Wu-Tang Interpolate The Beatles on "The Heart Gently Weeps"

The Beatles


Wu-Tang Clan

Download: Wu Tang Clan (ft. Dhani Harrison, John Frusciante and Erykah Badu) - "The Heart Gently Weeps"
Download: Wu-Tang Clan - "Bring Da Ruckus"
Stream: The Beatles - "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (Love version)

The only thing that the Wu-Tang Clan and The Beatles have in common is that they're both nothin' to fuck wit'* (albeit for vastly different reasons). So what would happen if they joined forces? Utter pandemonium? Baby-boomers getting uppity about their beloved Beatles selling out to the rap music? A huge, life-changing musical effort?

Well, you can find out for yourself by clicking the link above. Wu-Tang Clan have chosen "The Heart Gently Weeps", which features Erykah Badu singing the chorus with Dhani Harrison (George Harrison's son) and John Frusciante playing guitar, as their first single from the Clan's upcoming 8 Diagrams album.

While it was initially thought that the Wu-Tang Clan had secured the first legal Beatles sample in history (the song uses "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"), the rap group clarified that the use was strictly an interpolation, not a sample.

From the Wu-Tang Clan's MySpace:

The statement that we made yesterday was incorrect and we apologize for any confusion it may have caused. We DID NOT sample the Beatles, i repeat, we DID NOT sample the Beatles, rather we did an INTERPOLATION of the classic George Harrison composition 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps.' In a historic collaboration, Dhani Harrison, son of George, through his friendship with the RZA, played guitar on the song and he himself helped secure the REUSE LICENSE.

I'm not sure what the distinction, legally or otherwise, is between a sample and an interpolation, but there you go. Either way, the song was made available for download via Loud Records and you can listen to it it via Loud or at the top of this post.

8 Diagrams is out on Dec. 4th.

Wu Tang MySpace
The Beatles MySpace

(Jonathan Graef)

*Now that's the single whitest thing I've ever written.