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Dec 8, 2022 · Taylor Swift, BTS, and The Roots are among the artists who have made literary references in their songs.
- Kate Bush
A short list of words that might be used to describe Kate...
- Deals
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts,...
- The Great Gatsby
Today, F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby is revered as...
- Kate Bush
- Kate Bush – Wuthering Heights. This iconic single from British Artpop pioneer Kate Bush is, perhaps, one of the most notorious examples of a pop song taking direct influence from literature.
- The Beatles – Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds. Unlike many other lyrics on this list, The Beatles took direct inspiration from a children's book for this classic track off the ubiquitous 1967 album Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band.
- David Bowie – 1984. With his chameleonic approach both to performing and writing music, David Bowie's career incorporated musical and novelistic influences from an eclectic array of genres.
- Manic Street Preachers – Faster. There are few, if any novels, that have directly inspired the world of alternative music to the level of George Orwell’s 1984.
Mar 2, 2024 · While many artists have been able to channel their personal pain into their songs, artists like Nirvana and Metallica have found ways to subvert expectations by drawing from works of fiction. Throughout rock history, artists have used literature as a primary resource for inspiration on their biggest hits.
Famous songs like Kate Bush’s “Wuthering Heights,” Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” and The Cure’s “Killing an Arab” are directly influenced by classic novels. These tracks use literary references to explore themes such as love, war, and existentialism.
- Wuthering Heights | Kate Bush. Released in 1978, Kate Bush’s “Wuthering Heights” is a haunting and atmospheric track inspired by the classic novel of the same name by Emily Bronte.
- 1984 | David Bowie. Released in 1974, David Bowie’s haunting tune “1984” is a tribute to George Orwell’s novel of the same name. The song’s futuristic sound captures the ominous nature of Orwell’s dystopian text as it describes a society ruled by a totalitarian government.
- The Ghost of Tom Joad | Bruce Springsteen. “The Ghost of Tom Joad” is a haunting acoustic ballad released in 1995 by the legendary singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen.
- White Rabbit | Jefferson Airplane. Released in 1967, “White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane is a classic psychedelic rock song that beautifully captures the essence of the counterculture movement of the ’60s.
Jul 14, 2020 · Mick Jagger and Charles Baudelaire. Though they seem like rather unlikely pairings, many great rock songs have been the result of a lyricist finding inspiration in the pages of a book. These are...
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This is a list of songs that retell, in whole or in part, a work of literature. Albums listed here consist entirely of songs retelling a work of literature.
