Paul McCartney gave a new insight into the creation of the Beatles song “Let It Be” in his podcast “A Life in Lyrics”. When writing the song, he was probably unconsciously inspired by Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet”.
So far, Macca said the 1970 classic was created from a dream he had. In it, his late mother Mary appeared to him and told him not to worry about the future. “I’m not sure if she used the words ‘Let it be,’ but that was the essence of the dream,” McCartney said. For this reason, the track begins with the lines “When I find myself in times of trouble/ Mother Mary comes to me.”
McCartney lyrics come from “Hamlet”
In his podcast “A Life in Lyrics”, the Beatle now revealed: The Shakespeare play “Hamlet” could also have unconsciously inspired him to write the song’s lyrics. “At that time [in der Schule] I had to learn speeches by heart,” said the 81-year-old. “And recently it was pointed out to me that when Hamlet is poisoned he actually says ‘Let it be’ – Act Five, Scene Two.” He added: “I found it interesting that I learned these words at a time when I was studying Shakespeare, so that years later the phrase appeared to me in a dream when my mother said it.”
John Lennon didn’t like “Let It Be.”
During the recording of the album “Let It Be,” the differences between the Beatles turned into open hostility. John Lennon was not enthusiastic about the song composed by McCartney and joked about the seriousness of the song: “Shouldn’t we all be giggling at the solo?” The hit was still released on the album of the same name in April 1970.