The Honeymoon Song

Mikis Theodorakis, most famous for writing Zorba the Greek in 1964, also composed The Honeymoon Song, a melody that came to be the central theme for a 1959 movie, Luna de Miel (known in the United States under the title, The Lovers of Teruel). It was a free and loose adaptation of El Amor Brujo by Gregorio Martínez Sierra. Michael Powell directed the film. The English lyrics to the song were written by William Sansom. Paul saw the film and liked the song. The Honeymoon Song, together with A Taste of Honey and Till There Was You, are three sentimental ballads from contemporary movies that Paul enjoyed singing. Marino Marini and his quartet were a popular Italian group that made the song popular in the UK, mainly on television. McCartney later admitted that the song was a bit "soppy" and that the others in the group did not have much enthusiasm for it. They recorded it only one time, and that was on July 16, 1963 for the eighth edition of Pop! Go the Beatles (broadcast on August 6, 1963). In 1969 Paul was the producer for the recording of The Honeymoon Song on Apple Records. The artist was Mary Hopkins, and the album was the fifth LP to be released by the Beatles' own label.