"Something" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album "Abbey Road". It was written by George Harrison, the band's lead guitarist, and is widely viewed by music historians as having marked his ascendancy as a composer to the level of the Beatles' principal songwriters, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Two weeks after the album's release, the song was issued on a double A-side single, coupled with "Come Together", making it the first Harrison composition to become a Beatles A-side. The pairing was also the first time in the United Kingdom that the Beatles issued a single containing tracks already available on an album.
Introduction
Something (Beatles song)
Something (Beatles song) | Introduction
"Abbey Road" "Abbey Road" Abbey Road Abbey Road
who did george harrison wrote the song something for
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Pattie Boyd
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who was she?
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She is an English model and photographer.
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who sang the above mentioned song?
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Joe Cocker
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which album is it a part of?
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[to] get it out there, and get something from it. Assisted by Harrison, Cocker recorded a demo of the song at Apple. While musicologist Walter Everett suggests that this was the same recording of "Something" that appeared on the "Joe Cocker!" album in November 1969, Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn writes that Cocker subsequently remade the track.
Something (Beatles song) | Joe Cocker demo
In March 1969, Harrison gave "Something" to Joe Cocker to record, having decided that it was more likely to become a hit with Cocker than with Lomax. Referring to this and similar examples where Harrison placed his overlooked songs with other recording artists, Ken Scott has refuted the idea that he lacked confidence as a songwriter in the Beatles, saying: I think he was totally confident about the songs. The insecurity may have been, if the Beatles kept going, "How many songs am I going to be able to get on each album?", and with the backlog sort of mounting up ...
Something (Beatles song) | Joe Cocker demo
"Something" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album "Abbey Road". It was written by George Harrison, the band's lead guitarist, and is widely viewed by music historians as having marked his ascendancy as a composer to the level of the Beatles' principal songwriters, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Two weeks after the album's release, the song was issued on a double A-side single, coupled with "Come Together", making it the first Harrison composition to become a Beatles A-side. The pairing was also the first time in the United Kingdom that the Beatles issued a single containing tracks already available on an album.
Something (Beatles song) | Introduction
Harrison first introduced "Something" at a Beatles session on 19 September 1968, when he played it to George Martin's stand-in as producer of "The Beatles", Chris Thomas, while the latter was working out the harpsichord part for Harrison's track "Piggies". Despite Thomas's enthusiasm for the new composition, Harrison chose to focus on "Piggies". He told Thomas that he intended to offer "Something" to singer Jackie Lomax, whose debut album Harrison was producing for Apple Records. "Something" was not among the tracks released on Lomax's album, however, much of which was recorded in Los Angeles following the completion of the White Album.
Something (Beatles song) | The Beatles' "Get Back/Let It Be" rehearsals
According to Walter Everett and Bruce Spizer: The Beatles Additional musicians
Something (Beatles song) | Personnel
While the single's commercial performance was lessened by this, it topped the "Billboard" Hot 100 in the United States as well as charts in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and West Germany, and peaked at number 4 in the UK. "Something" is described as a love song to Pattie Boyd, Harrison's first wife, although Harrison offered alternative sources of inspiration in later interviews. Due to the difficulty he faced in getting more than two of his compositions onto each Beatles album, Harrison first offered the song to Joe Cocker. As recorded by the Beatles, the track features a guitar solo that several music critics identify among Harrison's finest playing.
Something (Beatles song) | Introduction
With the proceedings being recorded by director Michael Lindsay-Hogg for the planned documentary film, tapes reveal Harrison discussing his unfinished lyrics for "Something" with Lennon and McCartney, since he had been unable to complete the song's second line, which begins "Attracts me ..." To serve as a temporary filler, Lennon suggested "like a cauliflower", which Harrison then altered to "like a pomegranate". In their study of the available tapes, Doug Sulpy and Ray Schweighardt write that the Beatles gave the song two run-throughs that day, which was the only occasion that they attempted it during the "Get Back"/"Let It Be" project.
Something (Beatles song) | The Beatles' "Get Back/Let It Be" rehearsals
Harrison originally considered giving his most successful composition, "Something", to Lomax to record,Mark Lewisohn, "Something Else", in "Mojo Special Limited Edition", p. 118. after Lennon and McCartney had shown little interest in it during the "Get Back" sessions. Harrison instead offered the song to Joe Cocker before the Beatles recorded it for their "Abbey Road" album.
Is This What You Want? | London, December 1968–January 1969
Songs of the Beatles is a 1981 album by Sarah Vaughan of songs by The Beatles. The album contains songs written and originally performed by The Beatles with contemporaneous pop and jazz arrangements. On "Something" Vaughan was accompanied by the Brazilian singer and musician Marcos Valle. It was recorded in 1977 but was not released until 1981 due to a recording contract problem.
Songs of the Beatles | Introduction
Richie Unterberger of AllMusic describes "Something" as "an unabashedly straightforward and sentimental love song" written at a time "when most of the Beatles' songs were dealing with non-romantic topics or presenting cryptic and allusive lyrics even when they were writing about love".
Something (Beatles song) | Composition
The promotional clip for "Something" was shot in late October 1969, not long after Lennon privately announced that he was leaving the band. By this time, the individual Beatles had grown apart and so the film consisted of separate clips of each Beatle walking around his home, accompanied by his wife, edited together. Harrison's segment shows him and Boyd together in the garden at Kinfauns; in author John Winn's description, Harrison appears "solemn" while Boyd is seen "smiling sweetly" and "sporting leather and fur coats". Winn also comments on the attractiveness of all the wives in contrast to the unkempt appearance of McCartney, especially, who had sunk into depression at the realisation that the Beatles were over.
Something (Beatles song) | Promotional film
The four segments were edited and compiled into a single film clip by Neil Aspinall. Writing in "The New York Times" following Aspinall's death in 2008, Allan Kozinn said: "What Mr. Aspinall's idyllic film avoided showing was that the Beatles were at that point barely on speaking terms. In the film, no two Beatles are seen together." In 2015, following restoration overseen by Apple's Jonathan Clyde, the "Something" promo film was included in the Beatles' video compilation "1" and its expanded edition, "1+". "Rolling Stone" journalist Rob Sheffield comments on the significance of the clip, with regard to the band's history: [E]ach couple projects a totally different vibe – George and Patti peacocking in their hippie-royalty finery, Paul and Linda on the farm in Scotland with Martha the sheepdog, Ringo and Maureen goofing around on motorbikes, John and Yoko serene in their matching black robes.
Something (Beatles song) | Promotional film
In a 1990 letter to Mark Lewisohn, Klein refuted a claim made by Lewisohn in his book "The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions", that the single was intended as a money-making exercise: Klein said it was purely a mark of Lennon's regard for "Something" and "to point out George as a writer, and give him courage to go in and do his own LP. Which he did." Following the Beatles' break-up in April 1970, Harrison's ascendancy as a songwriter would continue with his triple album "All Things Must Pass", building on the promise of White Album tracks such as "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and his two contributions to "Abbey Road".
Something (Beatles song) | Selection for single release
Apple Records issued "Abbey Road" on 26 September 1969, with "Something" sequenced as the second track, following Lennon's "Come Together". Lennon considered "Something" to be the best song on the album. Having ensured that "Old Brown Shoe" was chosen as the B-side for the Beatles' single "The Ballad of John and Yoko", according to his later recollection, Lennon now pushed Allen Klein to release "Something" as a single from "Abbey Road". Coupled with "Come Together", the single was issued on 6 October in America (as Apple 2654) and 31 October in Britain (as Apple R5814). The release marked the first time that a Harrison composition had been afforded A-side treatment on a Beatles single, as well as the only time during their career that a single was issued in the UK featuring tracks already available on an album.
Something (Beatles song) | Selection for single release
Additionally, "Something" is placed again at number 30, representing the song's performance before the November 1969 Hot 100 rule change.
Something (Beatles song) | Commercial performance
I have it on my jukebox at home. It's absolutely brilliant."
Something (Beatles song) | Other artists
Five of them were co-written with Chris Stainton between 1969 and 1972. "Something To Say" was written with Nichols. However, the album's main claim to fame might be that one of its tracks, "Woman to Woman", was the basis for Tupac Shakur's successful hit single "California Love". The album, re-titled as "Something to Say", was originally released on CD in 1990 by Castle Communications and in 1998 a remastered edition of the album was released worldwide on A&M Records. Alan White, soon to be Yes' drummer, played on this album alongside Jim Keltner, after he was featured on George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass" and John Lennon's "Live Peace in Toronto", "Imagine" and "Sometime in New-York City" albums.
Joe Cocker (album) | Introduction
Later that year, "Something" was one of the two "key tracks" highlighted by "Rolling Stone" when the magazine placed Harrison at number 11 on its list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists".
Something (Beatles song) | Critical reception, awards and legacy
Following the Beatles' brief efforts with "Something" on 28 January, Harrison talked with Lennon and Yoko Ono about recording a solo album of his unused songs, since he had already stockpiled enough compositions "for the next ten years", given his usual allocation of two tracks per album, and in order to "preserve this, the Beatle bit, more". Lennon offered his support for the idea, similarly keen that his and Ono's recording projects outside the Beatles could continue without jeopardising the band's future. On 25 February 1969 – his 26th birthday – Harrison entered Abbey Road Studios and taped solo demos of "Something", "Old Brown Shoe" and "All Things Must Pass", the last two of which had also been rejected recently by Lennon and McCartney.
Something (Beatles song) | Harrison solo demo
In 2002, a year after Harrison's death, McCartney and Eric Clapton performed it at the Concert for George tribute at London's Royal Albert Hall.
Something (Beatles song) | Introduction
With Ken Scott serving as his engineer, he recorded a live take of "Something", featuring electric guitar and vocal. By this point, Harrison had completed the lyrics, although he included an extra verse, sung to a counter-melody, over the section that would comprise his guitar solo on the Beatles' subsequent official recording. This demo version of "Something" remained unreleased until its inclusion on the Beatles' outtake collection "Anthology 3" in 1996.
Something (Beatles song) | Harrison solo demo
In the version issued on the Beatles' 1969 album "Abbey Road", which was the first release for the song, "Something" runs at a speed of around 66 beats per minute and is in common time throughout. It begins with a five-note guitar figure, which functions as the song's chorus, since it is repeated before each of the verses and also closes the track. The melody is in the key of C major until the eight-measure-long bridge, or middle eight, which is in the key of A major. Harrison biographer Simon Leng identifies "harmonic interest ... [in] almost every line" of the song, as the melody follows a series of descending half-steps from the tonic over the verses, a structure that is then mirrored in the new key, through the middle eight.
Something (Beatles song) | Composition
It was a tremendous work – and so simple." The group recorded "Something" on 16 April before Harrison decided to redo the song, a new basic track for which was then completed at Abbey Road on 2 May. The line-up was Harrison on Leslie-effected rhythm guitar, Lennon on piano, McCartney on bass, Ringo Starr on drums, and guest musician Billy Preston playing Hammond organ. On 5 May, at Olympic Sound Studios, McCartney re-recorded his bass part and Harrison added lead guitar. At this point, the song ran to eight minutes, due to the inclusion of an extended, jam-like coda led by Lennon's piano.
Something (Beatles song) | Recording and production
Shirley Bassey had a top-five UK hit with her 1970 recording, while Frank Sinatra regularly performed the song. Other artists who have covered it include Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Peggy Lee, James Brown, Tony Bennett, Andy Williams, Smokey Robinson and Ike & Tina Turner. In 1999, Broadcast Music Incorporated named "Something" as the 17th-most performed song of the twentieth century, with 5 million performances. In 2004, it was ranked at number 278 on "Rolling Stone"s list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", while two years later, "Mojo" placed it at number 7 in the magazine's list of the Beatles' best songs.
Something (Beatles song) | Introduction
After Harrison rejoined the Beatles in January 1969 for their "Get Back" film project (later released as "Let It Be"), "Something" was one of many recent compositions that he offered to the group. Leng describes this period as a prolific one for Harrison as a songwriter, comparing it with John Lennon's peak of creativity over 1963–64, yet Harrison's songs received little interest from Lennon and McCartney amid the tense, uncooperative atmosphere within the band. Martin was also unimpressed by "Something" at first, considering it "too weak and derivative", according to music journalist Mikal Gilmore. The Beatles rehearsed the song at Apple Studio on 28 January.
Something (Beatles song) | The Beatles' "Get Back/Let It Be" rehearsals
Harrison was inspired to write "Something" during sessions for the White Album by listening to label-mate James Taylor's "Something in the Way She Moves" from his album "James Taylor". After the lyrics were refined during the "Let It Be" sessions (tapes reveal Lennon giving Harrison some songwriting advice during its composition), the song was initially given to Joe Cocker, but was subsequently recorded for "Abbey Road". Cocker's version appeared on his album "Joe Cocker!" that November. "Something" was Lennon's favourite song on the album, and McCartney considered it the best song Harrison had written. Though the song was written by Harrison, Frank Sinatra once commented that it was his favourite Lennon–McCartney composition and "the greatest love song ever written".
Abbey Road | "Something"
The song also drew praise from the other Beatles and their producer, George Martin, with Lennon stating that it was the best song on "Abbey Road". The promotional film for the single combined footage of each of the Beatles with his respective wife, reflecting the estrangement in the band during the months preceding their break-up in April 1970. Harrison subsequently performed the song at his Concert for Bangladesh shows in 1971 and throughout the two tours he made as a solo artist. "Something" received the Ivor Novello Award for the "Best Song Musically and Lyrically" of 1969. By the late 1970s, it had been covered by over 150 artists, making it the second-most covered Beatles composition after "Yesterday".
Something (Beatles song) | Introduction
Former Motown recording artist Kim Weston included her version on her 1970 album "Big Brass Four Poster". Ray Charles issued his version on the album "Volcanic Action of My Soul" in 1971, the same year that recordings appeared by Andy Williams and Junior Walker & the All Stars, while Buddy Rich, Blue Mink and Ike & Tina Turner were among the acts who covered it in 1972. Referring to the song's popularity among easy-listening artists, Harrison later said: "When even Liberace covered it [in 1970], you know that it's one of them that ends up in an elevator ..." "Something" was one of the rare Beatles songs that Elvis Presley chose to play, when he introduced it into the setlist for his third season at the International Hotel in Las Vegas, in August 1970.
Something (Beatles song) | Other artists
After taking a break from recording, the band returned to "Something" on 11 July, when Harrison overdubbed what would turn out to be a temporary vocal. With the resulting reduction mix, much of the coda, along with almost all of Lennon's playing on the main part of the song, was cut from the recording. The piano can be heard only in the middle eight, specifically during the descending run that follows each pair of "I don't know" vocal lines. On 16 July, Harrison recorded a new vocal, with McCartney overdubbing his harmony vocal over the middle eight and Starr adding both a second hi-hat part and a cymbal.
Something (Beatles song) | Recording and production
In early 1969, according to author Joshua Greene, Harrison told his friends from the Hare Krishna Movement that the song was about the Hindu deity Krishna; in an interview with "Rolling Stone" in 1976, he said of his approach to writing love songs: "all love is part of a universal love. When you love a woman, it's the God in her that you see." By 1996, Harrison had denied writing "Something" for Boyd. That year, he told music journalist Paul Cashmere that "everybody presumed I wrote it about Pattie" because of the promotional film accompanying the release of the Beatles' recording, which showed the couple together.
Something (Beatles song) | Background and inspiration
Something New is an album by English rock band the Beatles, released in 1964.
Something New (Beatles album) | Introduction
"That Would Be Something" is a song written by Paul McCartney which was first released on his "McCartney" album on 17 April 1970.
That Would Be Something | Introduction
Following its appearance in David Leland's film "Concert for George" (2003) and on the accompanying live album, this performance of "Something" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals. Bob Dylan also played the song live during his November 2002 concerts, as a tribute to Harrison. McCartney has continued to perform "Something", adopting the Concert for George mix of ukulele and rock backing; a version with this musical arrangement was included on his 2009 album "Good Evening New York City".
Something (Beatles song) | Harrison tributes
He also performed it on his 1973 "Aloha from Hawaii" TV special, the recording from which appeared on the accompanying bestselling album. A live version from the 1970 Las Vegas concerts subsequently appeared on the Presley box sets "" (1995) and "Live in Las Vegas" (2001). In 1974, a recording by Johnny Rodriguez reached number 6 on "Billboard"s Hot Country Singles chart and number 85 on the Hot 100. In Canada, the song peaked at number 11 on the "RPM" country chart. The version by James Brown was said by Harrison to be his favourite cover of the song: "It was one of his B sides.
Something (Beatles song) | Other artists
As the preferred side, "Something" was number 1 in Canada (for five weeks), Australia (five weeks), West Germany (two weeks), New Zealand and Singapore. The combined sides reached number 4 in Britain. There, the release was highly unusual, given the traditional preference for non-album singles. In addition, according to former "Mojo" editor Paul Du Noyer, "so enormous were sales of "Abbey Road" that demand for the single was inevitably dampened." On 17 February 1999, "Something" was certified double Platinum by the RIAA. In its 2014 list titled "The Beatles' 50 Biggest Billboard Hits", "Billboard" places the double A-side single in sixth place, immediately after "Let It Be" and ahead of "Hello, Goodbye".
Something (Beatles song) | Commercial performance
Harrison's composition began accumulating cover versions almost immediately after the release of "Abbey Road". In addition to Joe Cocker, Peggy Lee and Tony Bennett each issued recordings of the song at the end of 1969. Lena Horne recorded "Something" in the jazz style for her 1970 album with guitarist Gabor Szabo, titled "Lena & Gabor". An instrumental version by Booker T. & the M.G.'s, from their "Abbey Road" tribute album "McLemore Avenue", peaked at number 76 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 in August 1970. Other artists who released covers of the song that year include Della Reese, Nancy Sinatra, Perry Como, Karina, Duane Eddy, the Ray Conniff Singers, Jerry Butler, Johnny Mathis, Engelbert Humperdinck, Isaac Hayes, King Curtis, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas, Ferrante & Teicher and the Shadows.
Something (Beatles song) | Other artists
To the disappointment of many fans, however, he chose to alter some of the song's lyrics (such as changing the first line to "If there's something in the way, remove it"). Further distancing himself from the Beatles' legacy, Harrison told journalists at the start of the tour that he would join a group with Lennon "any day" but rejected the idea of working again with McCartney, since he preferred Willie Weeks as a bassist. MacDonald comments that this statement was likely in reference to McCartney's "too fussily extemporised" bass part on the Beatles' 1969 recording. With Boyd having left Harrison for Clapton earlier in 1974, Larry Sloman of "Rolling Stone" described the reworked "Something" as "a moving diary of his love life".
Something (Beatles song) | Live performances by Harrison
Each Beatle looks like he's found what he was looking for – but they're heading for four separate futures. In her review of "1+", for "Paste", Gillian Gaar says that with the Beatles' promotional films of their singles, from "Love Me Do" to "Something" (the last one they made during their career), "you can see the development of the promo clip, progressing from a short film that simply served up a straight performance to a piece of work that was striving to be something more artistic."
Something (Beatles song) | Promotional film
George Harrison began writing "Something" in September 1968, during a session for the Beatles' self-titled double album, also known as "the White Album".Mark Lewisohn, "Something Else", in "Mojo Special Limited Edition", p. 118. In his autobiography, "I, Me Mine", he recalls working on the melody on a piano, at the same time as Paul McCartney recorded overdubs in a neighbouring studio at London's Abbey Road Studios. Harrison suspended work on the song, believing that with the tune having come to him so easily, it might have been a melody from another song. In "I, Me, Mine", he wrote that the middle eight "took some time to sort out".
Something (Beatles song) | Background and inspiration
By 1978, however, he had begun correctly citing Harrison as its author. Harrison went on to adopt Sinatra's minor lyrical change (in the song's middle eight, singing "You stick around, Jack ...") in his live performances over 1991–92. In "The Beatles Anthology", Harrison says he viewed Sinatra as being part of "the generation before me" and so only later came to appreciate the American singer's adoption of the song.
Something (Beatles song) | Frank Sinatra
Like Lennon, both McCartney and Starr held the song in high regard. In the 2000 book "The Beatles Anthology", Starr paired "Something" with "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" as "Two of the finest love songs ever written", adding, "they're really on a par with what John and Paul or anyone else of that time wrote"; McCartney said it was "George's greatest track – with 'Here Comes the Sun' and 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps'". Among Harrison's other peers, Paul Simon described "Something" as a "masterpiece" and Elton John said: "'Something' is probably one of the best love songs ever, ever, "ever" written ...
Something (Beatles song) | Critical reception, awards and legacy
Although its commercial impact was lessened by the ongoing success of the parent album, "Something" / "Come Together" was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on 27 October. During the single's chart run on "Billboard" in the US, "Something" peaked at number 3 until the magazine changed its practice of counting sales and airplay separately for each song; following this change on 29 November, the single topped the "Billboard" Hot 100, for one week. "Come Together" / "Something" became the Beatles' eighteenth number 1 single in "Billboard", surpassing Elvis Presley's record of seventeen. In the other US national charts, "Record World" listed "Something" / "Come Together" at number 1 for two weeks and "Come Together" / "Something" for the remaining three weeks at number 1, while in "Cash Box" magazine, which continued to rank each song separately, "Something" peaked at number 2 and "Come Together" spent three weeks at number 1.
Something (Beatles song) | Commercial performance
A version from Harrison's December 1991 tour of Japan with Clapton – Harrison's only other tour as a solo artist – appears on the "Live in Japan" double album (1992). Inglis writes of the track having "extra poignancy" by this time, "in that the woman for whom it was written had been married to, and divorced from, Harrison and Clapton in turn". Inglis adds: "It is not a new interpretation of the song, but it does suggest a new perspective, in which words and music are used by two close friends to reflect on the lives they have led."
Something (Beatles song) | Live performances by Harrison
"Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" is a song by the English rock group the Beatles from their 1968 double album "The Beatles" (also known as "the White Album"). The song was written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney.
Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey | Introduction
Shortly after the "McCartney" album's release, George Harrison described this song and "Maybe I'm Amazed" as "great". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic said the song was "light folk-pop". In a review for the "McCartney" album, Langdon Winner of "Rolling Stone" described "That Would Be Something", along with "The Lovely Linda", as having "virtually no verbal or melodic content whatsoever." "That Would Be Something" was also released on the 1991 album "Unplugged (The Official Bootleg)". The song was first performed live by McCartney, in Barcelona, on 8 May 1991.
That Would Be Something | Release and Reception
The melody returns to C major for the guitar solo, the third verse, and the outro. While Leng considers that, lyrically and musically, "Something" reflects "doubt and striving to attain an uncertain goal", author Ian Inglis writes of the confident statements that Harrison makes throughout regarding his feelings for Boyd. Referring to lines in the song's verses, Inglis writes: "there is a clear and mutual confidence in the reciprocal nature of their love; he muses that [Boyd] 'attracts me like no other lover' and 'all I have to do is think of her,' but he is equally aware that she feels the same, that 'somewhere in her smile, she knows.'" Similarly, when Harrison sings in the middle eight that "You're asking me will my love grow / I don't know, I don't know", Inglis interprets the words as "not an indication of uncertainty, but a wry reflection that his love is already so complete that it may simply be impossible for it to become any greater".
Something (Beatles song) | Composition
This album was also released on the Parlophone label for sale only on American Armed Forces bases in Europe. These copies have great collector value. The album was also issued in Germany on the Odeon label. The German stereo version contains a reprocessed stereo version of "Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand" and an extended version of "And I Love Her", repeating the closing riff six times instead of four. This mix was later released on the US version of "Rarities".
Something New (Beatles album) | Release history
All songs written by Lennon–McCartney, except "Something" by George Harrison, and those others as noted on the second DVD. All tracks produced by George Martin except "The Long and Winding Road" re-produced for disc by Phil Spector. CD tracks 1–3 are in mono; all others on CD are in stereo.
1 (Beatles album) | Track listing
"Questions and Answers" is a song by Sham 69 released in 1979 from their third studio album "The Adventures of the Hersham Boys". It reached number eighteen on the UK Singles Chart. The song also featured with live and compilation albums including "The First, the Best and the Last" in 1980, "Live and Loud!!" in 1987, "The Complete Sham 69 Live" in 1989, "Live at the Roxy Club" in 1990, "The Punk Singles Collection 1977-80" in 1998. The B-side tracks "Gotta Survive (live)" and The Beatles' cover version With a Little Help from My Friends appears on this single. The song "Questions and Answers" was written and produced by frontman Jimmy Pursey and guitarist Dave Parsons of Sham 69, and Peter Wilson
Questions and Answers (Sham 69 song) | Introduction
Lennon contributed piano to the recording and while most of the part was removed, traces of it remain in the final cut, notably on the middle eight, before Harrison's guitar solo. The song was issued as a double A-side single with "Come Together" in October 1969 and topped the US charts for one week, becoming the Beatles' first number-one single that was not a Lennon–McCartney composition. It was also the first Beatles single from an album already released in the UK. Apple's Neil Aspinall filmed a promotional video, which combined separate footage of the Beatles and their wives.
Abbey Road | "Something"
Something is an album by organist Shirley Scott recorded in 1970 and released on the Atlantic label. It includes instrumental covers of several contemporary hits from artists such as the Beatles and the Jackson 5, along with the original song "Messie Bessie".
Something (Shirley Scott album) | Introduction
Among contemporary reviews, "Time" magazine declared "Something" to be the best track on "Abbey Road", while John Mendelsohn wrote in "Rolling Stone": "George's vocal, containing less adenoids and more grainy Paul tunefulness than ever before, is one of many highlights on his 'Something,' some of the others being more excellent drum work, a dead catchy guitar line, perfectly subdued strings, and an unusually nice melody. Both his and Joe Cocker's version will suffice nicely until Ray Charles gets around to it." Writing in "Saturday Review" magazine, Ellen Sander described "Something" as "certainly one of the most beautiful songs George Harrison has ever written" and added: "He feels his way through the song, instinctively cutting through its body and into the core, emoting so clearly and so gracefully that at the moment he peals 'I don't know, I don't know,' it is shown that even what is not known can be understood." Lon Goddard of "Record Mirror" described the song as "another beautiful Harrison composition" in the style of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", saying that "It leaps scales in its heavy orchestral arrangement, then drifts down to George's simple but effective guitar style." In his review of the single, Derek Johnson of the "NME" lauded the track as "a real quality hunk of pop" with a "strident lead guitar which exudes a mean and moody quality".
Something (Beatles song) | Critical reception, awards and legacy
"Ask Me Why" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles originally released in the United Kingdom as the B-side of their single "Please Please Me". It was also included on their 1963 debut album "Please Please Me". It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership.
Ask Me Why | Introduction
She later suggested that she and Harrison could become a singer-and-songwriter pairing on the scale of Dionne Warwick and Burt Bacharach. After reading these comments in 1970, Harrison wrote "When Every Song Is Sung" with Bassey in mind, although it was not a composition that she ever recorded.
Something (Beatles song) | Shirley Bassey
Portions of the following songs appear on the album:
The Beatles' Story | Songs
All mono mixes of the five songs duplicated from the United Artists soundtrack album are identical on both releases. "Something New" was the only early Capitol Beatles album to contain all tracks in true stereo. The mono release contains alternative versions of "Any Time At All" (a different mix during the instrumental bridge), "I'll Cry Instead" (with the "missing" third verse), "When I Get Home" (the line "Till I walk out that door again" during the song's bridge has a different vocal passage from the UK mono mix), "If I Fell" (Lennon's non-double-tracked introductory vocal), and "And I Love Her" (McCartney's non-double-tracked vocal).
Something New (Beatles album) | Release history
Personnel per Ian MacDonald:
Because (Beatles song) | Personnel
The album spent nine weeks at No. 2 on the "Billboard" Top LPs chart in 1964, behind the United Artists "A Hard Day's Night" album. "Something New" was included in Robert Christgau's "Basic Record Library" of 1950s and 1960s recordings, published in "" (1981).
Something New (Beatles album) | Reception
Johnson stated his regret that Harrison "isn't featured more regularly as a singer", and concluded of "Something": "It's a song that grows on you, and mark my words, it will – in a big way!" Along with "Here Comes the Sun", the song established Harrison as a composer to match Lennon and McCartney. Writing in his book "Revolution in the Head", author and critic Ian MacDonald described "Something" as "the acme of Harrison's achievement as a writer". MacDonald highlighted the song's "key-structure of classical grace and panoramic effect", and cited the lyrics to verse two as "its author's finest lines – at once deeper and more elegant than almost anything his colleagues ever wrote".
Something (Beatles song) | Critical reception, awards and legacy
The dark theme of the album was balanced by "Every Little Thing", which Unterberger describes as a "celebration of what a wonderful girl the guy has". McCartney said of the song: "'Every Little Thing', like most of the stuff I did, was my attempt at the next single ... but it became an album filler rather than the great almighty single. It didn't have quite what was required." Musicologist Walter Everett says the chorus' incorporation of "leaden" parallel fifth harmonies, supported by Starr's timpani, was the inspiration for a proto-heavy metal version of the song recorded by the English progressive rock band Yes in 1969.
Beatles for Sale | "Every Little Thing"
The album's sole single, "Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)", was released on 1 August 1985. This song used uncredited Lennon-McCartney lyrics, with the final passage of the song quoting key lyrics of the Beatles song "She Said, She Said". "What Does Anything Mean? Basically" was released 1 October 1985 on record label Statik.
What Does Anything Mean? Basically | Release
Frank Sinatra was particularly impressed with "Something", calling it "the greatest love song of the past 50 years". According to Du Noyer, he "especially admired the way the lyric evokes a girl who isn't even present". Aside from performing "Something" numerous times in concert, Sinatra recorded the song twice: in October 1970 as a single for Reprise Records (a version that later appeared on "Frank Sinatra's Greatest Hits, Vol. 2"), and for his 1980 triple album "". With the sides flipped to favour the B-side, "Bein' Green", the 1970 single peaked at number 22 on "Billboard"s Easy Listening chart. During his live performances, Sinatra was known to mistakenly introduce "Something" as a Lennon–McCartney composition.
Something (Beatles song) | Frank Sinatra
"Every Little Thing" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their album "Beatles for Sale", issued in the UK in December 1964. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, it was written by Paul McCartney, although John Lennon is the more prominent lead vocalist on the recording. Capitol Records first issued the song in the US on "Beatles VI" in June 1965. The track is an early example of the Beatles' use of non-rock instrumentation on a recording, through the addition of timpani drum over the choruses.
Every Little Thing (Beatles song) | Introduction
Bruce Springsteen opened his first show after Harrison's death on 29 November 2001 by playing an acoustic version of "Something" with violinist Soozie Tyrell, followed by a rendition of Harrison's solo hit "My Sweet Lord". Elton John gave a solo performance of the song at New York's Carnegie Hall in April 2002, as part of a one-hour Harrison tribute during the eleventh annual Rainforest Foundation concert. In honour of Harrison's fondness for the instrument, Paul McCartney played a ukulele rendition of "Something" throughout his 2002–03 world tour and included the track on his "Back in the U.S." live album. At the Concert for George, held at London's Royal Albert Hall on 29 November 2002, he and Eric Clapton performed a version that began with McCartney alone on ukulele, then reverted to the familiar rock arrangement with Clapton taking over as lead singer and backing from Starr, Preston and others.
Something (Beatles song) | Harrison tributes
"Because" is a song written by John Lennon (credited to Lennon–McCartney) and recorded by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released on their 1969 album "Abbey Road", immediately preceding the extended medley on side two of the record. It features a prominent three-part vocal harmony by Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison, recorded three times to make nine voices in all.
Because (Beatles song) | Introduction
The album is the third Capitol LP release and fifth American album release overall by the band, following the United Artists release of "A Hard Day's Night". Originally scheduled for 1 August 1964, the album was rush-released on 20 July 1964, ten days after the British release of "A Hard Day's Night". The album includes eight songs from the original British release of "A Hard Day's Night", as well as the tracks "Slow Down" and "Matchbox" from the "Long Tall Sally" EP and the German-language version of "I Want to Hold Your Hand". The album was released in both mono and stereo versions.
Something New (Beatles album) | Release history
The opening lyric was taken from the title of "Something in the Way She Moves", a track by Harrison's fellow Apple Records artist James Taylor. While Harrison imagined the composition in the style of Ray Charles, his inspiration for "Something" was his wife, Pattie Boyd. In her 2007 autobiography, "Wonderful Today", Boyd recalls: "He told me, in a matter-of-fact way, that he had written it for me. I thought it was beautiful ..." Boyd discusses the song's popularity among other recording artists and concludes: "My favourite [version] was the one by George Harrison, which he played to me in the kitchen at Kinfauns." Having begun to write love songs that were directed at both God and a woman, with his White Album track "Long, Long, Long", Harrison later cited alternative sources for his inspiration for "Something".
Something (Beatles song) | Background and inspiration
"Tell Me Why" is a song by English rock band the Beatles from their album "A Hard Day's Night". In North America, it was released on both the American version of "A Hard Day's Night" and the album "Something New". Credited to Lennon–McCartney, it was written by John Lennon in either Paris or New York City and recorded in eight takes on 27 February 1964.
Tell Me Why (Beatles song) | Introduction
"It Must Have Been Something I Said!" is the fifth comedy album from the Smothers Brothers (released April 15, 1964 on Mercury Records). It reached number 23 on the "Billboard" Pop Albums chart. The single "Jenny Brown" had peaked at #84 on the 1963 Pop Singles chart, however the recording here is a different, "live" version. The album was recorded at The Ice House in Pasadena, California. The cover photograph showed Dick having just smashed a guitar over Tom's head, thereby justifying the album title as a word balloon.
It Must Have Been Something I Said! | Introduction
"Give Me Something" is a song by Yoko Ono, originally released in 1980 on John Lennon and Ono's duet album "Double Fantasy". The song appeared in Ono's off-Broadway musical "New York Rock" and her compilation albums "Walking on Thin Ice" and "Onobox". In 2010, the Junior Boys remix of the song was released as a free download on MySpace Music and RCRD LBL.
Give Me Something | Introduction
"Help!" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that served as the title song for the 1965 film and its soundtrack album. It was released as a single in July 1965, and was number one for three weeks in the United States and the United Kingdom. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, "Help!" was written by John Lennon with some help from Paul McCartney. During an interview with "Playboy" in 1980, Lennon recounted: "The whole Beatles thing was just beyond comprehension. I was subconsciously crying out for help". It was ranked at number 29 on "Rolling Stone"'s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Help! (song) | Introduction
Joe Cocker! is the second studio album by English singer Joe Cocker, released in November 1969. Following the template of his first LP, the album features numerous covers of songs originally performed by Bob Dylan ("Dear Landlord"), the Beatles ("She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" and "Something" – both released almost simultaneously with original versions; "Let It Be" was also recorded and released as a B-side), Leonard Cohen ("Bird on the Wire"), and future touring partner Leon Russell ("Delta Lady"). Cocker also co-wrote one song, "That's Your Business Now", with Chris Stainton, who was also his writing partner in later years.
Joe Cocker! | Introduction
"Something in the Way She Moves" is a song written by James Taylor that appeared on his 1968 debut album for Apple Records, "James Taylor". It has also been covered by other artists, including Tom Rush and Harry Belafonte. The opening line inspired George Harrison to write the No. 1 Beatles' song "Something". According to James Taylor's stage banter at The Star in Frisco July 31, 2017, this was the song he played for Paul McCartney and George Harrison as an audition before signing with Apple Records.
Something in the Way She Moves | Introduction
Among the song's many cover versions, Welsh singer Shirley Bassey recorded a successful version of "Something". It was released in 1970 as the title track to her album of the same name. Also issued as a single, it became Bassey's first top-ten hit in the UK since "I (Who Have Nothing)" in 1963, peaking at number 4 and spending 22 weeks on the chart. The single also reached the top twenty in other European countries and peaked at number 6 on "Billboard"s Easy Listening (later Adult Contemporary) chart. Bassey said she had been unaware of the song's origins when recording "Something".
Something (Beatles song) | Shirley Bassey
The Beatles undertook the recording of "Abbey Road" with a sense of discipline and cooperation that had largely been absent while making the White Album and "Let It Be". Having temporarily left the group in January 1969 partly as a result of McCartney's criticism of his musicianship, Harrison exhibited a greater level of assertiveness regarding his place in the band, particularly while they worked on his compositions "Something" and "Here Comes the Sun". In addition, like Lennon and McCartney, Martin had come to fully appreciate Harrison as a songwriter, later saying: "I first recognised that he really had a great talent when we did 'Here Comes the Sun.' But when he brought in 'Something,' it was something else ...
Something (Beatles song) | Recording and production
Harrison played "Something" at the two Concert for Bangladesh shows, held at Madison Square Garden in New York on 1 August 1971. His first live performance as a solo artist, he was backed by a large band that included Starr, Preston, Clapton and Leon Russell. The version used on the live album and in the 1972 concert film was taken from the evening show that day, when Harrison played it as the final song before returning to perform "Bangla Desh" as an encore. Harrison included "Something" in all of his subsequent, and rare, full-length concert appearances. For his 1974 North American tour with Ravi Shankar, he had been reluctant to feature any material from the Beatles' catalogue, but at the urging of Shankar and Preston during rehearsals, he added "Something" to the setlist.
Something (Beatles song) | Live performances by Harrison
While noting the Beatles' fatigue on the album in reaction to their punishing schedule in 1964, Ewing views McCartney's narrative as "distinctly melancholy, his 'yes, I know I'm a lucky guy' sounding like an attempt to convince himself of that". In 2010, "Every Little Thing" appeared at number 91 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Beatles Songs". This song was revisited briefly during the stressful rehearsals that were recorded for the Beatles' "Get Back/Let It Be" project – Harrison describes it as "a good one" before starting to play the lick, McCartney joining in on vocals.
Every Little Thing (Beatles song) | Critical reception
Chris Coplan of "Consequence of Sound" pairs it with "Got to Get You into My Life" as songs that are "seemingly out of place" on "Revolver" amid the overtly psychedelic and experimental music that typifies the album. In his authorised biography, "Many Years from Now", McCartney names "Here, There and Everywhere" as one of his personal favourites. Beatles producer George Martin also highlighted it among his favourite McCartney songs. Lennon reportedly told McCartney that "Here, There and Everywhere" was "the best tune" on "Revolver". In a 1980 interview for "Playboy" magazine, Lennon described it as "one of my favourite songs of the Beatles".
Here, There and Everywhere | Release and reception
Something to Sing About! is a compilation album including specially recorded songs by American singer-songwriters John Denver and Tom Paxton. It was produced by Milt Okun and released in 1968.
Something to Sing About (album) | Introduction
the man who can have "anything" he wants".
Revolver (Beatles album) | "And Your Bird Can Sing"
Tony Bennett's "Something" is a 1970 studio album by Tony Bennett. As with Bennett's previous album, "Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today!", it contains renditions of contemporary pop songs, including "Something", which had appeared on the earlier release. The album cover shows Bennett embracing his infant daughter, Joanna.
Tony Bennett's &quot;Something&quot; | Introduction
The song was covered by the Smithereens on their 2008 album "B-Sides The Beatles". Engineered by Norman Smith
Ask Me Why | Cover versions
"Something or Nothing" is a song by British rock band Uriah Heep. The song was written by Ken Hensley, Mick Box and Gary Thain and sung by David Byron. The song is the sixth track on their seventh album "Wonderworld", it is also the first track on the second side of the album. "Something or Nothing" was recorded in Munich, Germany, in a studio called "Musicland" during January and March 1974. The B-side of the song is "What Can I Do" which has never been released on the album "Wonderworld". The song is being played with only four chords: D,A,C and G.
Something or Nothing | Introduction
Episode 1: A Tendency To Play Music - 1 October 1988 Episode 2: Bill Toppers - 8 October 1988 Episode 3: The Something-Something Show - 15 October 1988
The Beeb's Lost Beatles Tapes | Episodes
McCartney later stated that Harrison called Lennon's demo recording "fucking rubbish." McCartney told "Q Magazine" in 1997 that "George didn't like it. The Beatles being a democracy, we didn't do it." An unnamed participant in the sessions told the "Daily Express": "George just didn’t want to rework it because it’s not a matter of putting some vocals, or a bit of bass and drums to finish it. With this, you have to really build the song."
Now and Then (John Lennon song) | The Beatles' version
The Sex Pistols recorded a version of "Something Else" for the album "The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle". The double A-sided single was credited to "Sex Pistols : vocals Sid Vicious" and was released three weeks after Vicious died. The single peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart. The other side of the single was "Friggin' in the Riggin'" credited to "Sex Pistols : vocals Steve Jones". There are a few (slight) changes to the lyrics, for example the opening verse is changed from, "Here comes that girl again/Wanted to date her since I don't know when" to "Here comes that girl again/One of the cutest since I don't know when" and in the third verse, the lines are changed from "Worked hard and saved my dough/I'll buy that car that I've been wanting so" to "Worked hard and saved my dough/I buy that car and I load up with Joe".
Somethin' Else (song) | Sex Pistols version
Lawrence Welk covered this song in his popular program's New Year's Eve show of 1970.
This Could Be the Start of Something | Notes
This album is essentially a combination of both the US and UK versions of the earlier album "20 Greatest Hits", with the addition of "Something" (which was left off "20 Greatest Hits" because of time constraints). On "1", "Hey Jude" was released in its original full-length version (slightly over seven minutes); on the American version of "20 Greatest Hits" it had been released as a shortened version.
1 (Beatles album) | Background
In a review for the "McCartney" album, Langdon Winner of "Rolling Stone" described "The Lovely Linda", along with "That Would Be Something", as having "virtually no verbal or melodic content whatsoever." George Harrison disregarded the song during an interview in 1970, stating: "'That Would Be Something' and 'Maybe I'm Amazed' I think are great and everything else I think is fair, you know. It's quite good, but a little disappointing, but maybe I shouldn't be disappointed, it's best not to expect anything, then everything's a bonus. I think those two tracks are very good and the others just don't do anything for me." Personnel per "The Beatles Bible".
The Lovely Linda | Reception
In the final interview he gave before his murder in December 1980, Lennon dismissed Manson as "just an extreme version" of the type of listener who read false messages in the Beatles' lyrics, such as those behind the 1969 "Paul is dead" rumour. Lennon also said: "All that Manson stuff was built around George's song about pigs ['Piggies'] and this one, Paul's song about an English fairground. It has nothing to do with anything, and least of all to do with "me"."
Helter Skelter (song) | Charles Manson interpretation
All We Are Saying... is an album by American guitarist and composer Bill Frisell that was released in September 2011. It consists of songs written by John Lennon, both as a member of the Beatles and as a solo artist, arranged and performed in Frisell's definitive style. The album also features violinist Jenny Scheinman, pedal steel and acoustic guitarist Greg Leisz, bassist Tony Scherr, and drummer Kenny Wollesen. The title comes from the first line of the chorus to Lennon's 1969 single "Give Peace a Chance".
All We Are Saying | Introduction
The song's harmonic structure is derived from Indian music and is based on a high-volume C drone played by Harrison on a tambura. Over the foundation of tambura, bass and drums, the five tape loops comprise various manipulated sounds: two separate sitar passages, played backwards and sped up; an orchestra sounding a B chord; McCartney's laughter, sped up to resemble a seagull's cry; and a Mellotron played on either its flute, string or brass setting. The Leslie speaker treatment applied to Lennon's vocal originated from his request that Martin make him sound like he was the Dalai Lama singing from the top of a high mountain.
Revolver (Beatles album) | "Tomorrow Never Knows"
Something Old, Something New, Something Blue, Somethin' Else is a rock and roll album that by the Crickets. It is The Crickets' third release following the departure and subsequent death of their front man, Buddy Holly. As the original cover indicates, the album contains versions of four old songs, four new songs, and four songs with variations of "blue" in the title. Originally released as an LP record on in December 1962, the album was re-released on CD in 1994, with bonus tracks not featured on the original album and a new album cover. In the UK an EP titled "Straight - No Strings!" was issued on Liberty (LEP 2094) featuring four tracks from this album: "Willie And The Hand Jive", "Summertime Blues", "Searchin'" and "What'd I Say".
Something Old, Something New, Something Blue, Somethin' Else | Introduction
You, who don't know anything about it. Fuckin' bullshit!"
Lennon Remembers | Inauthenticity of the Beatles
"I Know (I Know)" is a song written by John Lennon released on his 1973 album "Mind Games". The song is included on the 1998 box set, "John Lennon Anthology". Lennon called the song, "just a piece of nothing," though some have read the song as a confession of troubles with his relationship with Yoko Ono.
I Know (I Know) | Introduction
"Somethin' Else" is a song by the rockabilly musician Eddie Cochran, co-written by his girlfriend Sharon Sheeley and his elder brother Bob Cochran, and released in 1959. It has been covered by a wide range of artists, including the Sex Pistols, who scored a number 3 hit with it in the UK Singles Chart in 1979.
Somethin' Else (song) | Introduction
In their respective line-ups for the song, authors Ian MacDonald and Kenneth Womack each credit Harrison for the lead guitar part, played on a Rickenbacker 12-string, and Lennon as the acoustic rhythm guitarist. Winn also names Harrison as the lead guitarist, saying that he played Rickenbacker on the basic track and the subsequent overdubs. The four band members enjoyed themselves on the second night; take 6 was aborted due to McCartney burping his vocals, and take 7 was finished but ended in loud laughter. "Every Little Thing" is one of the first Beatles tracks to include "exotic" instrumentation, as Ringo Starr added timpani over the choruses, punctuating the refrain with one-two flourishes.
Every Little Thing (Beatles song) | Recording
As far as I can gather from talking to them all, nobody would mind doing some work together again. But if we did do something, I'm sure it wouldn't be permanent. We'd do it just for that moment." At Starr's request, McCartney also appears on "Ringo", for the song "Six O'Clock". This made it the only album to include compositions and performances by all four ex-Beatles, albeit on separate songs after the breakup.
Break-up of the Beatles | Partial and attempted reunions in the 1970s
George Harrison liked "Something in the Way She Moves" so much that he used the beginning as the first line of his 1969 song "Something" from the Beatles album "Abbey Road", which was also released as a single and reached No. 1. Early in the development of "Something," Harrison had expanded the opening of this song to "Something in the way she moves / Attracts me like a pomegranate," using the word "pomegranate" simply as a place-holder until better words could be found. Taylor has stated that "I never thought for a second that George intended to do that. I don't think he intentionally ripped anything off, and all music is borrowed from other music.
Something in the Way She Moves | Inspiration for "Something"
The album's cover is a parody of the cover for The Beatles album "Abbey Road", showing Mr. Horse (in place of John Lennon), Muddy Mudskipper (in place of Ringo Starr), Stimpy (in place of Paul McCartney), and Ren (in place of George Harrison) walking across the street.
You Eediot! | Introduction