I Feel Fine

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“I Feel Fine”
Single by The Beatles
B-side	"She's A Woman"
Released	23 November 1964 (US) 27 November 1964 (UK)
Format	7"
Recorded	Abbey Road: 18 October 1964
Genre	Rock and roll
Length	2:18
Label	Parlophone R5160 (UK) Capitol 5222 (US)
Writer(s)	Lennon/McCartney
Producer	George Martin
The Beatles singles chronology
"A Hard Day's Night" (UK-1964) --- "Matchbox" (US-1964) "I Feel Fine" (1964) "Ticket to Ride" (UK-1965) --- "Eight Days a Week" (US-1965)

"I Feel Fine" is a riff-driven rock song written by John Lennon (although credited to Lennon/McCartney) and released in 1964 by The Beatles as the A side of their eighth UK single. The song reached the top of the charts on December 12 of that year, displacing The Rolling Stones' "Little Red Rooster," and remained there for five weeks. The b-side was She's A Woman, written by Paul McCartney. It also reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1964.

"I Feel Fine" burgeoned from its distinctive guitar riff, written by Lennon while in the studio recording "Eight Days a Week."^{[citation needed]} "I actually wrote 'I Feel Fine' around the riff which is going on in the background," Lennon recalled.^{[citation needed]} "I told them that I'd write a song specially for this riff so they said, 'Yes. You go away and do that,' knowing that we'd almost finished Beatles for Sale. Anyway, going into the studio one morning, I said to Ringo, 'I've written this song but it's lousy,' but we tried it, complete with riff, and it sounded like an A side, so we decided to release it just like that."^{[citation needed]} Lennon's riff would seem to bear a striking resemblance to one found in "Watch Your Step", a 1961 release written and performed by Bobby Parker and covered by The Beatles in concerts during 1961 and 1962 (with the two songs also sharing a remarkably similar Latin-style drum pattern).^{[citation needed]} The Beatles would continue to feature guitar riffs in their songs, most notably in numbers like "Day Tripper", "Ticket to Ride", "And Your Bird Can Sing", and "Paperback Writer."

At the time of the song's recording, The Beatles, having mastered the studio basics, had begun to explore new sources of inspiration in noises previously eliminated as mistakes (electronic goofs, twisted tapes, talkback). "I Feel Fine" marks the earliest example of the use of feedback as a recording effect—artists such as Jimi Hendrix, The Kinks, and The Who used feedback, but Lennon remained proud of the fact that The Beatles were the first group to actually put it on vinyl.^[1] This subtle shift in their approach to recording became a lasting element of the group's later career, making itself widely apparent on albums like Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.^{[citation needed]}

The intro to "I Feel Fine" starts with a single, percussive (yet pure-sounding) note (a high "A" harmonic) played on Paul's Hofner bass guitar that sustains, perhaps beyond any song previously recorded. It is then (famously) transformed and distorted via feedback. While sounding very much like an Electric guitar, John played it on an acoustic (a Gibson model J-160E),^[2] employing 1960s sound effect devices to make the acoustic guitar sound more electronic. The intro riff around a Dmaj chord progresses to a C, then a G, where the G major vocals begin. Just before the coda, Lennon's intro riff (or ostinato), is repeated with a bright sound by George Harrison on electric guitar (a Gretsch Tennessean),^[2] followed by the surprisingly more electric sound of John on amped acoustic.^{[2][1][3][4][5]}

In the US, the song was released on their Capitol album Beatles '65, and is presented in a duophonic mix featuring a layer of reverb added by executive Dave Dexter, Jr.

In the UK, the song was released on the LP format on A Collection of Beatles Oldies. A true stereo version can be found on the Past Masters Vol 1 and Beatles 1 CDs. "I Feel Fine" has the notoriety of being the first recorded song in history to feature "guitar feedback" which can be heard at the intro of the song. This was in direct violation of Parlophone's recording policies and was forbidden. The Beatles claimed that it was an accident during the recording that had somehow slipped by, but outtakes include it.

[edit] Cover versions

• Queen - In the Mannheim, Germany leg of the Magic Tour, Queen performed this song with Freddie Mercury on lead vocals, Brian May on acoustic guitar, and Roger Taylor on tambourine. May and Taylor sang backup vocals.
• The Sweethearts of the Rodeo recorded a country version of "I Feel Fine" in 1988, releasing their version as a single.
• In 1998 The Punkles did a Punk cover of this song on their first album.

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Turner, Steve. A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles' Song, Harper, New York: 1994, ISBN 0-06-095065-X