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TL;DR:

  • The Beatles’ “I Feel Fine” was inspired by early rock ‘n’ roll stars Carl Perkins and Bobby Parker.
  • “I Feel Fine” reached No. 1 for several weeks in the United States.
  • “I Feel Fine” was a hit twice in the United Kingdom.
The Beatles on a fence
The Beatles | Michael Ochs Archives / Stringer

George Harrison said The Beatles‘ “I Feel Fine” was inspired by them covering one classic rock song. In addition, he felt it featured a “bastardized” riff from another song. George never received a writing credit for his contribution to “I Feel Fine.”

George Harrison didn’t always get credit for co-writing The Beatles’ songs

The book George Harrison on George Harrison: Interviews and Encounters includes an interview from 1989. In it, George said he didn’t always receive credit for his work on The Beatles’ songs. “Well, and there was also this thing — because they got together at an early age and they got signed up by this publisher as ‘Lennon/McCartney’ — so consequently, even if, you know — whoever wrote it, it was always Lennon/McCartney, even if just John wrote it or just Paul wrote it, or even if I wrote half of it, it was still Lennon/McCartney.” 

George said the public’s impression was that he only worked on a Beatles song or two on occasion. He revealed he actually contributed to many Beatles songs. When he became a solo artist, he said he made sure to give all his co-writers proper credit.

George Harrison said Carl Perkins and Bobby Parker inspired The Beatles’ ‘I Feel Fine’

George was asked to name a song he worked on without credit. “Well, a good example was crossing the Forth Bridge in Scotland in the back of an Austin Princess when the song which became known as ‘I Feel Fine’ came about, and I’ll tell you exactly how that song came about,” he said. 

“We were, the three of us, singing [Carl Perkins’] ‘Matchbox’ in three-part harmony, and it turned into ‘I Feel Fine,’ and the guitar part on it was from Bobby Parker, ‘Watch Your Step,’ just a bastardized version of that,” he said. “So that was a song that I know basically, I was there at the whole of its creation, but it was still a Lennon/McCartney.”

Related

John Lennon Made the Intro of The Beatles’ ‘I Feel Fine’ by Accident

How ‘I Feel Fine’ performed on the charts in the United States and the United Kingdom

“I Feel Fine” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, lasting on the chart for 11 weeks. “I Feel Fine” appeared on the compilation album 1962-1966, which reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for 175 weeks.

According to The Official Charts Company, “I Feel Fine” peaked at No. 1 for five weeks in the United Kingdom. The tune lasted on the chart for a total of 13 weeks. A rerelease of the track hit No. 65 and stayed on the chart for two weeks. On the other hand, 1962-1966 hit No. 3 and stayed on the chart for 167 weeks.

“I Feel Fine” is a classic song and it wouldn’t be the same without “Matchbox” or “Watch Your Step.”

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