Slow Down

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"Slow Down"
"Slow Down" cover
Single by The Beatles
from the album Something New in the United States
A-side(s) "Matchbox"
Released 24 August 1964
Format 7" (1964)
Recorded June 1964
Genre Rock and roll
Length 2:55
Label Capitol
Writer(s) Williams
Producer(s) George Martin
The Beatles singles chronology
"And I Love Her
(US-1964)"
"Matchbox"
(US-1964)
"I Feel Fine"
(1964)

"Slow Down" is a song written and performed by Larry Williams. Released as a single in 1958, it was a Rhythm and Blues hit that would help influence the growing Rock & Roll movement of the time. It was released as a 7" Single (45RPM). The A-Side was "Slow Down" and the B-Side was "Dizzy Miss Lizzy", both of which later would be covered by The Beatles in 1964 and 1965 respectively.

The Beatles covered the song early in their live career and eventually recorded a version and released it on their "Long Tall Sally" EP single in the UK. Not long after, the song was released in the US on its own, with the B-Side of 1964's "Matchbox" (also from the "Long Tall Sally EP").

[edit] Other cover versions

The Jam recorded a version on their debut album In The City. It was also a regular feature of their early live sets.

Brian May recorded a version in 1997, intending to release an album of covers, tentatively called Heroes. He changed the nature and approach of the album, dropping the "covers" idea and focusing on his collaborations and new songs of the time. "Slow Down" would survive the change and appear on the new album anyway, Another World, released in 1998. This version features May on vocal and lead guitar, Cozy Powell on drums, Jamie Moses on guitar, Spike Edney on keyboards and Neil Murray on bass. It was recorded on the same day the five recorded covers of "Maybe Baby", "Only Make Believe" and "Marie's The Name (His Latest Flame)", all for the Heroes album. The first two tracks would end as B-sides to various singles from the album and "Marie" would go unreleased, though it was leaked to the public (much to May's consternation) in 2006.

A version also appears on the joint album by Jools Holland and Tom Jones released in 2005.