"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" is a song by The Beatles released on the double-disc album The Beatles (also known as The White Album), and later released as a single. It was written primarily by Paul McCartney, though credited to Lennon/McCartney.
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The song was written around the time that reggae was beginning to become popular in Britain. The tag line "ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on, bra" was an expression that Nigerian conga player Jimmy Scott, an acquaintance of McCartney, used. The song is in the key of B flat and written in 4/4.
According to studio engineer Geoff Emerick, John Lennon openly hated the song, calling it "Paul's granny shit".[1] After leaving the studio during recording of the song (after several days and literally dozens of takes of the song, trying different tempos and styles), Lennon returned while under the influence of marijuana, went immediately to the piano and played the opening chords much louder and faster than they had been played before. He claimed that was how the song should be played, and this is the version they ended up using.[2]
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.[3] 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..."[4]
The Beatles' use of the name Desmond is considered to be a nod to Desmond Dekker, the Jamaican ska artist. The song's style resembles the ska that Dekker recorded in the 1960s. Dekker later covered the song as part of a medley with "Wise Man".
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."[5]
"Ob-La-Di, Ob-la-Da" was released on The Beatles on 22 November 1968.[6] Eight years later it was released as a single with "Julia" as the B-side.[7]
The very first time the song was performed live by one of the Beatles was on 2 December 2009, as McCartney played the song in Hamburg, Germany on the first night of a European tour.[8]
The song was well received, going to number one in singles charts in Austria, Switzerland, Australia and Japan. In the UK and Norway (where it had not been released as a single by the Beatles), a cover version by The Marmalade also made number one. In 2004, the song came top in an online Mars poll of the worst songs ever;[9] however, Richie Unterberger of allmusic said the song "was one of the most popular songs on the White Album, one that could have easily been a hit single had it been released on 45."[10]
Scott later tried to claim a writer's credit for the use of his catch phrase in the song; McCartney however, claimed that the phrase was "just an expression". Scott agreed to drop the case when, at Scott's request, McCartney paid Scott's legal expenses for an unrelated issue.[3]
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| Chart (1969) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart[12] | 1 |
| Austrian Singles Chart[20] | 1 |
| Norwegian VG-lista Singles Chart[21] | 1 |
| Swiss Singles Chart[22] | 2 |
| Preceded by "Lily the Pink" by The Scaffold "Lily the Pink " by The Scaffold |
UK number one single (Marmalade version) 1 January 1969 15–22 January 1969 |
Succeeded by "Lily the Pink " by The Scaffold "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac |
| Preceded by "Fru Johnsen" by Inger Lise Rypdal |
Norwegian VG-lista number-one single (Marmalade version) 05/1969-12/1969 |
Succeeded by "Oj, oj, oj så glad jeg ska bli" by Kirsti Sparboe |
| Preceded by "Little Arrows" by Leapy Lee |
Ö3 Austria Top 40 number-one single (Marmalade version) 15 February 1969 |
Succeeded by "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" by The Beatles |
| Preceded by "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" by Marmalade |
Ö3 Austria Top 40 number-one single (The Beatles version) 15 March - 15 April 1969 |
Succeeded by "Proud Mary" by Creedence Clearwater Revival |
| Preceded by "Eloise" by Barry Ryan |
Swiss Music Charts number-one single (The Beatles version) 28 January - 4 March 1969 |
Succeeded by "Crimson and Clover" by Tommy James and the Shondells |
| Preceded by "I Started a Joke" by the Bee Gees |
Australian Kent Music Report number-one single (The Beatles version) 8 March - 12 April 1969 |
Succeeded by "Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)" by Peter Sarstedt |
| Preceded by "Manchester and Liverpool" by Pinky and the Fellas "Manchester and Liverpool" by Pinky and the Fellas |
Japanese Oricon International Chart number one single (The Beatles version) 7–28 April 1969 12–19 May 1969 |
Succeeded by "Manchester and Liverpool" by Pinky and the Fellas "La Pioggia" by Gigliola Cinquetti |
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   | ''Beatles classic voted worst song'' - BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Beatles classic voted worst song |
| | Song Lyrics - Steve's Beatles Page - Songs - Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da |
| | Pollack, Alan W. "Notes on 'Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da.'" 1997. - Alan W. Pollack's Notes on "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" |
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