Legendary Beatles Member Paul McCartney Wrote This Song for Frank Sinatra but It Was Rejected

Every Beatle had their influence and hero, and for Paul McCartney, that artist happened to be Frank Sinatra. At 14 years old, years before his days in The Beatles, McCartney wrote a song called “Suicide”, taking inspiration from Sinatra, who was best known for “Come Fly With Me” and “My Way.” When an opportunity arose, and McCartney got in touch with Sinatra, the former Beatle sent “Suicide” to him. Ultimately, the song was rejected.

Paul McCartney and Frank Sinatra Crossed Paths After The Beatles Disbanded

While McCartney sought inspiration from Sinatra, the admiration was not mutual - at first. The “My Way” singer was one of the few artists who did not understand the success The Beatles received, as he disregarded them as “mop top” kids and did not take the rock ‘n’ roll genre seriously. As for their success in the states due to the British Invasion, Sinatra was quoted in the book George Harrison on George Harrison, “I thought the Beatles would die in New York. I was very surprised by the reception they got. I guess I was wrong.”

It was not until Sinatra covered “Something” by The Beatles (written by George Harrison) that he viewed The Beatles favorably. The cover was the only time Sinatra crossed paths with the Beatles before he called the “Blackbird” and “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” songwriter for a song after The Beatles’ disbandment, which McCartney enthusiastically accepted. Speaking on Sinatra’s influence on his songwriting to the McCartney Archive Collection, he said, “I had my Dad’s old piano at home that I used to tinker about on when there was no one in the house. And my feelings were, then, that if you were ever going to be a songwriter, the height of it all was Sinatra.

“Suicide” was written through the lens of Sinatra as a young teen, and has sat at the back of McCartney’s catalog for decades. That was most likely the reason why McCartney did not pen a new track for the Pack Rat icon, since he thought that Sinatra would take a liking to “Suicide”. Sadly, McCartney could not be more wrong.

Why Did Frank Sinatra Reject Paul McCartney's "Suicide"?

Why Sinatra rejected “Suicide” was simple: he found the song too dark for his style, despite the song being a flashy cabaret track. In fact, when McCartney sent the song to him, he thought it was a joke. As McCartney detailed, “He thought I was taking the piss. ‘Is this guy kidding?’” You know, sending Sinatra a song called ‘Suicide’. He did not get it! But I did think, ‘Oh God, maybe I should have changed it a bit to send it to him.’”

In a conversation with Barry Miles, McCartney described the song while stating that Sinatra may have misunderstood the meaning of the song. “I think he couldn’t grasp it was tongue-in-cheek,” he said. “It was only supposed to be a play on the word ‘suicide,’ not actually physical suicide. If a girl lets a guy trample all over her, she’s committing some sort of suicide.

“Suicide” was not the only song McCartney had written with him in mind. “When I’m Sixty Four,” from the critically acclaimed album Sgt Pepper, was also written for Sinatra, though Sinatra would never receive the demo. The Fab Four recorded the song for the album instead, despite the disapproval of John Lennon.

Paul McCartney Recorded "Suicide" For His Remastered Debut Album Instead

In a conversation with Miles, McCartney revealed that he was relieved when Sinatra sent the demo back to him. “Looking back on it, I’m quite relieved he did actually,” he said. “It wasn’t a good song. It was just a teenage thought.” As McCartney described in the same conversation, his career with Sinatra “ended in terrible ignominy.” Sinatra and McCartney did not cross paths again after that. Two decades later, in 1998, Sinatra passed away at 82 after an iconic and influential decades-long career.

Eventually, McCartney recorded the song for himself, but it took decades for it to be released. The outtake version of “Suicide” was released as part of his remastered reissue of his self-titled debut album, which was released in 2011. Sadly, it was never meant to be for McCartney and Sinatra.