How Lana Del Rey’s ‘West Coast’ Reuses Part of The Beatles’ ‘And I Love Her’
Listen to the prechorus of Lana Del Rey’s “West Coast” and you’ll hear a bit of The Beatles‘ “And I Love Her.” It might be blasphemy to say this, but Del Rey’s redux of “And I Love Her” might sound better. Fascinatingly, Paul McCartney said “And I Love Her” was his first impressive ballad.
Lana Del Rey’s ‘West Coast’ reuses a riff from The Beatles’ ‘And I Love Her’
According to Grantland, “West Coast” interpolates the riff from The Beatles’ “And I Love Her.” Listening to both tunes side-by-side, it’s impossible not to notice the similarity. Of course, the main difference between the two songs is the tone.
“And I Love Her” is a straightforward, pretty piece of lounge music. “West Coast,” on the other hand, changes tempo in a way that’s both beautiful and jarring. The eerie psychedelic undertones of the track make its lovelorn lyrics seem a touch sinister. Even the quoted riff from “And I Love Her” feels more otherworldly in Del Rey’s hands.
It’s odd that Lana Del Rey’s ‘West Coast’ samples a British tune
1960s nostalgia is a big part of Del Rey’s work, so it’s no wonder she’d take cues from the Fab Four in “West Coast.” But the interpolation of “And I Love Her” feels a little strange in a song called “West Coast.” Instead of recalling four lads from Liverpool couldn’t she have interpolated a song by a West Coast band, such as The Beach Boys or The Doors? Sampling The Monkees would have made sense for that matter.
“West Coast” wouldn’t be the last time Del Rey referenced The Beatles. She collaborated with Sean Ono Lennon on her track “Tomorrow Never Came.” “Say Yes to Heaven” quotes “Give Peace a Chance,” while “California” twists a line from “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” on its head.
What Paul McCartney thought about The Beatles ‘And I Love Her’
In the 1997 book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Paul had some high praise for “And I Love Her.” “It was the first ballad I impressed myself with,” he said. “It’s got nice chords in it, ‘Bright are the stars that shine, dark is the sky.’ I like the imagery of the stars and the sky. It was a love song really.
“The ‘And’ in the title was an important thing, ‘And I Love Her,’ it came right out of left field, you were right up to speed the minute you heard it,” Paul added. “The title comes in the second verse and it doesn’t repeat. You would often go to town on the title, but this was almost an aside, ‘Oh … and I love you.’ It still holds up and George played really good guitar on it. It worked very well.”
Paul disputed John Lennon’s claim to have penned the song’s middle eight (bridge). “I’m not sure if John worked on that at all,” he said. “The middle eight is mine. I would say that John probably helped with the middle eight, but he can’t say ‘It’s mine.'”
Paul impressed himself with “And I Love Her” and the tune seems to have impressed Del Rey as well.
