Stand by Me (song)
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| "Stand By Me" | ||
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| Single by Ben E. King | ||
| Writer(s) | Ben E. King, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller | |
"Stand By Me" is the title of a song performed by Ben E. King and written by Ben E. King, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. Since its release, there have been many cover versions of the song, though few have achieved the fame of the original.
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[edit] Song
King's version was a Top Ten hit on the U.S. charts twice—in its original release in 1961, and a 1986 rerelease coinciding with its use as the theme song for the movie of the same name. In February 1987 it reached #1 on the UK singles chart following its appearance in the film and also in an advertisement for Levi Jeans. It reached #8 in the United World Chart.
The song was also used for a 1995 short film starring Timon and Pumbaa that was released in front of the Jonathan Taylor Thomas film Tom and Huck. This odd 3-minute short features Timon singing the song, while Pumbaa is constantly hit by objects every time Timon says "Stand by me". "Stand By Me" was also a featured song in the hit movie Urban Cowboy where it was performed by Mickey Gilley.
"Stand By Me" was ranked number 121 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 1999, BMI named it as the fourth most-performed song of the 20th century, with about 7 million performances.
[edit] Cover versions
Both John Lennon and The Kingsmen have covered versions of this song, Lennon in his 1975 album "Rock 'n' Roll," and the Kingsmen in various concert performances. Punk band Pennywise have also covered the song on their 1989 EP A Word from the Wise. Otis Redding also covered the song once. U2 covered the song frequently during their Joshua Tree and Zoo TV tours between 1987 and 1993, notably with one performance in Philadelphia where Bruce Springsteen joined them onstage for the song, and was often snippeted during the 1997-1998 Popmart Tour after "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For". It has also been covered by Marvin Gaye and on their 2005 American Idiot tour, the punk rock group Green Day often used elements of the song during a medley with The Isley Brothers' "Shout." Adriano Celentano covered the song as Pregherò. The song was also sung by The Lion King characters Timon and Pumbaa.
[edit] Chords
The song uses a version of the common chord progression now called the 50s progression.
[edit] John Lennon single release
| "Stand by Me" | ||
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| Single by John Lennon | ||
| from the album Rock 'n' Roll | ||
| Released | 1975 | |
| Format | 7" vinyl | |
| Recorded | 1974 | |
| Genre | Rock/Pop | |
| Writer(s) | Ben E. King, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller | |
| Producer(s) | John Lennon | |
| Chart positions | ||
| John Lennon singles chronology | ||
| "#9 Dream" (1975) |
"Stand by Me" (1975) |
"Imagine" (UK only, 1975); "(Just Like) Starting Over" (1980) |
Lennon's "Stand by Me" was his last hit prior to his five year retirement from the music industry. The B-side of the single was "Move Over Ms. L," a rare and raucous track also covered by The Who drummer Keith Moon.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" by George Michael and Aretha Franklin |
UK number one single (Ben E. King version) February 15, 1987 |
Succeeded by "Everything I Own" by Boy George |
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