Famous Songs Inspired by Real People

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

A couple of years ago on the blog, in a post called Songs in the Key of Life, I chronicled some famous songs whose inspiration came from real-life situations in the writers' lives.  In this post, let's look at a few hits that were inspired by real people, some as well-known as the songs themselves.  I suspect you'll know several of these origins already, but some may surprise you.

This one goes back a ways, but 60s songster Jimmy Dean's claim to fame (long before he became a sausage king) was story songs about people, some imaginary, some drawn from life. While "Big Bad John" was fictional folklore, "P.T. 109" celebrated the heroic Navy background of President John F. Kennedy a year after he took office.

Speaking of JFK, his young daughter Caroline would not only make the cover of Life Magazine at four years old, but Neil Diamond would be so taken with the photo of her riding her pony that he'd write "Sweet Caroline" in her honor.

Don McLean was just a paperboy "the day the music died".  He was deeply affected when he saw the headline announcing the deaths of Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper and Richie Valens.  But he kept the music going after all with one of his biggest hits, "American Pie".

While the lyrics sing of "Daniel, my brother", Elton John's "Daniel" was inspired by the story of a wounded Vietnam War veteran who came home to a hero's welcome but wanted only to go back to his normal life.  Meanwhile, his "Candle in the Wind", written in memorial to Marilyn Monroe in 1973, served double duty when he rededicated it in 1997 to Princess Diana, changing the opening line from "Goodbye, Norma Jean" to "Goodbye, England's Rose".

Some songs have more ambiguous origins, as in the case of "Dude Looks Like a Lady" by Aerosmith.  One story goes that Steven Tyler, spotting Mötley Crue's Vince Neil from behind, mistook him for a chick.  Vince himself contends that the song title came when he and Tyler visited a bar where the waiters wore women's clothes. Other rumors abound, but they all seem to have something to do with Vince Neil.

The list goes on, and I invite you to check out my latest video to see and hear a few more famous connections from the Top 40, below or at https://youtu.be/V278ljKTE3g

Inspiration for a song, a poem or a novel can be found everywhere you look.  It could even be the next person you meet.

Ghosts of Christmas Songs Past

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

Shopping malls and radio stations once again are filling the air with the familiar sounds of the season. Having heard these Christmas classics countless times every December, we can hum, if not sing, along with most of them. I thought today we'd pay a little holiday homage to the talented writers who gave us these chestnuts.

THE CHRISTMAS SONG (aka "CHESTNUTS ROASTING ON AN OPEN FIRE") (1946)
Actor/musical arranger Mel Torme wrote over 250 songs in his lifetime, some of which became jazz standards. But the one tune most tuned into was the biggest Christmas hit of the 20th century, co-written with lyricist Robert Wells. Torme said this was never one of his favorites. Maybe he considered it a throwaway because the entire song was written in just 40 minutes.

A fair number of Christmas songs come from movies. Irving Berlin's WHITE CHRISTMAS (1940) was included in the Bing Crosby film Holiday Inn. (Ironically, it was written in a hotel room.)  "White Christmas" has, of course, been recorded by many other artists. For a radio station morning show I once edited together Bing Crosby's lush version with Elvis Presley's doo-woppy rendition to create "The King and Bing." You wouldn't want to hear it.

By the way, among Irving Berlin's other claims to fame are "Puttin' on the Ritz" and "God Bless America".

HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS (1944)
This is from the same duo who gave the world "The Trolley Song".  Ralph Blaine and Hugh Martin were composers for stage and screen musicals, best known for Meet Me in St Louis, starring Judy Garland.

SILVER BELLS (1950)
This is from another film, Bob Hope's The Lemon Drop Kid. It was written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans, whose hits also include Doris Day's "Que Sera Sera" and the "Bonanza" TV theme. For trivia buffs, Livingston's record executive brother created Bozo the Clown and signed The Beatles to Capitol Records.

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS (1951) Meredith Wilson, yet another writer for musicals. His most successful, The Music Man, includes songs that recall the fanciful lilt of this holiday hit (think "Gary, Indiana").

THE LITTLE DRUMMER BOY (1941) by Katherine Kennicott Davis. Not one of my favorites, but I gained some appreciation for it when I learned that this teacher and choir director sought to write a piece that could be arranged with voices to emulate the sound of a drum rhythm. It earned a little more respect when I discovered that it was a beloved choice of the legendary Trapp Family from Austria, who recorded it in 1955.

World War II captain Johnny Marks gave us no less than three Christmas classics: RUDOLPH, THE RED-NOSED REINDEER (1949), ROCKIN' AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE (1958) and A HOLLY JOLLY CHRISTMAS (1964). "Rudolph," incidentally, was based on a story written by Marks' brother-in-law as a promotional piece for retail store Montgomery Ward.

MY GROWN UP CHRISTMAS LIST (1990)
Veteran record producer David Foster (Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna) wrote this comparatively newer classic with Linda Thompson (yes, one-time Elvis girlfriend). When Amy Grant recorded her hit version of it in 1992, she wrote a second verse of her own (the "As children we believed..." section).

TEXT ME MERRY CHRISTMAS (2014) This instant classic for modern times, sung by Straight No Chaser with Kristen Bell, was penned by Adam Schlesinger and David Javerbaum (comedic songsters whose individual credits include the Tony Awards, The Daily Show, and Sesame Street). With luck this clever new novelty song will put "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" out of its misery.



These are just a few of the composers we can tip our Santa hat to, and we didn't even mention carols like "Silent Night" and "We Three Kings".  Many of the sacred songs come from the 19th century or earlier, with indistinct European origins.

One interesting thing about the above list is how many of these Christmas classics were written by Jewish songwriters.  If they had stuck to the adage, "Write what you know," most of these songs would have never been written.

Feliz Navidad, y'all!

The Establishing Lyric

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

Frequent establishing shot from TV's Seinfeld

At the beginning of any story, the first thing the audience wants to know is what's going on.  Those first few sentences have a duty to satisfy that curiosity by identifying some sense of who, what, when and where. In a song or poem, where much has to be conveyed in even fewer words, it's especially appreciated when the scene is set up front.

Just like the establishing shot in a movie, a good opening lyric gives the listener an instant understanding of the current state of affairs so that they feel caught up on whatever they need to know to jump right in with us.

Consider the opening lines of these hit songs from various genres.  In each of the following examples, they provide an establishing setup, if not a backstory, for what will be the closing line of the song:

"Yesterday" (The Beatles)
     First line: Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away
     Last line: Oh, I believe in yesterday.

"Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (from The Wizard of Oz)
     First line: Somewhere over the rainbow,way up high
     Last line: Why, oh why can't I?

"All By Myself" (Eric Carmen)
     First line: When I was young, I never needed anyone
     Last line: Don't wanna live all by myself anymore.

"Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay" (Otis Redding)
     First line: Sittin' in the mornin' sun, I'll be sittin' till the evening's done
     Last line: Sittin' on the dock of the bay, wastin' time.

"Heartbreak Hotel" (Elvis Presley)
     First line: Well, since my baby left me, I found a new place to dwell
     Last line: I get so lonely, I could die.

"Sunshine of Your Love" (Cream)
     First line: It's getting near dawn
     Last line: I've been waiting so long to be where I'm going, in the sunshine of your love.

"By the Time I Get to Phoenix" (Glen Campbell)
     First line: By the time I get to Phoenix she'll be rising
     Last line: She just didn't know I would really go.
 
"New York New York" (Frank Sinatra)
     First line: Start spreading the news, I'm leavin' today
     Last line: It's up to you, New York, New York.

Full circle is very satisfying, and a correspondence between the opening and closing lines offers that sense of fulfillment. But even more important is providing the listener with that helpful briefing up front. Giving them an easy invitation to follow along and not waste time sorting out what the song is about is music to their ears.

Making the Scene in Song

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

One thing country songwriters have a knack for is getting a story off the ground.  A descriptive opening line pulls the listener into the scene from the get-go and evokes the spirit of what's to come.

A close look at hits currently on the charts gives writers solid examples of how to start things off with a strong visual impact. For instance, here are the opening lines from some of the current Top 40: 

It was a perfect day for the end of May, they say a record high (Eric Church, "Cold One")

They roll the sidewalks in this town all up after the sun goes down (Sam Hunt, "Leave the Night On")

She had a cross around her neck and a flower in her hair (Luke Bryan, "Roller Coaster")

Baby, when I look at you with them baby blues cuttin' right through me... (Big & Rich, "Look at You")

Well, I wish I had some shoes on my two bare feet (Maddie & Tae, "Girl in a Country Song")

Take it on back to where the grass was greener (Chase Bryant, "Take It On Back")

Well, take a look at what's left in that sunset, fireflies popping like the Fourth of July (Parmalee, "Close Your Eyes")

There's a postcard picture at the back of our minds (Brothers Osborne, "Let's Go There")

Well, I won two dollars on a scratch-off ticket, so I went back to the counter and I bought two more with it (Brad Paisley, "River Bank")

Each of these set-em-ups paints a mental picture, an invitation to step out of wherever we may be and experience that sunset, that memory, that day in May.  We see the girl in bare feet, with baby blue eyes or a cross around her neck. 

Whether we're writing a song, a poem or a novel, starting with a strong, evocative opening line is the quickest way to draw the audience into our world.  We can thank the early country songwriters, whose imagery of blue moons of Kentucky and walking after midnight created a lyrical legacy that continues to work eight decades down the country road.

Songs in the Key of Life

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine


"Where do you get your ideas?" is one of the most-asked questions of any writer, and almost always the answer involves simply observing real life.  Our daily experiences are a constant source of inspiration for any practitioner of the pen, and some of the most famous examples have endured the test of musical time.

Is Paul thinking, "Hold your head up, you silly girl"?

Throughout the songwriting of the Beatles, real life runs rampant.  "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" gets its name from a classmate of John Lennon's son Julian, who drew a picture showing her with diamond-shaped eyes. John's deceased mother Julia was the inspiration for a number of his songs, as was Paul McCartney's mother ("Let It Be") and his sheepdog ("Martha My Dear").  "Lovely Rita", about a meter maid, was sarcasm in song after Paul was issued a ticket by a female parking attendant. "Michelle" started out with similar farcical intentions, ridiculing a French art student Paul had seen singing at a Liverpool party.  "Hey Jude" was originally titled "Hey Jules", intended to encourage John's son Julian during his parents' breakup.  I could go on and on, and I think I just did.

Rumors have survived the decades regarding Carly Simon's biggest hit, "You're So Vain", mainly because Carly still playfully refuses to identify the victim of her vitriolic vocals, said at the time to be anyone from Warren Beatty to David Bowie.  She has at least confirmed that it was not Mick Jagger, who sings backup on the song, nor her soon-to-be husband at the time, James Taylor.

Speaking of Sweet Baby James, Taylor's first hit "Fire and Rain" was written after the suicide of a childhood friend named Suzanne ("Suzanne, the plans they made put an end to you").  It also includes allusions to his early failed band The Flying Machine ("Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground").

I'd be remiss not to mention Stevie Wonder (since I stole one of his album titles for this post). Among his 500+ compositions are the hits "Isn't She Lovely" (written after the birth of his daughter Aisha), "Sir Duke" (a tribute to Duke Ellington and other artists of the big band era) and "My Cherie Amour" (dedicated to a girlfriend whose name was actually Marsha).

For anyone who remembers Gilbert O'Sullivan's breakout hit "Alone Again, Naturally", it's only natural to feel a little sorry for this young lad for whom "reality came around" and cut him into little pieces after being stood up for his own wedding.  The song continues to lament how he "cried and cried all day" when his mother passed away.  But don't feel too bad for him; every bit of it was fictional and Mrs O'Sullivan was just fine.  He later, however, wrote a hit song about his real-life niece, "Clair", which became one of the most popular baby names in the months that followed.

More recently, Heaven help anyone who gets on Taylor Swift's bad side.  John Meyer, Taylor Lautner and Kanye West are purportedly among the targets of her poisoned pen.  Swift neither confirms nor denies any speculation, because a lady never tells.  She just writes songs about it.  You kids.

It's only human nature to want to hear the stories of others.  It's our calling as writers to share those stories with the world. The joys and sorrows we live through aren't just personal experiences, they're endless ingredients for whatever literary cake we choose to bake.

Specifically Speaking

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

From time to time here on the blog we talk about pet words that we tend to overuse. The subject comes up in conversation regularly as well, especially during editing time when certain words may appear repeatedly.  In the March issue of Southern Writers, Dr Richard Mabry even elaborates on the subject with some lucid and useful advice in his article "What's Your Favorite?"

I can't tell you how many debates I've been party to in which Susan Reichert has decried the use of "that" when it's out of place or unnecessary, as in "I think that she's right."  I do think she's right about that.

One illuminating side of this coin of commonly coined words involves the intrinsic value of the pet word itself.  I'll never forget a story I once read about John Lennon when he was writing the lyrics to a particular song.  He was trying to come up with a line to rhyme with "go", "low" or some such "oh" verse.  His wife Cynthia suggested, "How about 'I just don't know'?"  Her offering was promptly shot down by Lennon, who criticized the word "just" as being a pointless word having no meaning.

Of course, in the right context, "just" has purpose, like when establishing the timing of something.  "I just got back from the store" is more descriptive than "I got back from the store."  But John had a point in that "I just don't know" is virtually the same as "I don't know."  Ironically, some years later, he would write the line "...I just don't know how to feel" ("How", 1971).

I myself will admit to a certain affinity for the word "great", which I'm trying to stop using.  Not because it lacks meaning, but because it's not specific.  If someone tells you your book is "great", what information does that really give you?  Yes, they liked it, and that's about it.  However, if they say your book is "thought-provoking", "inspired" or "worthy of Twain", you have more than just generic feedback to take to the bank.

Let's look at the words we tend to overuse in this light of their actual value.  Eliminate unnecessary words but also replace general ones with something specific.  If we can do that, that would be just great.