I Feel Fine

I Feel Fine was a number one hit of the Beatles in the United Kingdom and in the United States at the end of 1964. John Lennon wrote it around a guitar riff that he "heard" while recording Eight Days a Week in early October of 1964. Paul contributed several elements to the finished song. The group was just finishing up the Beatles For Sale album. George later said that the core guitar riff was much like one in Watch Your Step by Bobby Parker (1961), a song the Beatles performed in concert through 1962. The song is simple, and it is pure rock and roll. When Lennon introduced it to the group, he thought it was a bad effort; in the hands of the group, however, it came to life, and began to "sound like an a-side." Paul commented that Ringo's drumming reminded him of Milt Turner's effort as Ray Charles' drummer for What'd I Say?

This release was the Beatles' eighth UK single, made public in the UK on November 27, 1964. It reached number one by December 12. The b-side was She's a Woman. The song was also the first of six straight number one hits by the Beatles in the US, a record not overtaken until Mariah Carey broke it in the 1990's.

The recording of I Feel Fine contains audio feedback, employed as a special effect on a recording for the first time by any group. The opening note of the intro is an harmonic A on Paul's bass, extended and modified by feedback, discovered when the guitar was leaned against the amp.

This song is available on Past Masters, Volume One, The Beatles 1, Anthology 2, and Live At The BBC.