Songs Inspired By Bach

“What Shakespeare is to Western literature, Bach is to Western music.” (David Bennett)

Ah, yes. Simon and Bachfunkel

4:52 "We weren't as stupid as we looked"
-One of the greatest composers of all time

Everything begins with Bach. The greatest artist of mankind.

Best bassist in history: J.S. Bach

I was kind of expecting Paul to start his Blackbird story with "Well, I was sleeping, y'know..."

“Good composers borrow, Great ones steal,” Igor Stravinsky

The piano solo in “In My Life” by The Beatles....the story goes that John told George Martin to “play it like Bach.”

"All the good music has already been written by people with wigs and stuff."

- Frank Zappa

Blackbird is such a masterpiece. I now understand why it vibrates so much into our souls.

Bach is probably the greatest musical genius ever

I have been listening to Bach heavily for several years now.
Beethoven called him “progenitor of harmonies”.

I got a kick out of a small story in the old Reader's Digest, back in the sixties. It seems that in a rural area of Australia, a local character, famous for stealing sheep, had died. In spite of the man's terrible deeds, they had a nice service at the local church. But at that funeral service, a few people started giggling when the beautiful music began to play. It was Bach's "Sheep May Safely Graze."

The Beatles' "Michelle" guitar solo is also inspired on a pattern by Bach Chaconne Partita No. 2 BWV 1004

Bach was also tremendously influential on classical music, particularly for composers who were interested in exploring new harmonies. This includes Schubert, Mendelssohn, Chopin, and later on Rachmaninoff and Gershwin. Bach was already exploring a lot of harmonies that were quite odd in the early 18th century--for instance the use of the flatted second. Bach fell out of favor for almost a century, but was brought back into fashion by Mendelssohn, who conducted Bach's Mass in B Minor, in a romanticized form fitted to contemporary tastes. It was a giant hit, and Bach has never again fallen out of the repertoire. Bach's work has so many strong ideas, both harmonically and melodically, that it sounds good even on a synthesizer, and lends itself to being repurposed by other musicians.

Paul McCartney was inspired when he heard a piccolo trumpet in a Brandenburg Concerto. It was then included in Penny Lane.

Of course there is the part in "In My Life" by The Beatles where I believe actually George Martin plays a Bach inspired baroque piece.

"If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants."


- Sir Isaac Newton

In late 1977, my mom bought a new Lincoln Town Car. It was the '78 model. It had an 8 track tape player and the car came with a demo 8-track that contained a little bit of all sorts of music. I remember it as being boring except for one thing. I had Virgil Fox playing Bach's little fugue in G minor. It was the most incredible thing I ever heard. I wore that tape out. I learned that there were other performers I preferred, E. Power Biggs comes to mind, but nothing will ever replace the memory of the beauty of that Fox recording in my mind. It inspired me to try to learn organ and forced me to accept, many years later, that I could have a great love of music without having any talent whatsoever. Today, I still love Bach organ works. I also still try to play, if just to amuse myself and annoy the cat.

BTW, that car in 1978 was the best vehicle anyone in my family ever owned.

Procol Harum : I have loved whiter Shade of Pale since I first heard it as a 10-year-old In 1967 climbing up the stairs to Anne Frank's attic in Amsterdam. It has remained important and haunting ever since. I've also enjoyed the search for actual origins within the minor mystery of the Procol Harum name origin. The stories are full of fun personal trivia, misspellings, and slightly off the mark guesses. Great song - great inspiration.