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With a Little Help from My Friends

"With a Little Help from My Friends"
Song by the Beatles from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Released 1 June 1967
Recorded EMI Studios
29–30 March 1967
Genre Pop rock, psychedelic pop
Length 2:44
Label Parlophone PMC 7027 (mono), PCS 7027 (stereo)
Writer(s) Lennon–McCartney
Producer(s) George Martin
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band track listing
"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"
(1)
"With a Little Help from My Friends"
(2)
"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
(3)
"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"/"With a Little Help from My Friends"
Sgtpepperslonelyheartsclubbandsinglecover.jpg
Single by The Beatles
B-side "A Day in the Life"
Released 14 August 1978 (US)
30 September 1978 (UK)
Format 7"
Recorded February–March 1967
Length 4:46
Label Capitol 4612 (US)
Parlophone R6022 (UK)
The Beatles UK singles chronology
"Back in the U.S.S.R."
(1976)
"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" / "With a Little Help from My Friends"
(1978)
"The Beatles Movie Medley"
(1982)
The Beatles US singles chronology
"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da"
(1976)
"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" / "With a Little Help from My Friends"
(1978)
"The Beatles Movie Medley"
(1982)
"With a Little Help from My Friends"
With a Little Help From My Friends - Joe Cocker.jpg
Single by Joe Cocker
from the album With a Little Help from My Friends
B-side Something's Coming On
Released October 1968 (UK)
Format 7"
Recorded 1968
Genre Blues rock, hard rock, soul
Length 5:11
Label Regal Zonophone
Joe Cocker singles chronology
"Marjorine"
(1968)
"With a Little Help from My Friends"
(1968)
"Delta Lady"
(1969)
"With a Little Help from My Friends"
With A Little Help From My Friends.jpg
Single by Wet Wet Wet
from the album Sgt. Pepper Knew My Father
A-side "She's Leaving Home" (performed by Billy Bragg)
Released 9 May 1988 (UK)
Format 7"
Recorded 1988
Genre Pop
Label PolyGram
Wet Wet Wet singles chronology
"Temptation"
(1988)
"With a Little Help from My Friends"/"She's Leaving Home" (Billy Bragg and Cara Tivey)
(1988)
"Sweet Surrender"
(1989)

"With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song by the Beatles, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band issued worldwide in June 1967. The song was written for and sung by the Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr as the character "Billy Shears". The song, paired with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and featuring "A Day in the Life" as its B-side, was reissued as a single in the U.S. in August 1978 (#71) and in the U.K. in September 1978 (#63). "With a Little Help from My Friends" was ranked No. 311 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Lennon and McCartney finished writing this song in mid-March 1967, written specifically as Starr's track for the album. McCartney said: "It was pretty much co-written, John and I doing a work song for Ringo, a little craft job." In 1970 Lennon stated: "Paul had the line about 'a little help from my friends.' He had some kind of structure for it, and we wrote it pretty well fifty-fifty from his original idea.", but in 1980 Lennon said: "This is Paul, with a little help from me. 'What do you see when you turn out the light/ I can't tell you, but I know it's mine...' is mine." It was briefly called "Bad Finger Boogie" (later the inspiration for the band name Badfinger), supposedly because Lennon composed the melody on a piano using his middle finger after having hurt his forefinger.

Lennon and McCartney deliberately wrote a tune with a limited range – except for the last note, which McCartney worked closely with Starr to achieve. Speaking in the Anthology, Starr insisted on changing the first line which originally was "What would you think if I sang out of tune? Would you throw ripe tomatoes at me?"; he changed the lyric so that fans would not throw tomatoes at him should he perform it live. (In the early days, after George Harrison made a passing comment that he liked jelly babies, the group was showered with them at all of their live performances.)


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Wikipedia

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