Four Songs Inspired By Books

Literature and music are creative outlets that interweave with one another. I think it’s safe to say that song writing is a form of literary expression. So, it must come to no surprise that many artists feel inspired by famous literary masterpieces, and sometimes use their imagery or story line as a vessel to express themselves. Now, if we created a list of all the references ever made to books in songs, this article would start looking a lot like my dissertation, so I will limit myself to focusing on four songs that were inspired by or make references to books.

‘Jekyll And Hide’ – Bishop Briggs

It is a great song for when you are angry

You might be familiar with her hit song ‘River’ whose music video currently stands at over 200 million views on YouTube. The singer song-writer Bishop Briggs has been an artist since 2015 and has released two albums in her career, as well as a couple of EPs. ‘Jekyll and Hide’ is from her last album CHAMPION, released in 2019. The song is inspired by the gothic novella The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson written in 1886.

Stevenson narrates the story of a scientist who creates a formula that, once consumed, transforms him into an evil alter ego who does not feel any remorse or guilt. It is a story of human duplicity and the complexities of human existence. Briggs uses this concept in her song to ‘describe the chaotic feeling of dating someone who has two very different sides.’ She explains that this is also the reason why she changed the spelling from the original name of the character to ‘hide’ as the lyrics go ‘are you Jekyll or Hyde-ing me?’; another reference to the duality of a toxic relationship.

The song currently has over 23 million views on YouTube and 15 million plays on Spotify. It is a great song for when you are angry and want to power walk your way through the day.

‘Killing An Arab’ – The Cure

This was The Cure’s debut single in 1978, inspired by the French novel The Stranger by Albert Camus. Camus was an absurdist writer who believed searching for meaning in life was pointless as it will all come to an end someday. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature with ‘The Stranger’ and is considered one of the most important absurdist authors of all time.

In their song, The Cure refer to different aspects of the novel through the direct lyrics, ‘I’m alive / I’m dead / I’m the stranger / killing an Arab.’ The mention of the title in the song, along with the main turning point in the novel, the murder of an Algerian man at the beach by the hand of our protagonist, make obvious for those who are interested in both existentialist literature and rock music, where the band took their inspiration from.

Nowadays, the song is perceived as racist and highly controversial by those who do not understand the literary background the song is based on, and the band have limited the amount of times they perform it, as well as trying to reduce backlash by changing the title and lyrics in certain occasions.

‘Lost Boy’ – Ruth B.

This is a pretty obvious one. Ruth B makes a clear reference to Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie in this song, as the title ‘Lost Boy’ is what the children that live in Neverland are called. The song is narrated from the perspective of a boy who is reminiscing about how he became a Lost Boy, however, the song has a deeper meaning than that. In an interview with Genius, Ruth B states that the song is about ‘being lonely and finding yourself in something.’ She uses the world of Peter Pan as a metaphor to explore the idea of freedom and finding a place where you belong.

Although the song is inspired by Peter Pan’s universe, it seems the singer has taken the image created by the TV show Once Upon a Time by ABC studios, which has been confirmed to be the initial source of inspiration for the song. Now, If you have read the book, you know that the original story has darker connotations than what is being presented in the song, but for the sake of its message, Ruth B has decided to eliminate the creepy aspects of Peter Pan’s character and focus on how happy he makes the Lost Boys. Overall, the song is a relatable track, intended to speak to our misunderstood younger selves.

‘Young And Beautiful’ – Lana Del Rey

Del Rey’s voice adds to the melancholy the character experiences

‘Will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful?’ is exactly what Daisy Buchanan asks herself in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, published in 1925. The song was written by Del Rey alongside Baz Luhrman, director, co-writer and co-producer of the 2013 cinematic adaptation of the novel. It was written as a feature in the film’s soundtrack and is supposed to be interpreted from the perspective of the female protagonist, Daisy Buchanan.

The track is perfectly made to merge the voice of the singer with the emotions the listeners are supposed to experience when watching the film. As viewers and listeners, we are supposed to feel for Daisy, and the low register of Del Rey’s voice adds to the melancholy the character experiences in the novel.

This is one of Del Rey’s most popular tracks, racking up to almost 600 million streams on Spotify. The mass success of the song could be seen regardless of whether one had seen the movie or not. It is a staple Lana Del Rey song that, whether you are a fan of her music or not, you will know.