The Beatles have a complicated history. Their time together was plagued by turmoil, which dampened their legacy. However, there are tender moments in the band’s collective history that remind us that they were once kids who forged a friendship with music as the groundwork. One such moment is Paul McCartney‘s “Little Willow.”
Paul McCartney on the Story Behind “Little Willow”
Several decades after the Beatles broke up, McCartney decided to pen a song in honor of Ringo Starr’s late wife, Maureen Starkey. Attempting to comfort her children, “Little Willow” is a sonic explanation of life’s unpreparable changes. Wind’s going to blow you hard and cold tonight / Life, as it happens / Nobody warns you, willow, hold on tight, the lyrics read.
Though the band had been broken up (and ended on a sour note), McCartney thought a lot of Starkey and didn’t think twice about honoring her in this way.
“I wanted to somehow convey how much I thought of her,” McCartney once said. “For her and her kids…It certainly is heartfelt, and I hope it will help a bit.”
Even though Starkey inspired this song, McCartney did what he does best and “conjured” up a larger-than-life story to help him tell this emotional tale.
“I was very affected by Maureen’s death, and I remember just going into a room and putting those sentiments into that song,” he added elsewhere. “The sort of fragility of life is in that song. But it wasn’t called ‘Maureen,’ it was called ‘Little Willow.’ I always prefer to conjure up some story or tale or some bit of imagination around something, because then I can get my emotions out, but it’s not quite as raw.”
Hey Jude
“Little Willow” isn’t the most famous song McCartney has written for a child of a Beatle. That title belongs to “Hey Jude.” However, the songs convey similar ideas.
“Hey Jude” was written for Julian Lennon in the wake of his parents’ divorce. It may not be as dire as what Starr’s children were going through, but it was still an unexpected moment in Lennon’s life. McCartney was often slighted by his bandmates for his whimsical style of writing, but that made him the perfect person to write songs of comfort for their children. He got a fair few timeless tracks out of this affinity.
