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- Album This song officially appears on the Goodbye / Sparrow 7" Single.
Related sessions
This song has been recorded during the following studio sessions
Mar 01-02, 1969
Other songs by Mary Hopkin
Officially appears on Goodbye / Sparrow
Officially appears on Those Were The Days / Turn! Turn! Turn!
Officially appears on Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) / Fields Of St Etienne
Officially appears on Quelli Erano Giorni (Those Were The Days) / Turn! Turn! Turn!
Officially appears on Que Tiempo Tan Feliz (Those Were The Days) / Turn! Turn! Turn!
Officially appears on An Jenem Tag (Those Were The Days) / Turn! Turn! Turn!
Officially appears on Le Temps Des Fleurs (Those Were The Days) / Turn! Turn! Turn!
Officially appears on Those Were The Days / Turn! Turn! Turn!
Related interviews
"She's A Joan Baez Type, But We'll Soon Alter That"
Jan 01, 1992 • From Goldmine Magazine
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Song facts
“Sparrow” is the B-side of Mary Hopkin’s second single, “Goodbye“. The song was written by Benny Gallagher and Graham Lyle, songwriters signed to Apple Publishing ; and was produced by Paul McCartney.
“Sparrow” was lovely, because that’s when my friendship with [songwriters] Benny Gallagher and Graham Lyle started. And we’ve been friends ever since, which is about the most wonderful thing that’s come out of my time with Apple. It was a little somber, on reflection, but at the time I was happy with it.
Mary Hopkin – Interview with Goldmine Magazine, 1992
It was Paul McCartney who showed the most enthusiasm for what we were doing. I remember he was very involved with our song “Sparrow”. What happened was that there were a few teams of songwriters who were signed to Apple: ourselves, the guys from the Iveys, and Grapefruit. McCartney said, ‘Mary Hopkin’s making this record, and we need you to write something for it, and whoever writes the winning song I’ll present with a cake. We weren’t too concerned about that, but we wanted desperately to get a cut on a Mary Hopkin record. Well, we won the cake with the song “Sparrow”. The word came back that Paul liked what we had written, but could we change a little bit at the end and things like that. So we finished the song, and she recorded it in the studio. Paul even asked us to be on the session.
Graham Lyle – From “Those Were The Days 2.0” by Stefan Granados
We got a memo from McCartney saying that he wanted material for Mary Hopkin’s new single, and he had everybody in the company trying to write her something. We wrote a song and put it down, but nothing happened. I remember I was down in the main studio. I was at Apple by myself, and I went down to the studio and heard a guitar strumming. It was just George Martin and Paul McCartney in the studio, and the lights were out. I sat in the corner and listened to Paul put down a version of “Goodbye,” and George was putting it down on tape. The studio was in shambles, but they recorded that demo there.
Tom Smith, from the band Mortimer – From “Those Were The Days 2.0” by Stefan Granados
Last updated on October 28, 2021
Lyrics
On Sunday morning everyone would leave the house
Dressed for the Sunday service
And through the streets I used to know
They go to meet their friends and so they take the family seat
Father prays so earnestly forgetting all around him
When Eleanor sings in the choir it's like a lark in summer
The sparrow sings, the sparrow flies
With mighty wings he reaches as high as any other bird
He shall inherit all the earth
The sparrow sings, the sparrow flies
With mighty wings he reaches as high as any other bird
He shall inherit all the earth
A wealth of silence will descend upon the town
In colors of the evening
The thought has troubled me before
I know alone I need a sound to fill each moment
I had to find it out my way
They couldn't stop me leaving
As though they knew but could not say
They let me go believing
The sparrow sings, the sparrow flies
With mighty wings he reaches as high as any other bird
He shall inherit all the earth
The sparrow sings, the sparrow flies
With mighty wings he reaches as high as any other bird
He shall inherit all the earth
Through the blue and hazy drift off after two
The saxophone is moaning
I rise and step into the cool night air
Officially appears on
7" Single • Released in 1969
3:11 • Studio version • A • Mono
- Paul McCartney :
- Maracas, Producer
- Richard Hewson :
- Orchestra arrangement
- Mary Hopkin :
- Guitar, Vocals
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Bass, Choir
- Session Recording:
- Mar 01-02, 1969
- Studio :
- Morgan Studios, London, UK
LP • Released in 1972
3:11 • Studio version • B • Stereo
- Paul McCartney :
- Maracas, Producer
- Richard Hewson :
- Orchestra arrangement
- Mary Hopkin :
- Guitar, Vocals
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Bass, Choir
- Session Recording:
- Mar 01-02, 1969
- Studio :
- Morgan Studios, London, UK
Official album • Released in 2010
3:11 • Studio version • B2010 • Stereo • 2010 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Maracas, Producer
- Richard Hewson :
- Orchestra arrangement
- Mary Hopkin :
- Guitar, Vocals
- Guy Massey :
- Remastering
- Steve Rooke :
- Remastering
- Alex Wharton :
- Remastering
- Allan Rouse :
- Project co-ordinator
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Bass, Choir
- Session Recording:
- Mar 01-02, 1969
- Studio :
- Morgan Studios, London, UK
Live performances
Paul McCartney has never played this song in concert.
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