Lontano Dagli Occhi

“Lontano dagli occhi” is an Italian song by singer-songwriter Sergio Endrigo, with lyrics by Sergio Bardotti. It was introduced at the 1969 Sanremo Music Festival, where Endrigo performed it alongside then-Apple artist Mary Hopkin, earning second place overall. Endrigo released the track as a single in February 1969; Mary Hopkin soon followed with her own version released in Italy later that month or in early March.

Some have presumed that Mary Hopkin’s recording was produced by Paul McCartney. For instance, John C. Winn, in his book “That Magic Feeling: The Beatles’ Recorded Legacy, Volume Two, 1966-1970,” reports that Hopkin’s version was recorded during the “Post Card” sessions in October / December 1968, possibly with a bass overdub by Paul. However, because the song appears not to have been written until closer to its Sanremo debut, Mary Hopkin’s version was more likely recorded in February 1969, after the festival.

According to Paul McCartney’s schedule from February 1969, he would theoretically have had the time to produce the track. Yet in April 2025, we reached out to Mary Hopkin who clarified that, although she did not remember every detail, “[Paul McCartney] definitely would not have been involved, as he did not write the song or have any connection with [the] San Remo Song Festival. Peter Asher usually worked with me on foreign language songs but I think this was probably Mickie Most,” quickly adding that “I see the reason for the confusion, especially as this and “Goodbye” were recorded at Morgan studios. I honestly can’t remember so we’ll never be sure.“

Consequently, whether Paul McCartney directly participated in recording Mary Hopkin’s “Lontano dagli occhi” remains uncertain but unlikely.

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