From The Beatles to Bob Dylan: Every song Lana Del Rey references on ‘Born To Die’
Lana Del Rey’s lyricism has always been rich with references. Regularly quoting from books and poems, the musician also calls upon other songs as she forges a web of her own creativity. In the 2012 debut, Born To Die, Del Rey wrote a whole playlist of songs into the tracklist.
Throughout the history of her career, Del Rey has repeatedly called out to her favourite artists in her songs. On ‘Terrence Loves You’, she borrows words from David Bowie. Joni Mitchell is mentioned several times throughout her 2021 album Chemtrails Over The Country Club. Figures like Dennis Wilson, Billie Holiday, Amy Winehouse, and more are littered through her lyrics as she pays homage to the people who inspire her most.
Stretching across genres and styles, her tastes are incredibly varied. Across her albums, Del Rey shouts out artists from rock, folk, R&B, and rap. Alongside a wealth of authors like Allen Ginsberg and Sylvia Plath, Del Rey’s work often feels like an encyclopedia of counterculture and literary figures.
But her debut release, Born To Die, is especially rich with lyrical nods to her favourite rock artists. As her introduction to the world, Del Rey seemed keen to weave a busy web of references as she built her aesthetic and audio world.
Songs references on Born To Die:
‘Walk on the Wild Side’ – Lou Reed
On the opening track of her debut album, Lana Del Rey introduced herself to the world with a reference to one of her idols. Singing “come and take a walk on the wide side”, the ‘Born To Die’ chorus centres around the iconic Lou Reed lyric. Stolen from one of his most famous tracks, ‘Walk On The Wild Side’, Del Rey appropriates the line about 1970s New York for her ballad about reckless love.
Del Rey would reference Lou Reed again on her follow-up second album, Ultraviolence. On ‘Brooklyn Baby’, she sings, “Well, my boyfriend’s in a band / He plays guitar while I sing Lou Reed”. Clearly a major source of inspiration for the singer, her nostalgic sound and aesthetic regularly intersect with the world of the Velvet Underground frontman.
‘Like A Rolling Stone – Bob Dylan
Del Rey wasted no time at all on her debut album. Immediately diving into some incredibly adventurous sounds, the second song on the album is a five-minute-long epic of literary, musical and cultural references. ‘Off To The Races’ borrows lines from the controversial novel Lolita, singing “light of my life, fire of my loins”, quoting the book’s opening passage.
One lyric once again dives into Del Rey’s musical tastes. As she sings, “In fact, he says he thinks it’s what he might like about me / Admires me, the way I roll like a rolling stone,” she calls upon Bob Dylan for inspiration. Taking a line from his famous 1965 track, which turns a critical eye to the rich kids falling from grace in the 1960s counterculture scenes, especially Edie Sedgwick, Del Rey perfectly uses it in this song about lust, money and danger.
‘Heaven is A Place On Earth’ – Belinda Carlisle
Even on the song that made her name, Lana Del Rey nods to the musicians that inspired her. When ‘Video Games’ first came out in 2012, the track boomed in popularity thanks to its vintage feel, stunning vocals, and romantic lyricism.
One of the most beloved lyrics pulls from another iconic love song. As Del Rey sings, “Heaven is a place on earth with you / Tell me all the things you wanna do,” she references Belinda Carlisle’s 1987 pop mega-hit, ‘Heaven is A Place On Earth’. As an immensely popular track that has spawned plenty of covers, Del Rey took the poetic title and wrote it into a softer ballad.
‘Blue Suede Shoes’ – Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley is a huge inspiration to Lana Del Rey. Not only is so much of her look and aesthetic styled after his wife, Priscilla Presley, but she’s gone on to become close friends with the Presley estate, recently performing at Graceland. Later on the album, the singer even mentions The King by name, singing, “Elvis is my Daddy, Marilyn’s my mother.”
But on ‘Million Dollar Man’, she takes one of his most famous rock and roll lines and writes it into a seductive ballad. Using the opening line from the 1956 hit, first recorded in 1955 by Carl Perkins, Del Rey sings, “One for the money / Two for the show” in her finest crooner voice.
‘Dancing in the Dark’ – Bruce Springsteen
From a reference to The King to a nod to The Boss. Continuing her tour of rock legends, Del Rey turns her attention to Springsteen on ‘Summertime Sadness’. An anthemic track about heartbreak in the heat, ‘Summertime Sadness’ draws a line of reference to ‘Dancing in The Dark’, Springsteen’s own upbeat take on identity and introspection.
As she sings, “Dancing in the dark in the pale moonlight,” the listener is left imagining the singer getting down to the Boss’ classic 1984 hit. As two artists with incredibly American discographies that regularly sing about or reference their home country, it makes sense that Del Rey would be a Springsteen fan.
‘Mary Jane’s Last Dance’ – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Not content to leave it at just that, Lana Del Rey’s deluxe edition of her debut, known as The Paradise Edition, added eight more songs and a whole host more musician references. On ‘American’, she naturally draws inspiration from key American musicians. Singing, “Springsteen is the king, don’t you think?” and “Elvis is the best, hell yes”, she also makes reference to Tom Petty.
As she sings, “Honey, put on that party dress”, Del Rey steals a line from the 1993 Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers track ‘Mary Jane’s Last Dance’. As such a subtle reference, it’s easy to miss. But this kind of fleeting nod to her musical inspirations is precisely what makes the singer great, connecting her music and its world to the decades of legends that came before her.
‘Lucy’s in the Sky With Diamonds’ – The Beatles
The name might be changed, but the reference is still there. On one of her most controversial tracks, due to its intense sexual opener and now harrowing inspiration, Del Rey references the Liverpudlian Fab Four. Stealing the title from The Beatles’ 1967 psychedelic hit, Del Rey instead sings, “Harvey’s in the sky with diamonds”.
The Harvey in question is said to be Harvey Weinstein. It has not been confirmed or denied that Del Rey ever had a run-in with the defamed producer that sparked the Hollywood #MeToo movement. But the singer has confirmed that the line is in part inspired by him. “When I wrote that song, I suppose I had a Harvey Weinstein/Harry Winston-type of character in mind,” she told MTV, adding: “I envisioned, like, a benevolent, diamond-bestowing-upon-starlets visual, like a ‘Citizen Kane’ or something. I’m not really sure.” Since over 80 women came forward with stories of Weinstein’s sexual abuse, Del Rey has retired the track.
‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’ – Snoop Dogg
On ‘Blue Jeans’, Del Rey proclaims, “I grew up on hip-hop”. Regularly using beats from the genre, infusing her work with elements of rap and featuring vocals from hip-hop artists like The Weeknd and A$AP Rocky, the singer has a clear love for that whole side of music.
On ‘Body Electric’, while referencing Elvis Presley, Walt Whitman’s poetry and Old Hollywood starlet Marilyn Monroe, she also brings her inspirations into the modern day. Singing, “Drop it like it’s hot in the pale moonlight,” she references the club classic Snoop Dogg track for a contrasting source of influence to her usually nostalgic energy.
‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’ – Guns N’ Roses
On the album’s most sparse and haunting ballad, Del Rey references the heavier rock of Guns N’ Roses. As the final track of her debut release, ‘Bel Air’ stands out as being truly angelic. Imagining LA as a kind of heaven, the song seems to deal with the divine and Hollywood.
Contrasting the softness of the track with its almost operatic feel thanks to the orchestral additions, Del Rey references the classic rock track ‘Sweet Child O’Mine’. Singing, “Mon amour, sweet child of mine”, she steals the titular line from the iconic anthem.
‘Amazing Grace’ – John Newton
Back to the start, Del Rey references two very different tracks. After the Lou Reed lyrics on ‘Born To Die’, the singer then dips into religion for another source of inspiration. As she sings, “Lost but now I am found / I can see that once I was blind,” she draws from the well-known, timeless hymn ‘Amazing Grace’.
Written in 1772, the hymn has been covered by hundreds of artists. It’s especially popular in America where it’s sung for both religious and secular occasions. As Lana Del Rey borrows from its lines, she introduces the themes of religion, worship and the catholic aesthetics she’d later explore.
