Badfinger's "Come And Get It" (video below) is one of those songs that is so ubiquitous that even if you don't know it, you can sing along the second you hear the opening notes. It's simple, accessible, melodic, and all around appealing. It is quite simply, very, very, well known. However, what is perhaps less well known is that the song was written and produced by none other than Paul McCartney. Not only that, but before "giving" the song to Badfinger, Macca recorded his own demo, playing all the instruments and performing all vocals himself.
The McCartney version sounds a great deal like the Badfinger version, and apparently not at all by accident. When McCartney offered the song to the band, he insisted that they deliver instrumentals identical to his demo, and that he get to choose which member of the band got to sing. Despite his careful management of the song's sound, we have to say we still prefer his demo. There's really no substitute for the awesomeness of a young Paul's vocal abilities, and his bass lines are simply unparalleled. Check it out for yourself below, and if that's not enough variation for you, give a listen to Elton John's 1970 cover version when you're done.
Paul McCartney plays Yankee Stadium on July 15th and 16th. Yes, you should go.
1 comments:
I've never heard that before. You're right. There's no substitute for Paul. Maybe badfinger would've done better with it if they had a little more flexibility to fit it to their strengths?
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