles – Because
Back to The Beatles. John Lennon got the idea for “Because” after Yoko Ono played Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” for him. “I was lying on the sofa in our house, listening to Yoko play Beethoven’s ‘Moonlight Sonata’ on the piano,” Lennon said. “Suddenly, I said ‘Can you play those chords backward?’ She did, and I wrote ‘Because’ around them. The song sounds like ‘Moonlight Sonata,’ too.”
6. Barry Manilow – Could It Be Magic
Barry Manilow’s “Could It Be Magic” was inspired by Chopin’s “Prelude Op. 28, No. 20 in C Minor”. It’s instantly recognizable, as the song starts with eight bars of “Prelude No. 20”. Manilow’s “Could It Be Magic” knew commercial success, just as covers from Donna Summer and Take That.
7. Eric Carmen – All By Myself
Eric Carmen’s first single “All By Myself” was directly inspired by the second movement of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor”. His next single – “Never Gonna Fall in Love Again” – was inspired by classical music from Rachmaninoff too. The most popular version of the song is by Celine Dion, who had a worldwide hit with her cover of “All By Myself”.
8. The White Stripes – Seven Nations Army
The iconic riff of “Seven Nation Army” sounds quite similar to Bruckner’s 5th Symphony. Consisting of only a few notes, it was probably accidental, but Jack White was an admirer of classical music as a kid, so who knows?
9. Billy Joel – This Night
Billy Joel is a known admirer of classical music. He even has a classical album titled Fantasies & Delusions. For the chorus of Joel’s 1984 release “This Night”, he used the second movement of Beethoven’s “PathΓ©tique Sonata”. Joel even credited Beethoven as a songwriter.
10. Maroon 5 – Memories
I can’t end this list without mentioning “Pachelbel’s Canon” (commonly known as Canon in D). Pachelbel’s piece is arguably the most used piece of classical music in modern music. “Streets of London” by Ralph McTell, “Don’t Look Back in Anger” by Oasis, and “Basket Case” by Green Day all use the chord progression of “Pachelbel’s Canon”. The most noticeable (and arguably worst) adoption is by Maroon 5, who used the harmonic sequence for their song “Memories”.
So, that wraps up this list of 10 Popular Songs That Were Inspired by Classical Music. Do you know other songs that were inspired by classical music? Please let me know in the comments down below!
What about Lenard Bernstein? I enjoy his
Surprise Symphony.