"Come and Get It" | ||||
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Single by Badfinger | ||||
from the album Magic Christian Music | ||||
B-side | "Rock of All Ages" | |||
Released | 5 December 1969 | |||
Recorded | 2 August 1969 | |||
Genre | Power pop [1] | |||
Length | 2:22 | |||
Label | Apple | |||
Songwriter(s) | Paul McCartney | |||
Producer(s) | Paul McCartney | |||
Badfinger singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Come and Get It" on YouTube |
"Come and Get It" is a song composed by English singer-songwriter Paul McCartney for the 1969 film The Magic Christian . The song was performed by Badfinger, produced by McCartney and issued as a single 5 December 1969 in the UK, and 12 January 1970 in the US, on the Beatles' Apple label. It was the band's first release under the Badfinger name (having previously recorded as The Iveys) and was their international breakthrough, hitting the top 10 in both the UK and US singles charts.
"Come and Get It" | |
---|---|
Song by the Beatles | |
from the album Anthology 3 | |
Released | 28 October 1996 |
Recorded | 24 July 1969 |
Studio | EMI Studios, London |
Genre | Rock, pop |
Length | 2:30 |
Label | Apple |
Songwriter(s) | Paul McCartney |
Producer(s) | George Martin |
Paul McCartney recorded a solo demo of the song on 24 July 1969, after arriving early for a Beatles recording session for their Abbey Road album. Singing the double-tracked lead vocal and playing all the instruments, he laid down the vocals and piano on the first take, sang again and played maracas on the first overdub, then added drums, and finally put in the bass guitar track. It took less than an hour to finish. [2] The biggest differences between the McCartney and Badfinger versions are a slower tempo and slightly higher key on the demo, and the use of three-part harmonies on the Badfinger single. Though McCartney was the only Beatle performing on the track, it was officially released as a Beatles song on the 1996 Anthology 3 compilation album and the 2019 Abbey Road re-release, having already appeared on various bootlegs. The 2019 re-mix featured a significant improvement in the recording's sonic quality. [3]
In his book Revolution in the Head , Ian MacDonald described the song as "by far the best unreleased Beatles recording".
On 2 August 1969, McCartney produced the studio version at EMI (Abbey Road) Studios by the Apple band Badfinger (then called the Iveys) telling them, "Okay, it's got to be exactly like this demo." His "carrot" for the band was his offer to produce this song and two other Iveys' originals for the movie The Magic Christian, since he had a contract to supply three songs for it. The band followed his instructions. [4]
McCartney auditioned each of the four Iveys to sing lead on "Come and Get It". Ultimately, he picked Tom Evans over the other three band members, Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, and Mike Gibbins.
The single was released on Apple Records on 5 December 1969 in the UK, but not until 12 January 1970 in the US. [5] "Come and Get It" was a hit single for the band, peaking at number 7 in the United States, [6] and number 4 in the United Kingdom. [7] It was the opening theme for the film The Magic Christian, starring Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr (it was also repeated during the movie's closing credits, with an additional string arrangement added). The UK picture sleeve for the single shows a kaleidoscopic montage of all four members of Badfinger that appear on the song, although bassist Ron Griffiths left the band before the single was released.
Cash Box called it "a fine teen track." [8] Billboard called it "powerful." [9]
Ultimate Classic Rock critic Michael Gallucci and Classic Rock History critic Janey Robert both rated "Come and Get It" as Badfinger's greatest song. [10] [11] Gallucci called it the highlight of Magic Christian Music. [10] Roberts called it Badfinger's signature song. [11] Classic Rock critic Rob Hughes rated it as Badfinger's 3rd greatest song, saying that the band "added lustrous three-part harmonies" to McCartney's original. [12]
In 1978 a re-formed version of Badfinger re-recorded "Come and Get It" for K-tel Records, with Evans again singing lead. This served to provide a demo recording to give to Elektra Records, and resulted in the Airwaves album in 1979.
The Beatles (Paul McCartney) version
Badfinger version
Badfinger were a Welsh rock band formed in 1961 in Swansea, Wales. Their best-known lineup consisted of Pete Ham (guitar), Mike Gibbins (drums), Tom Evans (bass), and Joey Molland (guitar). They are recognised for their influence on the 1970s power pop genre. It is estimated that the band sold 14 million records.
Apple Records is a British record label founded by the Beatles in 1968 as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger and Billy Preston. In practice, the roster had become dominated by the mid-1970s with releases of the former Beatles as solo artists. Allen Klein managed the label from 1969 to 1973, then it was managed by Neil Aspinall on behalf of the Beatles and their heirs. Aspinall retired in 2007 and was replaced by Jeff Jones.
No Dice is the third studio album by British rock band Badfinger, issued by Apple Records and released on 9 November 1970. Their second album under the Badfinger name, but their first official album under that name, and first to include guitarist Joey Molland, No Dice significantly expanded the British group's popularity, especially abroad. The album included both the hit single "No Matter What" and the song "Without You", which would become a big hit for Harry Nilsson, and later a hit for Mariah Carey.
Straight Up is the fourth studio album by the Welsh rock band Badfinger, released in December 1971 in the United States and February 1972 in Britain. Issued on the Beatles' Apple record label, it includes the hit singles "Day After Day" and "Baby Blue", and the similarly popular "Name of the Game", all of which were written by singer and guitarist Pete Ham. The album marked a departure from the more rock-oriented sound of Badfinger's previous releases, partly as a result of intervention by Apple Records regarding the band's musical direction.
Peter William Ham was a Welsh singer, songwriter and guitarist best known as a lead vocalist of and composer for the 1970s rock band Badfinger, whose hit songs include "No Matter What", "Day After Day" and "Baby Blue". He also co-wrote the ballad "Without You", a worldwide number-one hit for Harry Nilsson that has become a standard covered by hundreds of artists. Ham was granted two Ivor Novello Awards related to the song in 1973.
Abbey Road is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles, released on 26 September 1969. It is the last album the group recorded, although Let It Be (1970) was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly recorded in April, July, and August 1969, and topped the record charts in both the United States and the United Kingdom. A double A-side single from the album, "Something" / "Come Together", was released in October, which also topped the charts in the US.
"Come Together" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on the band's 1969 album Abbey Road and was also released as a double A-side single with "Something". The song reached the top of the charts in the United States and Australia but peaked at No. 4 in the United Kingdom.
"She Came In Through the Bathroom Window" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album Abbey Road. Written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney, it is the fifth song of the album's climactic medley, immediately following "Polythene Pam".
"Oh! Darling" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, appearing as the fourth song on their eleventh studio album Abbey Road (1969). It was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. Its working title was "Oh! Darling ". Although not issued as a single in either the United Kingdom or the United States, a regional subsidiary of Capitol successfully edited it as a single in Central America, having "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" as its B-side. It was also issued as a single in Portugal. Apple Records released "Oh! Darling" in Japan with "Here Comes the Sun" in June 1970.
Maybe Tomorrow is the debut album by British rock band Badfinger. Maybe Tomorrow is the only release under the band's original name as The Iveys. It was issued in 1969 on the Apple label in Japan, West Germany and Italy. Although the album was scheduled to be released worldwide, the release in the US and UK at that time was halted without explanation. Many reasons for halting the album have been suggested by the band and Apple employees, but the most common theory is that Apple's newly hired president, Allen Klein, stopped all non-Beatle releases on Apple until he could examine the company's finances, which were in disarray at the time.
"Maybe I'm Amazed" is a song written by English musician Paul McCartney that was first released on his 1970 debut solo album McCartney.
Michael George Gibbins was a Welsh musician, most notable for being the drummer of Badfinger.
Magic Christian Music is the second studio album by the British rock band Badfinger, released on 9 January 1970 on Apple Records. It was their first release under the Badfinger name, having previously released the album Maybe Tomorrow in 1969 under the name The Iveys. It includes the band's first international hit, "Come and Get It", written and produced for them by Paul McCartney.
"No Matter What" is a song originally recorded by Badfinger for their album No Dice in 1970, written and sung by Pete Ham and produced by Mal Evans.
Thomas Evans was an English musician. He is best known for his work as the bassist of the band Badfinger. He also co-wrote their 1970 song "Without You," which has been recorded by over 180 artists — most notably Harry Nilsson and Mariah Carey. Evans died by suicide in 1983, one of two members to do so.
"Day After Day" is a song by the British rock band Badfinger from their 1971 album Straight Up. It was written by Pete Ham and produced by George Harrison, who also plays slide guitar on the recording. The song was issued as a single and became Badfinger's biggest hit, charting at number 4 in the United States and number 10 in the UK, ultimately earning gold accreditation from the Recording Industry Association of America.
"Maybe Tomorrow" is a song composed and sung by guitarist Tom Evans of The Iveys, which was released as the group's first worldwide single on Apple Records. It also served as the title track for the album Maybe Tomorrow, and it was also included on the Badfinger album Magic Christian Music released in 1970.
"Apple of My Eye" is a song recorded by the rock/pop band Badfinger for inclusion on their 1973 album, Ass. The song was written and sung by Pete Ham, produced by Chris Thomas and Badfinger, and released on Apple Records.
"Goodbye" is a song written by Paul McCartney and performed by Mary Hopkin. It was released on 28 March 1969, and it reached No. 2 in the UK singles chart, prevented from reaching the top position by the Beatles' single "Get Back". In the US, released 7 April 1969, the song reached No. 13 on the singles chart. In the Netherlands and Ireland the single peaked at No. 1.
"Carry on Till Tomorrow" is a song written by Tom Evans and Pete Ham that was first released on Badfinger's 1970 album Magic Christian Music. It was also used in the film The Magic Christian, starring Ringo Starr and Peter Sellers. An edited version was later used as the b-side of Badfinger's single "No Matter What" in the United States.