A Member of the Beatles Inspired This Massive 1976 Hit by Gary Wright

In 1975, Gary Wright released “Dream Weaver”. The title track of his third album, Wright wrote  “Dream Weaver” by himself.

The chorus of “Dream Weaver” says, “Ooh, dream weaver / I believe you can get me through the night / Ooh, dream weaver / I believe we can reach the morning light.”

Ironically, it’s a member of The Beatles who led to Wright creating what remains his biggest hit.

“In 1972, my friend George Harrison invited me to accompany him on a trip to India,” Wright recalls. “A few days before we left, he gave me a copy of the book Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda. Needless to say, the book inspired me deeply, and I became totally fascinated with Indian culture and philosophy. My trip was an experience I will never forget.”

In the early part of the 1970s, Wright was reading more works of Yogananda, which is how he discovered God! God! God!, one of his poems.

“One of the lines in the poem referred to the idea of the mind weaving dreams,” Wright adds. “And the thought immediately occurred to me, ‘Weaver of dreams… Dream Weaver.’ I wrote it down in my journal of song titles and forgot about it.”

What Led Gary Wright To Write “Dream Weaver”

Wright initially forgot about the idea that eventually sparked “Dream Weaver”, until he found the title in his journal one day.

“Feeling inspired, I picked up my acoustic guitar and began writing,” Wright remembers. “The song was finished in an hour. The lyrics and music seemed to have flowed out of me as if written by an unseen source.”

It wasn’t until after Wright released “Dream Weaver” that even he understood what his hit single meant.

“Many people asked me what the song meant,” Wright says. “I really wasn’t sure myself and would answer, ‘It was about a kind of fantasy experience… a Dream Weaver train taking you through the cosmos.’ But I was never satisfied with that explanation. And as years went by, I began to reflect on what the song actually meant, and then it came to me: ‘Dream Weaver, I believe you can get me through the night…’ was a song about someone with infinite compassion and love carrying us through the night of our trials and suffering. None other than God Himself.”

Wright followed “Dream Weaver” with “Love Is Alive”. That song became his final Top 5 single.

Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns