‘I Put A Spell On You’: The song that inspired two Paul McCartney classics
Who said inspiration has to be a one-and-done situation? The same spark can come back around again and again, and the beauty of the creative mind means that even if the initial influence stays the same, the outcome will likely be different. Give the same writer the same prompt every day, and they’ll probably write something new each time. Give Paul McCartney the same inspiring track twice over, and he wrote two very different songs.
A playlist of all the music that inspired McCartney over his lengthy career as a Beatle, a solo artist and a member of Wings would be incredibly long. It would start with the likes of Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly, two incredibly formative figures, and then move into more modern acts, as he’s praised and supported the likes of Phoebe Bridgers and Taylor Swift.
That music has routinely found its way into his own work in some way. He’s spoken about it often, sharing stories like the time Fats Domino inspired his performance on ‘Lady Madonna’, or how certain Beatles tracks were written during focused attempts to learn to be more like a certain artist, or emulate their energy.
One song came up for him again and again, coming back round years removed as an enduring force of inspiration. The track was ‘I Put A Spell On You’, and given how long-lasting his love for it was, McCartney is lucky that there are several versions of the song, reimagined by several people.
His first encounter with it actually came through a cover: Nina Simone’s 1965 cover. Hers is romantic and crooning, transformed into a more classic ballad. As the Beatles were attempting to write their own romance tune, the song found them at the right time. They were working on ‘Michelle’, a track McCartney initially said was nothing more than “a joke French tune for when you go to a party or something. That’s all it was.” But as the track came together, they saw the merit in it.
He added, “And then after a while you say, ‘Well, that’s quite a good tune. Let’s put some real words to it.’”
Simone helped them. As McCartney was trying to figure out what those words should be, Lennon recalled, “He and I were staying somewhere, and he walked in and hummed the first few bars, with the words, and he says, ‘Where do I go from here?’ I had been listening to (blues singer) Nina Simone. I think it was ‘I Put A Spell On You.’” With the influence of the song, the outright desire of the tune was found, making ‘Michelle’ the love song it is.
But later down the line, when McCartney was now a solo artist, the song came back. This time, it came in its original form as the artist took influence from Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ original version.
At this point, he was working on Ram, an album designed to be fun and therapeutic and not too serious. “If the lyrics are a bit zany then you end up having fun with the vocal, like you’re a character,” he said. That’s where the song came back in with Hawkins’ characterful take being a key inspiration for McCartney’s more lively vocals as he said, “I’m inspired by people like Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, who did a song called ‘I Put a Spell on You.’ When I first heard it I couldn’t believe the way he was using his voice, I thought, ‘Wow, this guy is singing far out!’”
In particular, the track inspired his vocal delivery on one track from the album, as he said, “‘Monkberry Moon Delight’ was definitely influenced by ‘Put a Spell on You,’ because it doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s a light relief from the serious world.”
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Beatles Newsletter
All the latest stories about The Beatles from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.