| "This Song" | ||||||||||||
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US sleeve |
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| Single by George Harrison | ||||||||||||
| from the album Thirty Three & 1/3 | ||||||||||||
| B-side | "Learning How to Love You" | |||||||||||
| Released | 15 November 1976 (US) 19 November 1976 (UK) |
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| Format | vinyl record 7" | |||||||||||
| Recorded | 1976 | |||||||||||
| Genre | Rock, Pop | |||||||||||
| Length | 4:14 (album version) 3:45 (single edit) |
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| Label | Dark Horse | |||||||||||
| Writer(s) | George Harrison | |||||||||||
| Producer | George Harrison | |||||||||||
| George Harrison singles chronology | ||||||||||||
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"This Song" is the fourth track on George Harrison's 1976 album Thirty Three & 1/3. It was released as the leadoff single from the album and reached #25 on the American pop charts.
"This Song" was written after the week Harrison spent in a New York courtroom, unsuccessfully trying to convince a judge that his 1970 song, "My Sweet Lord," did not intentionally infringe The Chiffons' 1963 hit, "He's So Fine." According to Harrison, the plaintiff got ridiculously in-depth, breaking "My Sweet Lord" down into several melody lines, or "motifs," as they referred to them.[1] Apparently, the plaintiff also drew up several charts with large musical notes on it to prove their point.[1] Harrison said in his autobiography, I Me Mine, that after several days, he "started to believe that maybe they did own those notes."[1]
After he lost the case, Harrison wrote "This Song," which released his frustration of the infringement case in the form of an uptempo, piano-driven boogie. It features Billy Preston on piano and organ, and Monty Python's Eric Idle calling out a falsetto "Could be 'Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch,'" "No, sounds more like 'Rescue Me'!" interjection right before the instrumental break.
The song also has a humorous music video (shown on the November 20, 1976 episode of Saturday Night Live), which features George in a courtroom along with a cast of many of his friends (dressed up as the jury, bailiff, defense experts, etc.). Drummer Jim Keltner appears as the judge and The Rolling Stones's Ronnie Wood (dressed as a 'Pepperpot' character) mimics Idle's aforementioned falsetto words.
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