3 Timeless Songs That Were Written in a Matter of Minutes

Inspiration never trickles, it surges, and hits artists with a fervent intensity that hinders them from doing anything other than harnessing it and creating something from it. Ideally, this is what every artist of any medium strives for, as it leads to a finished product untainted by overthinking. So, in a sense, musicians who receive this surge of inspiration don’t even write the songs. Rather, the surge itself does.

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All that being said, it comes as no surprise that some of the greatest songs of all time were written in a few minutes. With that in mind, here are three timeless songs that were written in a matter of minutes.

“Yesterday” by The Beatles

Paul McCartney has written 32 No. 1 hits. In other words, he had and likely still has material coming out of his ears. That being said, it is not a shocker that Paul McCartney dreamt of the melody for The Beatles‘ “Yesterday”. Once he woke up from that dream, McCartney sat down at his piano and reportedly wrote the song in a matter of minutes.

Released in 1965, “Yesterday” is unarguably one of the greatest songs of all time. Following its release, “Yesterday” peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remained at the top for four weeks. In essence, Paul McCartney created a song in minutes that has now lasted for decades.

“All Along The Watchtower” by Bob Dylan

Like McCartney, Bob Dylan has written many of the greatest songs of all time. So, of course, the man has a song that he too wrote in a few minutes, and that song was the politically subversive “All Along The Watchtower”. Which Jimi Hendrix ultimately made famous.

Dylan released the song in 1967, after his rendition was released, Jimi Hendrix covered and released his version of the song in 1968. While both artists receive credit for the song, it was Dylan’s brainchild, a brainchild allegedly born in minutes.

“Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac

As legend goes, Stevie Nicks reportedly wrote “Dreams” in 10 minutes while reflecting on her tempestuous relationship with Lindsey Buckingham. Needless to say, this arguably would be the most important 10 minutes of Nicks’ career, as “Dreams” is one of the most popular songs of all time.

Following the release of “Dreams” in 1977, the single peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It became Fleetwood Mac‘s first and only chart-topping single on the Billboard Hot 100. Furthermore, years later, the song hit a resurgence, re-entered the chart, and peaked at No. 12. In other words, time has been on Stevie Nicks’ side when it comes to her hit single, “Dreams”.

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