She Is Gone, Willie Nelson

We might disagree on Willie Nelson.  I have to be honest that I find his covers, in particular the album Across the Borderline is where I'm happiest; I'm less comfortable when he's full country.  


But what about this track?  I loved it the first time I heard it - I thought it had beautiful simplicity.  Then it clicked, and in a series of realisations, I could tell it took me back to Saturday evenings in my childhood - the TV on in the background, a show about sailing in tall ships - you might remember The Onedin Line.  The theme tune, which must have seeped into my young mind which was only fully retreivable after the invention of the internet.  "She is Gone" is the descendent, or cousin of the Adiago of Spartacus, by Arum Khachaturian.  

There's a lot of nonsense, especially in US courtrooms, at the moment about when something is copied, versus when it is a new thing, or a different thing, or a development of something.  The thing is that there are no new notes.  There are probably no new pairs of notes.  Perhaps there are new collections of 5 or 6 notes, but it's likely that they'll sound a bit like - or a feel a bit like - other collections of 5 or 6 notes.  My guess is that Willie Nelson was unlikely to thinking of Spartacus when he wrote She Is Gone, and it is an entirely different piece of music.  But the link is there.  Don't you think?