Beatles lyrics and melodies borrowed from other songs

You may well be right. After all, these are all musings. I just find it easy to believe that even hearing it once on the radio would be enough for a musical mind like Paul`s to keep it stored somewhere. I speak from personal experience and I don't compose music, I'm just a mere fan.

 

I'm a bass player too! I know Paul copped the line, but a bass riff, especially taken from 50's/early 60's rock & roll songs is pretty generic. Did Willie Dixon COMPOSE the bass line? Or is it just a variation of hundreds of other songs? I guess we'd have to listen to dozens of Chess artists and Willie's own recordings to make that determination.One thing is sure, Chuck Berry didn't write the riff Rock on, Ron

 

And your opinion is certainly a valid one... I don't think such a minute sampling would have stuck with Paul at this stage of his composing career. I mean, if that was the case he'd be re-writing or sampling melodies, riffs and structure from hundreds of songs. I think this is a case of circumstance... nothing more. Maybe one of us should ask this very question on his website. Maybe we'll be surprised Ron

 

Uh oh!!!! Now THAT"S a comp. Boy, John sure took that intro hook, line and sinker. Same attack, same notes and the same SOUND. Wow!!! Ron

 

^^^^Yeah, that's the best one yet! Truly astonishing.

 

Yeah I realized that about 16 minutes after I posted that.

 

Always felt the bass part was based on the bass in "Hippy Hippy Shake" but it's rock 'n' roll, there are hundreds of songs with that bass in it.

The melody comes from "When The Saints Go Marching In"?

 

didn't read through the thread, but maybe someone's mentioned how John appropriated the chords from Fleetwood Mac's 'Albatross' (big hit over there) for "Sun King". Walter Evertt's "The Beatles as musicians Vol 2" goes into some detail about how they cribbed from their own material, especially in the White Album-LIB period

 

People are often surprised to hear that (I know I was at first) but I think the resemblance is undeniable. Just compare "How could I dance with another" to "I want to be in that number" and I think you'll agree. In fact, disregarding the B section of The Beatles' tune (the "Well my heart went boom" section), the songs are nearly identical. An in-depth analysis of the similarities can be found here: http://www.icce.rug.nl/~soundscapes/VOLUME05/Oldsweetsongs.shtml

 

...and the Beatles, along with Tony Sheridan, recorded the song "The Saints" more than a year before writing I Saw Her Standing There. Ron

 

Jim was into ragtime & brass bands.

 

Hippy Hippy Shake actually predates (I'm) Talking "Bout You by two years. Here's the rockin' original by Chan Romero. Ron



...and Chuck Berry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2i8Z-c35y4

 

So two parts rocked up gospel hymn, one part Chan, one part Chuck, mix all together = Great song
Therefore, McCartney/Lennon = songwriting geniuses

 

Perfectly stated!!! Ron

 

Rhythmically similar in places and same basic chord structure for some of it, but completely different melodically.

 

I have a song book from 1914 that includes Golden Slumbers (same lyrics plus a second verse). It lists the source as 17th century.

 

The beginning of All You Need is Love and the 1812 Overture.
Does this count?

 

What about "Yesterday", "She Loves You", "In The Mood" & "Greensleeves"?

 

Yep, Paul said that's where he got it from. An old songbook his folks had.

 

Tchaicovsky 'borrowed' that from La Marseillaise, as did the Beatles

 

Double thievery!!!!!

 

Those are 2 different bass lines

 

I used to to think that David Bowie was quoting George Harrison, with that phrase, since I hadn't heard "Sorrow" before.

 

John and George singing the melody to Frere Jacques as a counter melody at 1:02 during the verse in Paperback Writer. They do it later also.

 

'Good Artists Copy, Great Artist Steal' - Pablo Picasso