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"With a Little Help from My Friends" is the title of a 1967 song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and recorded on the Beatles album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. The song was written for and sung by Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.
John and Paul insisted that Ringo sing the song, including the high note at the end. Ringo agreed on one condition: they must change the introduction to something other than "What would you do if I sang out of tune? Would you throw a tomato at me?"
The song reads like a conversation between the singer and group of people. For example, "Would you believe in a love at first sight/Yes I'm certain that it happens all the time". In the preceding quotation from the lyrics, the other three Beatles sing the first line, with Starr answering in the following one.
An early working title for the song was "Badfinger Boogie", which later became the inspiration for the name of the band Badfinger.
The song has been number one on the British singles charts three times; once when it was recorded by Joe Cocker in 1968, a second time when it was covered by Wet Wet Wet in 1988 and finally when it was sung by Sam and Mark in 2004. Cocker's version is considered by many to be the best ever cover version of a Beatles song.
It became well-known in the late 1980s and early 1990s when Cocker's cover version was the theme song for the television series, The Wonder Years.
External links
- Song lyrics (http://frogcircus.org/beatles/sgt_peppers_lonely_hearts_club_band/with_a_little_help_from_my_friends)
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