Leonard Cohen, in turn, may have drawn inspiration from lyrics used by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Act I, Scene 2 of his opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail ("The Abduction from the Seraglio", K.384), sung by Pasha Selim's overseer, Osmin, to the lovesick Spanish nobleman, Belmonte:
OSMIN:
Wer ein Liebchen hat gefunden,
Die es treu und redlich meint,
Lohn' es ihr durch tausend Küsse;
Mach' ihr all das Leben süße,
Sei ihr Tröster, sei ihr Freund.
Trallalera, trallalera.
If you should ever find a sweetheart
Who will live for you and you alone,
Give her at least a thousand kisses,
And make her life a dream come true,
As her comfort and very best friend!
Trallalera, trallalera!
—text by Christoph Friedrich Bretzner, adapted by Johann Gottlieb Stephanie [English translation: Judyth Schaubhut Smith]