The death of Eric Carmen, at the age of 74, returned to the playlists one of his greatest classics: All By Myself, an emblematic song of those who suffer for love, immortalized in the cinema in Bridget Jones with Renée Zelwegger and on TV in the series Friends. In fact, the song is an adaptation of a classic song, already used in cinema before, by David Lean and written by Sergei Rachmaninoff in 1901. It’s worth revisiting the history!

The original composer

Sergei Rachmaninoff was considered one of the greatest Russian pianists and composers of the 20th century and one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music, exploring “easy” and memorable melodies. Who doesn’t hum his unforgettable Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini? Ok, you’re going to say it’s the theme of Somewhere in Time. Before that, however, it was his Piano Concerto No. 2 that was successful.

Rachmaninoff began learning piano at the age of four and by the time he graduated in composition from the Moscow Conservatory in 1892, he had already written several pieces. At a time when it was not common to talk about mental health, he dealt with depression and it was precisely during the treatment period that he wrote one of his most famous works.

With the Russian Revolution, the composer left his country and went to live in New York, performing as a conductor and pianist. In 1942, to deal with his failing health he moved to California, where he died of melanoma in 1943.

A sad melody created through hypnosis

Rachmaninoff’s treatment of depression before leaving Russia was unconventional. He followed the line of doctor and amateur musician Nikolai Dahl, which included daily hypnotherapy and therapy sessions. The goal was to improve insomnia, mood, and lack of appetite. Above all, recover your desire to compose. And it worked. That’s how he wrote Piano Concerto No. 2 and dedicated the piece to Dahl.

With this work, the composer won the Glinka Prize, the first of five awarded to him throughout his life, and a prize of 500 rubles in 1904. Critical and public success.

Eric Carmen’s version

Son of Russian-Jewish immigrants, Eric Carmen was born in Cleveland in 1949 and revealed musical talent from an early age. As a child, he studied violin (at the age of six), following in the footsteps of his violinist aunt, but soon switched to piano and guitar. For a young man who experienced the Beatles and Elvis Presley phenomena, rock was more attractive than classical music. Soon he began to circulate in amateur groups and rehearse writing songs.

Signing as Cyrus Erie, he tried a solo career before forming the band Raspberries in 1970. One of the band’s characteristics was a repertoire of more popular songs, going against the wave of heavy and progressive rock that was the biggest trend at that time. They scored hits such as Go All the Way, I Wanna Be With You, Let’s Pretend, Tonight and Overnight Sensation.

In 1975 he released his solo album which included, of course, the ballad All By Myself. Considering that the melody was in the public domain – this was not the case – he used the second movement of Rachmaninoff’s work (Adagio sostenuto) from the Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Opus 18 as the main basis of the song. He borrowed the chorus from another composition of his (Let’s Pretend) and created something “new”.

The inspiration to use the concerto came precisely when he rewatched David Lean‘s magnificent film, Brief Encounter, from 1945, which has the original play and its soundtrack. Impressed by the beautiful Russian melody and a great pianist himself, Eric adapted the melody from the second movement to write the main verse.

In the 1970s discussing copyright was complex as nothing was clear and to the rocker’s surprise, the composition was still protected outside the USA and created an impasse with Rachmaninoff’s family and after a court case, it was agreed that the estate would receive 12 percent. from royalties from All by Myself. Eric Carmen did something similar with Never Gonna Fall in Love Again, again using the Russian melody, but now with the third movement of Symphony No. 2, it also yielded part of the profits to the family.

All By Myself became an immediate worldwide success and sold more than a million copies in the United States. “There is not as much fuel to be happy as there is to be unhappy. Being unhappy is a great catalyst for writing songs, at least for me,” the singer explained in an interview. “I can’t imagine that Rachmaninoff was happy when he was writing the second symphony and the second piano concerto. I don’t think the angst and anguish in these melodies comes from being too excited,” he commented.

And with that, we won two classics.

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