"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" is a song credited to Lennon–McCartney, but written by Paul McCartney,
and released by the Beatles on their 1968 album The Beatles.
It was released as a single that same year in many countries, but not in the United Kingdom,
nor in the United States until 1976.
Writing Paul McCartney wrote the song around the time
that highlife and reggae were beginning to become popular in Britain.
The starting lyric, "Desmond has a barrow in the market-place", was a reference to the
first internationally renowned Jamaican ska and reggae performer Desmond Dekker who had
just had a successful tour of the UK.
The tag line "ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on, bra" was an expression used by Nigerian
conga player Jimmy Scott-Emuakpor, an acquaintance of McCartney.
The song is in the key of B flat and written in 4/4.
The alternative version on Anthology 3 is in the key of A major.
Recording During May 1968, the Beatles gathered at George
Harrison's Esher home, in Surrey, to record demos for their upcoming project.
"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" was one of the twenty-seven demos recorded there.
Paul performed this demo solo, with only an acoustic guitar.
He had also double-tracked his vocal, which was not perfectly synchronised, creating an
echoing effect.
According to studio engineer Geoff Emerick, John Lennon "openly and vocally detested"
the song, calling it Paul's "granny music shit".
Lennon left the studio during a recording of the song, then returned while under the
influence of marijuana, went immediately to the piano and played the opening chords much
louder and faster than before.
He claimed that was how the song should be played, and that is the version they ended
up using.
When singing the vocals for the song, specifically the last verse of the song when sung the second
time, McCartney made a slip and said "Desmond stays at home and does his pretty face", rather
than Molly, and had Molly letting "the children lend a hand".
Reportedly, this mistake was kept in because the other Beatles liked it.
George Harrison and Lennon yell "arm" and "leg" during a break in the song; between
the lines "...Desmond lets the children lend a hand" and "Molly stays at home..."
The lyrics for "Savoy Truffle", composed by Harrison and also on The Beatles, include
the line "We all know ob-la-di-bla-da, but can you show me where you are."
The intro of this song is heard on the Beatles' 1968 Christmas Record.
Releases and live performances "Ob-La-Di, Ob-la-Da" was released on The Beatles
on 22 November 1968.
In the US, in 1976, it was released as a single with "Julia" as the B-side.
An alternate version, known as "Take 5", was released on Anthology 3 in which the horns
are much more prominent and feature less reggae-esque style of music, focussing on acoustic guitars.
The first time the song was performed live by any of the Beatles was on 2 December 2009,
when McCartney played the song in Hamburg, Germany on the first night of a European tour.
McCartney also performed the song in Hyde Park on 27 June 2010 as part of the Hard Rock
Calling event, and the song was well received by the crowd.
He also added it as a number in the Latin American Leg of the Up and Coming Tour.
In 2011, the song was also performed during Paul McCartney's on the Run Tour.
It was also performed in front of Buckingham Palace for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations,
and most recently at San Francisco's Outside Lands concert on 9 August 2013.
Reception The song went to number one in singles charts
in Austria, Switzerland, Australia and Japan.
In the UK and Norway, a cover version by the Marmalade also made number one.
The track is often the subject of ridicule.
As such it was the voted worst song of all time in a 2004 online poll organized by Mars.
New Musical Express website editor Luke Lewis has argued that the Beatles recorded "a surprising
amount of ropy old toss", singling out "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" as "the least convincing cod-reggae
skanking this side of the QI theme tune."
Tom Rowley in The Telegraph named the track as a "reasonable choice" for derision, following
the result of the Mars poll.
It was also included in Blender magazine's 2004 list, "50 Worst Songs Ever!"
CNN journalist Todd Leopold reported in 2006 that John Lennon "loathed" the song.
Authorship dispute Jimmy Scott-Emuakpor later tried to claim
a writer's credit for the use of his catchphrase in the song; McCartney claimed that the phrase
was "just an expression".
Scott argued that not only was the phrase not a general expression, but that it was
in fact exclusively used in the Scott-Emuakpor family.
He later dropped the case when McCartney agreed to pay his legal expenses for an unrelated
issue.
In the 1965 movie She, the IMDB movie archive has an actor credited as Oo-Bla-Da Dancers.
Personnel Paul McCartney – vocal, bass guitar, handclaps,
vocal percussion John Lennon – piano, backing vocal, handclaps,
vocal percussion George Harrison – acoustic guitar, backing
vocal, handclaps, vocal percussion Ringo Starr – drums, bongos, other percussion,
handclaps, vocal percussion Personnel per Ian MacDonald and Mark Lewisohn
Horns arranged by George Martin Cover versions
Arthur Conley, 1968, also on the album More Sweet Soul.
Marmalade, whose version reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in 1969.
Their cover sold around half a million in the UK, and a million copies globally by April
1969.
Las Trillizas de Oro from Argentina, Spanish version in 1969
Amateur Transplants, on the album Unfit to Practice as "Urology Clinic A."
Jimmy Cliff, as a bonus track on the CD version of Humanitarian.
Celia Cruz, on the album Tropical Tribute to the Beatles.
Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, on the album Music of the Beatles.
Daniel O'Donnell, on his albums The Jukebox Years and Rock 'N' Roll Show.
James Last, on the albums Die grössten Songs von The Beatles and James Last & Friends;
the latter as a part of the "Beatles Medley."
Bing Crosby.
Maria Muldaur, on the album The Blues White Album.
The Bedrocks, a West Indian band from Leeds.
The Spectrum.
No Doubt, on the albums Boom Box and Live in the Tragic Kingdom.
Dick Hyman recorded an instrumental electronic music version of the song in the 1960s.
Patrick Zabé recorded a French version of the song in 1969.
The Henry Watterson Expressway recorded their version of the song in March 1969 on the TRX
label.
Herb Alpert released his Tijuana Brass's version as a single in 1969, and he and it also included
their version on the album Warm.
Two Anything Muppets performed the song on an episode of The Muppet Show.
The Persuasions, on the album The Persuasions Sing the Beatles.
Phish, on the album Live Phish Volume 13.
Shango, on the album Shango.
The Heptones, on the album Mellow Dubmarine.
The Gas House Gang, on the album The Gas House Gang's 5th.
The King's Singers, on the album The Beatles Connection.
The Punkles did a punk cover of this song on their fourth album.
This selection was the inspiration for The Offspring's "Why Don't You Get a Job?"
Youssou N'Dour, on the album 7 Seconds.
The cast of Life Goes On performed a version during the show's opening sequence.
One of its cast members, Chris Burke, drew the title of an album he recorded and released
independently, Singer with the Band, from its lyrics.
Pato Fu, a Brazilian band, on the album Gol de Quem?
Arik Einstein performed a version in Hebrew.
Vesyolye Rebyata, on the 1970 EP.
Instrumental version was performed in the intro of the first episodes, and different
covers were used for the outtros of the Branko Milićević`s children TV series "Cube, Cube,
Cublet", thus this song gained great popularity among the children in the former Yugoslavia.
House of Heroes, in concerts.
The song is featured on the House of Heroes Meets The Beatles EP that was released digitally
on iTunes and Amazon MP3 in summer 2009.
A slightly changed version called "Desmond" was recorded by Happy Mondays on their debut
album Squirrel and G-Man Twenty Four Hour Party People Plastic Face Carnt Smile.
However, the song was removed from later reprints of the album due to royalty problems.
Jetti Palletti, a Dutch performer, recorded the song for the Dutch carnival in 2011.
MercyMe, a Christian rock band, released a cover video online featuring Jars of Clay,
Matt Maher, Thousand Foot Krutch, The Afters, and Lecrae.
Desmond Dekker covered the song as part of a medley with "Wise Man."
In 2011, the song was parodied by The Fringemunks to recap Fringe episode 4.03, "Alone in the
World."
An orchestral cover version of this song was played in a Thomas & Friends Japanese special
titled Thomas and the UK Trip.
Swedish singer Claes-Göran Hederström recorded a Swedish version of the song in 1968.
The B-side of its single release was a cover of "Hey Jude" titled "Jo du".
Floyd Cramer recorded it on his annual "Class of" series, this one being "Class of '69."
Mr. Vegas performed a cover with his reggae band on the album Sweet Jamaica.
Reggae band Inner Circle covered the song which is included on several "best of" compilations.
Helen Gamboa released a cover version in 1969 as a single with a cover of "Harper Valley
PTA" as the B-side.
Hungarian duo band Pa-dö-dö used the main theme of the song for their Kiabálj!
album with the same title.
The Hampton String Quartet recorded a version that was heavily spiced with Schubert's "The
Erl-King", as the opening track of "The Off White Album."
Chart positions The Beatles version
Marmalade version Notes
See also Nonsense song
References
External links Austrian #1 singles
Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics