The All Time Greatest Muses in the Music World
- 1
Pattie Boyd
- Photo:
- Eddie Janssens
- Wikimedia Commons
- CC BY-SA 4.0
Pattie Boyd is most famous for being the real Layla in the Eric Clapton song of the same name, as well as the inspiration for his song "Wonderful Tonight." She was also George Harrison's "Something" muse (as well as his wife for many years). When interviewed by ABC News's Elizabeth Vargas about why she was such a strong muse for artists, Boyd responded, "I wish I knew. Like, I wish I could tell you. I don't know."- Age: b. 1944
- Birthplace: Taunton, United Kingdom
- Profession: Photographer, Model, Entrepreneur
Is she a remarkable muse? - Photo:
- Photo:
- Capitol Records
- Wikimedia Commons
- Public Domain
Linda Eastman married Paul McCartney in 1969, and from then on was McCartney's mate and inspiration for every love song he wrote from then on out. The Beatles' song "I Will," as well as Wings' "My Love" and Paul's "Maybe I'm Amazed" were all written for Linda, who passed in 1998 from cancer. "Any love song I write," Paul said in 1997, "is written for Linda."
- Age: b. 1941 - d. 1998
- Birthplace: New York, United States of America
- Profession: Film Score Composer, Entrepreneur, Musician, Film Producer, Actor
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
- Photo:
- Photographer: A. Vente
- Wikimedia Commons
- CC BY-SA 3.0 NL
Marianne Faithfull left her husband to live with Mick Jagger and in turn became the definition of rock star girlfriend. Faithfull is said to have influenced songs including "Sympathy for the Devil," "You Can't Always Get What You Want," "Wild Horses," and "Let's Spend the Night Together." Jagger and Faithfull were together for five years, but after they broke up, she was left penniless and struggling.
- Age: b. 1946
- Birthplace: Hampstead, London, England, UK
- Profession: Songwriter, Actor, Singer
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
- 4
Françoise Hardy
- Photo:
- Joost Evers/Anefo
- Wikimedia Commons
- CC BY-SA 3.0 NL
Françoise Hardy was able to capture the attention of the most illustrious and hard-working musicians around in the 1960s. Her most notable suitor was Bob Dylan, who once refused to come out on stage until she showed up at his concert. He had written a song about Hardy without ever meeting her, and he needed to be introduced to her in person.
She also managed to turn the heads of rockers like Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Brian Jones, and John Lennon. She had a magnetic voice, and her own music (generally French) would help to solidify her own personal fame. She slipped into a coma in 2016, only to awake from it two years later and release an album. She's proven to be even tougher than the rock legends she inspired.
- Age: b. 1962
- Birthplace: Paris, France
- Profession: Singer, Songwriter
Is she a remarkable muse? - Photo:
- Photo:
- David Shankbone
- Wikimedia Commons
- CC-BY 3.0
During the 1970s, Bebe Buell was known as a rock muse to the likes of Steven Tyler and Mick Jagger, inspiring some of their top hits. Other rock stars she dated or inspired included Iggy Pop, Jimmy Page, Rod Stewart, Todd Rundgren, and Elvis Costello.
Buell was the basis for the character Penny Lane in the film Almost Famous, and she is the mother of actress Liv Tyler.- Age: b. 1953
- Birthplace: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA
- Profession: Model, Singer
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
- Photo:
- Studio publicity still
- Wikimedia Commons
- Public Domain
The iconic actress was the subject of many songs and featured or mentioned in dozens more. The blonde bombshell is the subject of Elton John's beautiful ballad "Candle in the Wind," while the actress is mentioned in the songs "Celluloid Heroes" by the Kinks, "Love Without Tragedy / Mother Mary" by Rihanna, and "Vogue" by Madonna, just to name a few. While her time in the spotlight was tragically short, Monroe's influence will be felt for decades.
- Age: b. 1926 - d. 1962
- Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA
- Profession: Film Producer, Model, Actor, Singer
Is she a remarkable muse?- 1Charlize Theron1,838 Votes
- 2Scarlett Johansson1,670 Votes
- 3Anna Nicole Smith1,456 Votes
- Photo:
- Before a 2013-14 recurring role on Ray Donovan, Rosanna Arquette was a musical muse. She was the inspiration behind the Toto song "Rosanna," and, even better, the monumental Peter Gabriel song "In Your Eyes" is actually about Arquette as well. Arquette and Gabriel were lovers at the time, and the song went on to become a pivotal movie song when John Cusack held up the boom box in the classic film Say Anything.
- Age: b. 1959
- Birthplace: New York City, New York, USA
- Profession: Film Producer, Actor, Film Director
Is she a remarkable muse?- 1Desperately Seeking Susan59 Votes
- 2After Hours33 Votes
- 3The Big Blue41 Votes
- Photo:
- Kitchen
- The Factory
True, she was Andy Warhol's muse and became his superstar pet and inspiration for many of his films, but musically, Sedgwick also was a muse for the legendary Bob Dylan. When the two dated, Dylan wrote several songs about the would-be star, including "Just Like a Woman" and "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat." Warhol was livid that Sedgwick had left him to become a muse for Dylan, and it was after this relationship that her substance use spiraled out of control.
- Age: b. 1943 - d. 1971
- Birthplace: Santa Barbara, California, USA
- Profession: Socialite, Model, Actor, Artist
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
- 9
Anita Pallenberg
It's been speculated for years that "Angie" by The Rolling Stones is actually about an Anita. Anita Pallenberg was a long-time muse of lead guitarist Keith Richards, and she caused quite a rift in the band. She had her fair share of substance problems, and was known to not only keep up with Richards, but to exceed him at times.
At one point it was even rumored she was sleeping with Mick Jagger, while still in a relationship with Richards. She also managed to heavily influence the band's music and clothing style.
- Age: b. 1942 - d. 2017
- Birthplace: Rome, Italy
- Profession: Actress, Artists, Model
Is she a remarkable muse? - Photo:
- Pascal Le Segretain/Staff
- Getty Images Entertainment
The former wife of Mick Jagger and partner of media mogul Rupert Murdoch has admitted that "there is no job as fun as being a rock muse." And she should know. The hit Rolling Stones' song "Miss You" is about the former supermodel, who left Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry to be with Jagger. The duo would go on to become rock n' roll royalty before their split in 1999.
- Age: b. 1956
- Birthplace: Texas, Gonzales, USA
- Profession: Fashion Model, Model, Actor
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
- 11
- Photo:
- Eric Koch/Anefo
- Wikimedia Commons
- Public Domain
For better or worse, Yoko Ono was John Lennon's muse. Some say she tore apart The Beatles; some think she was responsible for helping Lennon create some of his best music. Ono was a painter, sculptor, photographer, singer-songwriter, and peace activist, and you can see her influence in Lennon songs such as "Oh Yoko," "Dear Yoko," "The Ballad of John and Yoko," and the #2 hit "Woman."
- Age: b. 1933
- Birthplace: Japan, Tokyo
- Profession: Film Score Composer, Musician, Film Producer, Screenwriter, Author
Is she a remarkable muse? - Photo:
- Photo:
- US Department of State
- Wikimedia Commons
- Public Domain
"Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond is perhaps the best karaoke song of all time and in 2007, Diamond finally revealed that it was President John F. Kennedy's daughter, Caroline, that inspired the song. After seeing a picture of the girl, Diamond wrote the song that would become the most famous of his career. "It was a picture of a little girl dressed to the nines in her riding gear, next to her pony," Diamond recalled. "It was such an innocent, wonderful picture, I immediately felt there was a song in there."- Age: b. 1957
- Birthplace: New York City, New York, USA
- Profession: Spokesperson, Editor, Politician, Author, Writer
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
Though many people believe Billy Joel's song "Uptown Girl" was about his future wife Christie Brinkley, they might be wrong. According to authors Michael Heatley and Frank Hopkinson, the song was actually inspired by another supermodel: Elle Macpherson. The story goes that Joel was on vacation in the Caribbean when he stumbled upon three women – Macpherson, Brinkley, and Whitney Houston. He started to date Macpherson first and wrote the song "Uptown Girls" (which eventually dropped the "s") about them. In an odd twist, Joel then went on to marry Brinkley.
- Age: b. 1964
- Birthplace: Killara, Australia
- Profession: Businessperson, Model, Producer, Actor, Spokesperson
Is she a remarkable muse?- Anna Gordy Gaye was married to singer Marvin Gaye, which was no easy task. The two had a very tumultuous and violent relationship, but she inspired songs like "Pride & Joy," "Stubborn Kind of Fellow," "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," and "That's the Way Love Goes." Gaye even dedicated his album Here, My Dear to her, but more to stick it to her after she milked him for child support and alimony.
- Age: b. 1922 - d. 2014
- Birthplace: Oconee, Georgia, USA
- Profession: Businessperson, Songwriter, Composer
Is she a remarkable muse? - People love to hate Courtney Love, but Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain considered his wife a true muse. However, before she met Cobain, Love was a muse for Smashing Pumpkins singer Billy Corgan, inspiring the album Siamese Dream. It is also assumed that most of what Cobain wrote was inspired by Love, who many refer to as Generation X's Yoko Ono.
- Age: b. 1964
- Birthplace: Portland, Oregon, USA
- Profession: Singer, Composer, Record Producer, Guitarist, Songwriter
Is she a remarkable muse? - Photo:
The Hollywood mainstay has been the muse for many a musician since her teen years. During her decades-long career, Barrymore as inspired many artists due to her kind nature and free spirit. Some of the songs border on silly, such as “Drew Barrymore Watches Saturday Morning Cartoons” by Brother Mynor featuring Ojmacoj, or pure pop such as “Drew Barrymore” by Bryce Vine, while other tunes are downright delicious to the ears, such as “Drew Barrymore” by SZA. But no matter which song you prefer, there is no doubting Barrymore's muse status.
- Age: b. 1974
- Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA
- Profession: TV Producer, Film Producer, Model, Screenwriter, Author
Is she a remarkable muse?- 150 First Dates442 Votes
- 2The Wedding Singer333 Votes
- 3E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial296 Votes
For good or for bad, Taylor Swift has become the focus for many a musician. Be it an ex who wants to share his side of the story, a foe with a diss track, or a touching tribute to the songstress, Swift is just as much muse as musician.
While many tunes are either rumored or hinted to be about Swift, there are a few songs that are confirmed by the artist to be about the "Bad Blood" crooner. The band Pentatonix tweeted to Tay that the song "Rose Gold" was a loving tribute to the singer-songwriter, while Justin Bieber retweeted a confirmation that he was shading Swift in "All Bad." And in Kanye West's "Famous," the rapper credits his stunt at the MTV Music Video Awards for her good fortune.
Former boyfriends/musicians that were rumored to have written songs about the pop star include Harry Styles, Owl City's Adam Young, Calvin Harris John Mayer, and Joe Jonas, while Katy Perry and Kacey Musgaves have their own take on the songstress.
No matter which way you cut it, Swift is a mighty musical muse.
- Age: b. 1989
- Birthplace: Reading, Pennsylvania, USA
- Profession: Guitarist, Musician, Singer-songwriter, Film Producer, Actor
Is she a remarkable muse?- Photo:
When an actress marries a musician, you can expect a few tunes to be written about said screen siren. Such is the case with Gwyneth Paltrow and ex-husband Chris Martin. Before the "conscious uncoupling" of the duo, Martin penned a few songs for his Oscar-winning muse, including "Swallowed in The Sea," "Magic," and "Fix You."
- Age: b. 1972
- Birthplace: Los Angeles, California USA
- Profession: Actor, Businessperson, Model, Author, Singer
Is she a remarkable muse?- 1Seven225 Votes
- 2The Talented Mr. Ripley184 Votes
- 3Iron Man235 Votes
Model Amber Rose was a muse for Kanye West for a while. The couple was together for two years, and though popular opinion differs on Rose herself, no one questions that she inspired West during their time together, specifically on his album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
- Age: b. 1983
- Birthplace: South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Profession: Socialite, Musician, Model, Actor
Is she a remarkable muse?
