"Everyday" is a song written for Laura Elizabeth Coxon, by Charles Hardin (Buddy Holly) and Norman Petty, recorded as a single by Buddy Holly and the Crickets on May 29, 1957 and released on September 29, 1957. Holly plays acoustic guitar; drummer Jerry Allison slaps his hands on his lap for percussion; Joe B. Mauldin plays a standup acoustic bass; and producer Norman Petty's wife, Vi, plays the celeste (a keyboard instrument with a glockenspiel-like tone, used in such classical pieces as "Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy" from The Nutcracker). The song length is an economical 2 minutes and 5 seconds. The song is ranked #236 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The Beatles covered the song as part of their live repertoire from 1957 to 1962.
A cover version, recorded by James Taylor was released in 1985, becoming a huge AC hit, and performing moderately well on the Pop and Country charts. Don McLean also covered the song as did Erasure on their 2002 album Other People's Songs. John Denver and The Trashmen have also recorded it, as did indie rock band Rogue Wave. Rock band Pearl Jam performed a rendition live in Lubbock, Texas (Holly's birthplace). Also performed by Deep Purple live. A cover version was also recorded by hellogoodbye and released on their 2008 EP, Ukulele recordings. Phil Ochs covered a portion of the song as part of his 'Buddy Holly Medley' which appeared on 1974's Gunfight at Carnegie Hall LP.
The song has been featured in the 2003 movie Big Fish, in the 1997 cult film Gummo, in the season 4 episode of TV series Lost, "Cabin Fever", and in the movie Stand By Me. Rogue Wave's cover of "Everyday" also featured in the trailer for Anne Hathaway's 2008 film Rachel Getting Married. The group Fiction Family performed a cover of this song while on their original tour.
Wikipedia
Saturday, September 26, 2009
"Piggies" Lyrics
by George Harrison
Original Manuscript (1968)
(1) have you seen the Little Piggies crawling in the dirt?
and for all the little piggies life is getting worse -
always having dirt to playin about around in
(2) Have you seen the bigger Piggies in their startched [sic]
white shirts - and for all you can see the Bigger Piggies stirring up
the dirt -they all always have clean shirts - to play about around in
Middle
In their styes [sic] with all their backing
They don't care what goes on around
In their eyes there's something lacking
what they need's a damn good whacking!
solo
(3) Everywhere there's lots of Piggies Living Piggy Lives
You can see them out to dinner with their Piggy Wives
Holding Clutching forks and knives to eat their bacon
(4) Everywhere there's lots of Piggies - playing Piggy Pranks
You can see them on there [sic] trotters - at the Piggy Banks
Paying Piggy thanks - too Thee Pig Brother!
As Released by the Beatles (1968)
Have you seen the little piggies
Crawling in the dirt?
And for all the little piggies
Life is getting worse
Always having dirt to play around in.
Have you seen the bigger piggies
In their starched white shirts?
You will find the bigger piggies
Stirring up the dirt
Always have clean shirts to play around in.
In their sties with all their backing
They don't care what goes on around.
In their lives there's something lacking
What they need's a damn good whacking.
Everywhere there's lots of piggies
Living piggy lives.
You can see them out for dinner
With their piggy wives
Clutching forks and knives to eat their bacon.
One more time.
Original Manuscript (1968)(1) have you seen the Little Piggies crawling in the dirt?
and for all the little piggies life is getting worse -
always having dirt to play
(2) Have you seen the bigger Piggies in their startched [sic]
white shirts - and for all you can see the Bigger Piggies stirring up
the dirt -
Middle
In their styes [sic] with all their backing
They don't care what goes on around
In their eyes there's something lacking
what they need's a damn good whacking!
solo
(3) Everywhere there's lots of Piggies Living Piggy Lives
You can see them out to dinner with their Piggy Wives
(4) Everywhere there's lots of Piggies - playing Piggy Pranks
You can see them on there [sic] trotters - at the Piggy Banks
Paying Piggy thanks - too Thee Pig Brother!
As Released by the Beatles (1968)
Have you seen the little piggies
Crawling in the dirt?
And for all the little piggies
Life is getting worse
Always having dirt to play around in.
Have you seen the bigger piggies
In their starched white shirts?
You will find the bigger piggies
Stirring up the dirt
Always have clean shirts to play around in.
In their sties with all their backing
They don't care what goes on around.
In their lives there's something lacking
What they need's a damn good whacking.
Everywhere there's lots of piggies
Living piggy lives.
You can see them out for dinner
With their piggy wives
Clutching forks and knives to eat their bacon.
One more time.
Friday, September 25, 2009
"Lady Madonna" Lyrics
by John Lennon and Paul McCartney
As Released by the Beatles (1968)
Lady Madonna, children at your feet
Wonder how you manage to make ends meet.
Who finds the money when you pay the rent?
Did you think that money was heaven sent?
Friday night arrives without a suitcase
Sunday morning creeping like a nun
Monday's child has learned to tie his bootlace
See how they run.
Lady Madonna, baby at your breast
Wonders how you manage to feed the rest.
See how they run.
Lady Madonna, lying on the bed
Listen to the music playing in your head.
Tuesday afternoon is never-ending
Wednesday morning papers didn't come
Thursday night your stockings needed mending
See how they run.
Lady Madonna, children at your feet
Wonder how you manage to make ends meet.
As Released by the Beatles (1968)
Lady Madonna, children at your feet
Wonder how you manage to make ends meet.
Who finds the money when you pay the rent?
Did you think that money was heaven sent?
Friday night arrives without a suitcase
Sunday morning creeping like a nun
Monday's child has learned to tie his bootlace
See how they run.
Lady Madonna, baby at your breast
Wonders how you manage to feed the rest.
See how they run.
Lady Madonna, lying on the bed
Listen to the music playing in your head.
Tuesday afternoon is never-ending
Wednesday morning papers didn't come
Thursday night your stockings needed mending
See how they run.
Lady Madonna, children at your feet
Wonder how you manage to make ends meet.
Beatle People: Helen Shapiro
Helen Shapiro (born 28 September 1946, Bethnal Green, London) is an English singer and actress. She is best known for her 1960s UK chart-toppers, "You Don't Know" and "Walkin' Back to Happiness."Early life
Helen Shapiro was born at Bethnal Green Hospital in the East End district of Bethnal Green, London, England, and brought up in Clapton in the London borough of Hackney, where she attended the Clapton Park Comprehensive School. She is the granddaughter of Russian Jewish immigrants. Her parents were too poor to own a record player but they encouraged music in their home (Helen had to borrow a neighbour's player to hear her first single). Shapiro played banjo as a child and sang with her brother Ron occasionally in his youth club jazz group. She had a deep timbre to her voice, unusual in a girl not yet in her teens: school friends gave her the nickname "Foghorn."
Career
In 1961, at the age of fourteen, she had two number one hits in the UK: "You Don't Know" and "Walkin' Back to Happiness"; and, indeed, her first four single releases all went into the top three of the UK Singles Chart. Her mature voice made her an overnight sensation, as well as the youngest female chart topper in the UK. At a mere 14 years and 316 days old when "You Don't Know" hit the top, she was nevertheless a year older than Frankie Lymon had been when "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" hit the UK number one slot in 1956.
Before she was sixteen years old, Shapiro had been voted Britain's 'Top Female Singer', and when The Beatles had their first national tour (The Helen Shapiro Tour) in 1963, it was as her supporting act. The Beatles even wrote the song "Misery" for her but, inexplicably, EMI decided not to record her singing it.
By the time she was in her late teens, however, her career as a pop singer was on the wane. Undaunted, she branched out as a performer in stage musicals, a jazz singer, (jazz being her first love musically), and more recently a gospel singer. She played the role of Nancy in Lionel Bart's musical, Oliver! in London's West End and has appeared in British television soap operas; in particular Albion Market where she played one of the main characters up to the time it was taken off-air in August 1986.
In August 1987 Shapiro became a committed Christian (Messianic believer). She has issued four Messianic albums since then, as well as appearing in a number of special Gospel Outreach evenings, singing and telling of how she found Jesus (Yeshua) as her Messiah.
Shapiro retired from show business at the end of 2002 to concentrate on her Gospel Outreach evenings. She is married to John Judd, an actor with numerous roles in British television and cinema.
Her autobiography, published in 1993, was entitled Walking Back to Happiness.
Shapiro is also mentioned in the BBC Television, science fiction comedy series Red Dwarf, because of her beehive hairstyle.
Discography
Chart singles
* "Don't Treat Me Like A Child" - 1961 - Number 3 UK
* "Walkin' Back to Happiness" - 1961 - Number 1 UK, Number 100 U.S.
* "You Don't Know" - 1961 - Number 1 UK
* "Tell Me What He Said" - 1962 - Number 2 UK
* "Let's Talk About Love" - 1962 - Number 23 UK
* "Little Miss Lonely" - 1962 - Number 8 UK
* "Keep Away From Other Girls" - 1962 - Number 40 UK
* "Queen For Tonight" - 1963 - Number 33 UK
* "Woe Is Me" - 1963 - Number 35 UK
* "Look Who It Is" - 1963 - Number 47 UK
* "No Trespassing" / "Not Responsible" - 1963 - Number 1 Australia
* "Fever" - 1964 - Number 38 UK
Albums
* 'Tops' With Me (Columbia) 1962 (SSX 1397/SCX 3428) - Number 2 UK
* Helen's Sixteen (Columbia) 1963 (SSX 1494/SCX 3470)
* Helen In Nashville (Columbia) 1963 (SSX 1567)
* Helen Hit's Out! (Columbia) 1964 (SSX 1661/SCX 3533)
* Hits and a Miss Helen Shapiro (EMI Encore) 1965 (ENC 20912)
All the above albums were released in (stereo) and (mono) apart from Helen In Nashville. These are her main albums from the peak of her popularity in the early 1960s from Abbey Road Studios.
Compilation albums
* The Very Best Of Helen Shapiro (EMI) 1974
* Straighten Up and Fly Right (Oval) 1983
* The Very Best Of Helen Shapiro (EMI) 2007
Appearances
* Shapiro sang "Look Who It Is" on the UK television programme, Ready Steady Go! to John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison of The Beatles.
* Shapiro appeared in the pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk, at the Oldham Coliseum Theatre in 1983, and during her stay in the area, made a number of guest appearances at Bury Hebrew Congregation, Bury.
Wikipedia
John Lennon: 1975
By Pete Hamill / June 5, 1975
What's your life like right now?
Well . . . Life: It's '75 now, isn't it? Well, I've just settled the Beatles settlement. It must've happened it the last month, took three years. [pause] And on this day that you've come here, I seem to have moved back in here. In the last three days. By the time this goes out, I don't know . . . That's a big change. Maybe that's why I'm sleeping funny. As a friend says, I went out for coffee and some papers and I didn't come back [chuckles]. Or vice versa: It's always written that way, y'know. All of us. You know, the guy walked. It's never that simple.
What did happen with you and Yoko? Who broke it up and how did you end up back together again?
Well, it's not a matter of who broke it up. It broke up. And why did we end up back together? [pompous voice] We ended up together again because it was diplomatically viable . . . come on. We got back together because we love each other.
I loved your line: "The separation didn't work out."
That's it. It didn't work out. And the reaction to the breakup was all that madness. I was like a chicken without a head.
What was the final Beatles settlement?
In a nutshell, what was arranged was that everybody gets their own individual monies. Even up till this year - till the settlement was signed - all the monies were going into one pot. All individual records, mine, Ringo's, Paul's - all into one big pot. It had to go through this big machinery and then come out to us, eventually. So now, even the old Beatle royalties, everything goes into four separate accounts instead of one big pot all the time. That's that. The rest of it was ground rules. Everybody said the Beatles've signed this paper, that means they're no longer tied in any way.
That's bullshit. We still own this thing called Apple. Which, you can explain, is a bank. A bank the money goes into. But there's still the entity itself known as the Beatles. The product, the name, the likeness, the Apple thing itself, which still exists, and we still have to communicate on it and make decisions on it and decide who's to run Apple and who's to do what. It's not as cut and dried as the papers said.
Do the old Beatles records still go in a pot?
No one of us can say to EMI, "Here's a new package of Beatle material." We still have to okay everything together, you know, 'cause that's the way we want it anyway.
There's still a good feeling among the guys?
Yeah, yeah. I talked to Ringo and George yesterday. I didn't talk to Paul 'cause he was asleep. George and Paul are talkin' to each other in L.A. now. There's nothin' going down between us. It's all in people's heads.
You went to one of George's concerts; what are your thoughts on his tour?
It wasn't the greatest thing in history. The guy went through some kind of mill. It was probably his turn to get smacked. When we were all together there was periods when the Beatles were in, the Beatles were out, no matter what we were doing. Now it's always the Beatles were great or the Beatles weren't great, whatever opinion people hold. There's a sort of illusion about it. But the actual fact was the Beatles were in for eight months, the Beatles were out for eight months. The public, including the media, are sometimes a bit sheeplike and if the ball starts rolling, well, it's just that somebody's in, somebody's out. George is out for the moment. And I think it didn't matter what he did on tour.
George told Rolling Stone that if you wanted the Beatles, go listen to Wings. It seemed a bit of a putdown.
I didn't see what George said, so I really don't have any comment. [pause] Band on the Run is a great album. Wings is almost as conceptual a group as Plastic Ono Band. Plastic Ono was a conceptual group, meaning whoever was playing was the band. And Wings keeps changing all the time. It's conceptual. I mean, they're backup men for Paul. It doesn't matter who's playing. You can call them Wings, but it's Paul McCartney music. And it's good stuff. It's good Paul music and I don't really see the connection.
What do you think of Richard Perry's work with Ringo?
I think it's great. Perry's great, Ringo's great, I think the combination was great and look how well they did together. There's no complaints if you're Number One.
George said at his press conference that he could play with you again but not with Paul. How do you feel?
I could play with all of them. George is entitled to say that, and he'll probably change his mind by Friday. You know, we're all human. We can all change our minds. So I don't take any of my statements or any of their statements as the last word on whether we will. And if we do, the newspapers will learn about it after the fact. If we're gonna play, we're just gonna play.
In retrospect, what do you think of the whole "Lennon Remembers" episode?
Well, the other guys, their reaction was public. Ringo made some sort of comment that was funny, which I can't remember, something like, "You've gone too far this time, Johnny." Paul said [stuffy voice], "Well, that's his problem." I can't remember what George said. I mean, they don't care, they've been with me for fifteen or twenty years, they know damn well what I'm like. It just so happens it was in the press. I mean, they know what I'm like. I'm not ashamed of it at all. I don't really like hurting people, but Jann Wenner questioned me when I was almost still in therapy and you can't play games. You're opened up. It was like he got me on an acid trip. Things come out. I got both reactions from that article. A lot of people thought it was right on. My only upset was Jann insisted on making a book out of it.
What's your life like right now?
Well . . . Life: It's '75 now, isn't it? Well, I've just settled the Beatles settlement. It must've happened it the last month, took three years. [pause] And on this day that you've come here, I seem to have moved back in here. In the last three days. By the time this goes out, I don't know . . . That's a big change. Maybe that's why I'm sleeping funny. As a friend says, I went out for coffee and some papers and I didn't come back [chuckles]. Or vice versa: It's always written that way, y'know. All of us. You know, the guy walked. It's never that simple.
What did happen with you and Yoko? Who broke it up and how did you end up back together again?
Well, it's not a matter of who broke it up. It broke up. And why did we end up back together? [pompous voice] We ended up together again because it was diplomatically viable . . . come on. We got back together because we love each other.
I loved your line: "The separation didn't work out."
That's it. It didn't work out. And the reaction to the breakup was all that madness. I was like a chicken without a head.
What was the final Beatles settlement?
In a nutshell, what was arranged was that everybody gets their own individual monies. Even up till this year - till the settlement was signed - all the monies were going into one pot. All individual records, mine, Ringo's, Paul's - all into one big pot. It had to go through this big machinery and then come out to us, eventually. So now, even the old Beatle royalties, everything goes into four separate accounts instead of one big pot all the time. That's that. The rest of it was ground rules. Everybody said the Beatles've signed this paper, that means they're no longer tied in any way.
That's bullshit. We still own this thing called Apple. Which, you can explain, is a bank. A bank the money goes into. But there's still the entity itself known as the Beatles. The product, the name, the likeness, the Apple thing itself, which still exists, and we still have to communicate on it and make decisions on it and decide who's to run Apple and who's to do what. It's not as cut and dried as the papers said.
Do the old Beatles records still go in a pot?
No one of us can say to EMI, "Here's a new package of Beatle material." We still have to okay everything together, you know, 'cause that's the way we want it anyway.
There's still a good feeling among the guys?
Yeah, yeah. I talked to Ringo and George yesterday. I didn't talk to Paul 'cause he was asleep. George and Paul are talkin' to each other in L.A. now. There's nothin' going down between us. It's all in people's heads.
You went to one of George's concerts; what are your thoughts on his tour?
It wasn't the greatest thing in history. The guy went through some kind of mill. It was probably his turn to get smacked. When we were all together there was periods when the Beatles were in, the Beatles were out, no matter what we were doing. Now it's always the Beatles were great or the Beatles weren't great, whatever opinion people hold. There's a sort of illusion about it. But the actual fact was the Beatles were in for eight months, the Beatles were out for eight months. The public, including the media, are sometimes a bit sheeplike and if the ball starts rolling, well, it's just that somebody's in, somebody's out. George is out for the moment. And I think it didn't matter what he did on tour.
George told Rolling Stone that if you wanted the Beatles, go listen to Wings. It seemed a bit of a putdown.
I didn't see what George said, so I really don't have any comment. [pause] Band on the Run is a great album. Wings is almost as conceptual a group as Plastic Ono Band. Plastic Ono was a conceptual group, meaning whoever was playing was the band. And Wings keeps changing all the time. It's conceptual. I mean, they're backup men for Paul. It doesn't matter who's playing. You can call them Wings, but it's Paul McCartney music. And it's good stuff. It's good Paul music and I don't really see the connection.
What do you think of Richard Perry's work with Ringo?
I think it's great. Perry's great, Ringo's great, I think the combination was great and look how well they did together. There's no complaints if you're Number One.
George said at his press conference that he could play with you again but not with Paul. How do you feel?
I could play with all of them. George is entitled to say that, and he'll probably change his mind by Friday. You know, we're all human. We can all change our minds. So I don't take any of my statements or any of their statements as the last word on whether we will. And if we do, the newspapers will learn about it after the fact. If we're gonna play, we're just gonna play.
In retrospect, what do you think of the whole "Lennon Remembers" episode?
Well, the other guys, their reaction was public. Ringo made some sort of comment that was funny, which I can't remember, something like, "You've gone too far this time, Johnny." Paul said [stuffy voice], "Well, that's his problem." I can't remember what George said. I mean, they don't care, they've been with me for fifteen or twenty years, they know damn well what I'm like. It just so happens it was in the press. I mean, they know what I'm like. I'm not ashamed of it at all. I don't really like hurting people, but Jann Wenner questioned me when I was almost still in therapy and you can't play games. You're opened up. It was like he got me on an acid trip. Things come out. I got both reactions from that article. A lot of people thought it was right on. My only upset was Jann insisted on making a book out of it.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
"Act Naturally"
"Act Naturally" is a song written by Johnny Russell and Voni Morrison, originally recorded by Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, whose version reached number 1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart in 1963, his first chart-topper. In 2002, Shelly Fabian of About.com ranked the song number 169 on her list of the Top 500 Country Music Songs.
The song has been covered by many other artists, including Loretta Lynn and The Beatles.
The song
Russell, originally from Oklahoma, was based in Fresno, California in the early 1960s. One night, some of his friends from Oklahoma planned to do a recording session in Los Angeles and asked him to join them. In order to do so, Russell had to break a date with his then-girlfriend. "When she asked me why I was going to L.A., I answered, 'They are going to put me in the movies and make a big star out of me.' We both laughed."
Thus inspired, Russell quickly came up with a concept for a love song based around his comment. He wrote it that day, and tried to teach it to the singer he was helping in Los Angeles, but he was unable to learn it. Russell then wanted to record it himself, but his then-producer turned it down, claiming that songs about the movies weren't hit material.
A full two years passed before anyone recorded "Act Naturally." "No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get anyone interested in it," Russell said.
Buck Owens and The Buckaroos version
By 1963, Russell was writing with a woman named Voni Morrison, who also worked with a Bakersfield, California-based singer named Buck Owens. After Russell played "Act Naturally" for Morrison, she thought it would be a natural for Owens, and she told Russell that she could get him to record it. Because no one had yet recorded it, and Russell had an agreement with Morrison to share songwriting credits, he gave her partial credit, though her only role in the song was submitting it to Owens.
Owens didn't like "Act Naturally" at first. But Buckaroo band member, Don Rich, heard Russell's demo version and liked it, and eventually, the song grew on Owens. One night, Russell got a phone call from Owens asking if he could record the song, and he said yes. "I later found out that he had already recorded the song that day and just wanted the publishing rights," Russell said. "I was more than pleased to give him the rights in order to get the song recorded."
Owens recorded "Act Naturally" at the Capitol studios in Hollywood on February 12, 1963, and the single was released on March 11. It entered the Billboard country charts on April 13, 1963. On June 15, Owens' version spent the first of four non-consecutive weeks at #1. In all, it spent 28 weeks on the country charts. The song helped to make him a superstar; before the 1960s were over, Owens had placed 19 singles atop the Billboard country charts. The song also helped establish Russell as a songwriter, and in the 1970s he was modestly successful as a singer as well.
The Beatles' version
The Beatles covered the song in 1965 on their album Help! (in the United Kingdom) and as the B-side of the "Yesterday" single in the U.S..
The Beatles' version is sung by Ringo Starr. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic called it "an ideal showcase for Ringo's amiable vocals." They performed the song during an The Ed Sullivan Show appearance which was taped on August 14, 1965 and broadcast on September 12, 1965.
The Beatles recorded the song on June 17, 1965 in 13 takes. The first 12 takes were evidently used to work out the arrangement; the master was take 13, the only take with vocals. It was mixed the following day. The Beatles almost recorded a song by their engineer Norman Smith, but realized that Starr didn't yet have a vocal on Help!, and so "Act Naturally" was recorded instead, the last cover they recorded until the Get Back/Let It Be sessions in 1969. Smith later had some success as a performer, using the name Hurricane Smith. In 1973 his song "Oh Babe, What Would You Say?" reached 3 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart in the U.S.
Because Capitol Records' version of the Help! album included only the songs that appeared in the movie, plus incidental music from the film, the label held back "Yesterday" and "Act Naturally" and issued them initially as a non-LP single. As the B-side of the U.S. single, "Act Naturally" peaked at #47 in October 1965. The two songs made their first American album appearance on Yesterday and Today, released in the U.S. on June 20, 1966.
When the single was reissued on Apple Records in 1971, "Act Naturally" had the "full apple" side and "Yesterday" ended up on the "sliced apple" side. That is because "Act Naturally" was the intended A-side and has always been listed as such in Capitol's files.
The song features Ringo Starr on Lead Vocals, Drums, and Percussion, Paul McCartney on Harmony Vocals and Bass, John Lennon on Acoustic Rhythm Guitar, and George Harrison on Lead Guitar, which is double-tracked, creating a chorus-like effect.
Buck Owens and Ringo Starr's duet version
In 1989, Owens and Starr, the two most famous singers of "Act Naturally," teamed up for a brand-new version, also creating a lighthearted music video for it, with them playing bumbling versions of themselves playing cowboys in a western being filmed. Released on Capitol Records, the duet peaked at #27 and spent 11 weeks on the Billboard country chart in the summer of 1989. It was not the first time a member of the Beatles had appeared on the country charts: Paul McCartney had done so with Wings in 1974-75 with "Sally G."
The recording was nominated for the 1989 Country Music Association "Vocal Event of the Year" and a 1990 Grammy for "Best Country Vocal Collaboration," but lost both times to "There's a Tear in My Beer," recorded by Hank Williams Sr. and Hank Williams Jr.
Single by Buck Owens and the Buckaroos
Released: March 11, 1963
Format: 7"
Recorded: Capitol Studios, Hollywood, Calif., February 12, 1963
Genre: Country
Length: 2:19
Label: Capitol
Writer(s): Russell/Morrison
Producer: Ken Nelson
Single by The Beatles
from the album Help! (UK) and Yesterday and Today (U.S.)
A-side: Yesterday
Released: 13 September 1965 (US)
Recorded: Abbey Road Studios, 17 June 1965
Genre: Country
Length: 2:29
Label: Capitol Records (USA), Parlophone/EMI (UK)
Writer(s): Morrison/Russell
Producer: George Martin
Wikipedia
The song has been covered by many other artists, including Loretta Lynn and The Beatles.
The song
Russell, originally from Oklahoma, was based in Fresno, California in the early 1960s. One night, some of his friends from Oklahoma planned to do a recording session in Los Angeles and asked him to join them. In order to do so, Russell had to break a date with his then-girlfriend. "When she asked me why I was going to L.A., I answered, 'They are going to put me in the movies and make a big star out of me.' We both laughed."
Thus inspired, Russell quickly came up with a concept for a love song based around his comment. He wrote it that day, and tried to teach it to the singer he was helping in Los Angeles, but he was unable to learn it. Russell then wanted to record it himself, but his then-producer turned it down, claiming that songs about the movies weren't hit material.
A full two years passed before anyone recorded "Act Naturally." "No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get anyone interested in it," Russell said.
Buck Owens and The Buckaroos version
By 1963, Russell was writing with a woman named Voni Morrison, who also worked with a Bakersfield, California-based singer named Buck Owens. After Russell played "Act Naturally" for Morrison, she thought it would be a natural for Owens, and she told Russell that she could get him to record it. Because no one had yet recorded it, and Russell had an agreement with Morrison to share songwriting credits, he gave her partial credit, though her only role in the song was submitting it to Owens.
Owens didn't like "Act Naturally" at first. But Buckaroo band member, Don Rich, heard Russell's demo version and liked it, and eventually, the song grew on Owens. One night, Russell got a phone call from Owens asking if he could record the song, and he said yes. "I later found out that he had already recorded the song that day and just wanted the publishing rights," Russell said. "I was more than pleased to give him the rights in order to get the song recorded."
Owens recorded "Act Naturally" at the Capitol studios in Hollywood on February 12, 1963, and the single was released on March 11. It entered the Billboard country charts on April 13, 1963. On June 15, Owens' version spent the first of four non-consecutive weeks at #1. In all, it spent 28 weeks on the country charts. The song helped to make him a superstar; before the 1960s were over, Owens had placed 19 singles atop the Billboard country charts. The song also helped establish Russell as a songwriter, and in the 1970s he was modestly successful as a singer as well.
The Beatles' version
The Beatles covered the song in 1965 on their album Help! (in the United Kingdom) and as the B-side of the "Yesterday" single in the U.S..
The Beatles' version is sung by Ringo Starr. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic called it "an ideal showcase for Ringo's amiable vocals." They performed the song during an The Ed Sullivan Show appearance which was taped on August 14, 1965 and broadcast on September 12, 1965.
The Beatles recorded the song on June 17, 1965 in 13 takes. The first 12 takes were evidently used to work out the arrangement; the master was take 13, the only take with vocals. It was mixed the following day. The Beatles almost recorded a song by their engineer Norman Smith, but realized that Starr didn't yet have a vocal on Help!, and so "Act Naturally" was recorded instead, the last cover they recorded until the Get Back/Let It Be sessions in 1969. Smith later had some success as a performer, using the name Hurricane Smith. In 1973 his song "Oh Babe, What Would You Say?" reached 3 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart in the U.S.
Because Capitol Records' version of the Help! album included only the songs that appeared in the movie, plus incidental music from the film, the label held back "Yesterday" and "Act Naturally" and issued them initially as a non-LP single. As the B-side of the U.S. single, "Act Naturally" peaked at #47 in October 1965. The two songs made their first American album appearance on Yesterday and Today, released in the U.S. on June 20, 1966.
When the single was reissued on Apple Records in 1971, "Act Naturally" had the "full apple" side and "Yesterday" ended up on the "sliced apple" side. That is because "Act Naturally" was the intended A-side and has always been listed as such in Capitol's files.
The song features Ringo Starr on Lead Vocals, Drums, and Percussion, Paul McCartney on Harmony Vocals and Bass, John Lennon on Acoustic Rhythm Guitar, and George Harrison on Lead Guitar, which is double-tracked, creating a chorus-like effect.
Buck Owens and Ringo Starr's duet version
In 1989, Owens and Starr, the two most famous singers of "Act Naturally," teamed up for a brand-new version, also creating a lighthearted music video for it, with them playing bumbling versions of themselves playing cowboys in a western being filmed. Released on Capitol Records, the duet peaked at #27 and spent 11 weeks on the Billboard country chart in the summer of 1989. It was not the first time a member of the Beatles had appeared on the country charts: Paul McCartney had done so with Wings in 1974-75 with "Sally G."
The recording was nominated for the 1989 Country Music Association "Vocal Event of the Year" and a 1990 Grammy for "Best Country Vocal Collaboration," but lost both times to "There's a Tear in My Beer," recorded by Hank Williams Sr. and Hank Williams Jr.
Single by Buck Owens and the Buckaroos
Released: March 11, 1963
Format: 7"
Recorded: Capitol Studios, Hollywood, Calif., February 12, 1963
Genre: Country
Length: 2:19
Label: Capitol
Writer(s): Russell/Morrison
Producer: Ken Nelson
Single by The Beatles
from the album Help! (UK) and Yesterday and Today (U.S.)
A-side: Yesterday
Released: 13 September 1965 (US)
Recorded: Abbey Road Studios, 17 June 1965
Genre: Country
Length: 2:29
Label: Capitol Records (USA), Parlophone/EMI (UK)
Writer(s): Morrison/Russell
Producer: George Martin
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