Hollies Version
Within a month of "If I Needed Someone" being recorded by the Beatles in October 1965 at Abbey Road, The Hollies' were brought a demo of the song by their producer Ron Richards, who in turn was offered the demo by George Martin. They recorded their version in three takes on 17 November 1965 in the same studio as the Beatles, and it was released by Parlophone on 3 December 1965, the same day as Rubber Soul. The single was released by Imperial Records in the United States in November 1967.
"If I Needed Someone" was the first George Harrison composition to be a UK chart hit, as a result of The Hollies' cover. Their version reached No. 20 on 9 December 1965, but by their standards it was one of their least successful singles. Many in the public perceived the song as the Hollies attempting to ride on the Beatles' bootheels. Dismissive comments about the Hollies' track by Harrison, basically calling it "rubbish" in an interview with NME magazine, led to angry exchanges between the groups.
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Famous quotes containing the word version:
“If the only new thing we have to offer is an improved version of the past, then today can only be inferior to yesterday. Hypnotised by images of the past, we risk losing all capacity for creative change.”
—Robert Hewison (b. 1943)