"Dig a Pony"

"Dig a Pony" is a song by The Beatles, originally released on their 1970 album Let It Be, and later re-released on Let It Be... Naked in 2003. "Dig a Pony" was the second to last song played on the concert on the rooftop of Apple Studios in Savile Row, London on January 30, 1969.

Composition

John Lennon was the song's composer and singer but the song was credited to Lennon/McCartney. Lennon would later comment that he thought the song was "a piece of garbage," though he has shown similar scorn for many of his songs. It was written for his soon-to-be wife Yoko Ono, and featured a multitude of strange, seemingly nonsense phrases which were strung together, culminating in the chorus "All I want is you," aimed at Yoko.

Recording

The song was one of the songs on the Let It Be album that was recorded at the famous Rooftop Concert. It begins with a false start, with Ringo Starr yelling "hold it!" to halt the other band members because he was holding a cigarette and had only one drum stick in his hand. On the Anthology 3 version of this song, the first verse and the end of the song start off with Paul McCartney singing "All I want is..."

Credits

* John Lennon – lead vocal, rhythm guitar
* Paul McCartney – backing vocal, bass
* George Harrison – backing vocal, lead guitar
* Ringo Starr – drums

Cover versions

The American funk rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers covered this song as an introduction to "I Could Die For You" while touring to support their 2002 album "By the Way." Yellow Matter Custard also covered the song in their 2003 tour. St. Vincent covered this song for a Black Cab Session in October 2007, as well as several times throughout her 2007 tour. It has also been covered by Laibach on their album Let It Be, which is a complete re-working of the Beatles album Let It Be. Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio frequently covered the song on his 2005 tour with his band, 70 Volt Parade. Finally, American bassist Chris Lightcap recorded an instrumental version of the song in 2002 on his album Bigmouth.

Album: Let It Be
Released: 8 May 1970
Recorded: 30 January 1969 (rooftop concert)
Genre: Rock
Length: 3:52
Label: Apple, EMI
Writer: Lennon/McCartney
Producer: George Martin

Wikipedia