Come Together
Encyclopedia
"Come Together" is a song by The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

 written by John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...

and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on The Beatles' September 1969 album Abbey Road.

One month later it was released as a double A-sided single with "Something
Something
"Something" is a song by The Beatles, written by lead guitarist George Harrison in 1969. It was featured on the album Abbey Road, and was also the first song written by Harrison to appear on the A-side of a Beatles' single...

", their twenty-first single in the United Kingdom and twenty-sixth in the United States. The song reached the top of the charts in the US, and peaked at number four in the UK.

Origin and meaning

The song's history began when Lennon was inspired by Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary
Timothy Francis Leary was an American psychologist and writer, known for his advocacy of psychedelic drugs. During a time when drugs like LSD and psilocybin were legal, Leary conducted experiments at Harvard University under the Harvard Psilocybin Project, resulting in the Concord Prison...

's gubernatorial campaign for governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...

 titled "Come together, join the party" against Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....

, which promptly ended when Leary was sent to prison for possession of marijuana
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...

. It has been speculated that each verse refers cryptically to each of The Beatles (e.g. "he's one holy roller" allegedly refers to the spiritually inclined George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

; "he got monkey finger, he shoot Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...

" to Ringo
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...

, the funny Beatle; "he got Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...

 sideboard, he one spinal cracker" to Lennon himself; and "got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see" to Paul
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...

); however, it has also been suggested that the song has only a single "pariah-like protagonist" and Lennon was "painting another sardonic self-portrait".

Recording

John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...

 played rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...

 and sang the vocal; Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...

 played bass; Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...

 played drums; and George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

 played lead guitar. It was produced by George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...

 and recorded at the end of July 1969 at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...

. In the intro, Lennon says "shoot me" which is accompanied by McCartney's heavy bass riff. The famous Beatles' "walrus" from "I Am the Walrus
I Am the Walrus
"I Am the Walrus" is a 1967 song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. Lennon claimed he wrote the first two lines on separate acid trips. The song was in the Beatles' 1967 television film and album Magical Mystery Tour, and was the B-side to the #1 hit "Hello,...

" and "Glass Onion
Glass Onion
"Glass Onion" is a song by The Beatles from their 1968 double-album The Beatles primarily written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. This is the first track on the White Album to feature Ringo Starr on drums...

" returns in the line "he got walrus gumboot", followed by "he got Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...

 sideboard". Bluesman Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...

 is also mentioned in the song.

Although McCartney composed the electric piano part, Lennon looked over his shoulder to learn it so he could perform it himself on the recording. Music critic Ian MacDonald
Ian MacDonald
Ian MacCormick was a British music critic and author, best known for Revolution in the Head, his forensic history of The Beatles which borrowed techniques from art historians, and The New Shostakovich, a controversial study of the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich...

 reports that McCartney sang a backing vocal, but recording engineer Geoff Emerick
Geoff Emerick
Geoffrey Emerick is an English recording studio audio engineer, who is best known for his work with The Beatles' albums Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles and Abbey Road...

 said that Lennon did all the vocals himself, and when a frustrated McCartney asked Lennon, "What do you want me to do on this track, John?", Lennon replied, "Don't worry, I'll do the [vocal] overdubs on this."

McCartney does sing on the track and can be clearly heard but his vocals were added later as an overdub. McCartney later said he was disappointed he didn't sing with Lennon.

Release and acclaim

"Come Together" was released as a double A-side with "Something
Something
"Something" is a song by The Beatles, written by lead guitarist George Harrison in 1969. It was featured on the album Abbey Road, and was also the first song written by Harrison to appear on the A-side of a Beatles' single...

" and as the opening track of Abbey Road. The single was released on 6 October 1969 in the US and 31 October 1969 in the UK.

Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

ranked "Come Together" at #202 on their list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time
The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" was the cover story of a special issue of Rolling Stone, issue number 963, published December 9, 2004, a year after the magazine published its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time"....

" and #9 on their list of The Beatles' 100 Greatest Songs.

On the compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...

 Love
Love (The Beatles album)
Love is a Grammy Award-winning soundtrack remix album of music recorded by The Beatles, released in November 2006. It features music compiled and remixed as a mashup for the Cirque du Soleil show of the same name...

, "Come Together" is the 19th track. Instrumentals and some backing vocals from "Dear Prudence
Dear Prudence
"Dear Prudence" is a song written by John Lennon, and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released by The Beatles as the second track on their 1968 double-disc album entitled The Beatles, commonly known as The White Album.-Composition:...

" fade in followed by the "Can you take me back" section of "Cry Baby Cry
Cry Baby Cry
"Cry Baby Cry" is a song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon, from their 1968 album The Beatles.-Composition:Demos of the song indicate that Lennon wrote the song in late 1967...

" as a transition.

Song analysis

This classic 1960s rock anthem with deep bluesy style was unlike any other song of its time in that it was constructed entirely of verse/refrains. There is no bridge and no chorus; one guitar solo is all that interrupts this radical song structure. For the first eight bars the tonic note, D, is repeated and then eventually it moves to the V chord and then to the IV chord. It then moves to the VI minor chord, which is a progression rarely used, except in the song "I Heard It Through the Grapevine
I Heard It through the Grapevine
"I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a landmark song in the history of Motown. Written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong in 1966, the single was first recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles...

". The refrain in actuality is three bars long, because the melody keeps going after the last A5 chord and comes to rest on the D5 chord after that. It is also important to mention the introduction of F# in the melody with a B minor triad. The tonic is held for four bars between each verse and is the same as the contents of the introduction.

Within the verse there are four one-bar structures; each one a non-sequitur. The lyrics end each time on the abrupt beat four of each measure, giving the verse an AAAA phrasing structure. The phrasing structure in the second half of the verse is two bars of BB. The C phrasing structure of the refrain has three measures becoming one long phrase and ending on the word "me" which ties everything together. There is an eleven-bar verse/refrain from a ten bar form. The one bar phrase into the two bar phrase and the three bar overlap creates plenty of deceleration and pushes the title line of the song to the spotlight. The melody of the verse stays within the range of a perfect fourth. Using mostly three notes (D, F, C) the tonic, flat three and flat seven, it moves away later only for contrast when it hits the II (E) and stays on that note for two bars. The refrain stands out as the highest notes in the piece (A). John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...

 decided to use modal interchange.

Lawsuit

In 1973, "Come Together" was the subject of a lawsuit brought against Lennon by Big Seven Music Corp. (owned by Morris Levy
Morris Levy
Morris Levy was an American music industry executive, best known as the founder and owner of Roulette Records...

) who was the publisher of Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...

's "You Can't Catch Me
You Can't Catch Me
"You Can't Catch Me" is a song written and performed by Chuck Berry, released as a single in 1956. The song's lyrics mention racing a souped-up "air-mobile" down the New Jersey Turnpike...

". Levy contended that it sounded similar musically to Berry's original and shared some lyrics (Lennon sang "Here come ol' flattop, he come groovin' up slowly" and Berry's had sung "Here come a flattop, he was movin' up with me"). Before recording, Lennon and McCartney deliberately slowed the song down and added a heavy bass riff in order to make the song more original. After settling out of court, Lennon promised to record three other songs owned by Levy. "You Can't Catch Me" and "Ya Ya" were released on Lennon's 1975 album Rock 'n' Roll
Rock 'n' Roll (John Lennon album)
Rock 'n' Roll is a 1975 album of late 1950s and early 1960s songs covered by John Lennon. Recording the album was problematic and spanned a year. Though critically derided, it reached #6 in both the United Kingdom and the United States.-History:...

, but the third, "Angel Baby
Angel Baby (song)
"Angel Baby" was a 1960 single by Rosie & The Originals. The song was recorded independently on a two-track machine when lead singer Rosie Hamlin was only 15 years old. Initially unable to find a label willing to distribute the song because of its unpolished sound, the group convinced a San Diego...

", remained unreleased until after Lennon's death. Levy again sued Lennon for breach of contract, and was eventually awarded $6,795. Lennon countersued after Levy released an album of Lennon material using tapes that were in his possession and was eventually awarded $84,912.96.

Personnel

  • John Lennon
    John Lennon
    John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...

     – lead vocal, rhythm guitar
    Rhythm guitar
    Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...

    , electric piano
    Electric piano
    An electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...

    , handclaps
    Clapping
    A clap is the sound made by striking together two flat surfaces, as in the body parts of humans or animals. Humans clap with the palms of their hands, often in a constant drone to express appreciation or approval , but also in rhythm to match sounds in music and dance...

  • Paul McCartney
    Paul McCartney
    Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...

     – harmony vocal, bass guitar
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

  • George Harrison
    George Harrison
    George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

     – lead guitar
    Lead guitar
    Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...

  • Ringo Starr
    Ringo Starr
    Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...

     – drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

    , maracas
    Maracás
    Maracás is a town and municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil.-References:...

Personnel per Geoff Emerick
Geoff Emerick
Geoffrey Emerick is an English recording studio audio engineer, who is best known for his work with The Beatles' albums Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles and Abbey Road...


John Lennon solo version

"Come Together" was the only Beatles' tune Lennon sang during his 1972 Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...

 concert. It was Lennon's last full-length concert performance, and his only one after leaving the Beatles. He was backed by the band Elephant's Memory
Elephant's Memory
Elephant's Memory was a New York band, most notable for backing John Lennon and Yoko Ono during 1972 on a pair of albums, and a handful of TV and live appearances, including the John Lennon "One To One Concert", with two performances the 30th of August 1972 to benefit the Willowbrook School for...

. This version of the song appears on the concert album Live in New York City
Live in New York City
Live in New York City is a posthumous live album by John Lennon. It was prepared under the supervision of his widow, Yoko Ono, and released in 1986 as his second official live album, the first being Live Peace in Toronto 1969.-Performances:...

.

Aerosmith version

American hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...

 band Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...

 performed one of the first and most successful cover versions of "Come Together". It was recorded in 1978 and appeared in the movie and on the soundtrack to the film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (film)
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a 1978 American musical film. Its soundtrack, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, features new versions of songs originally written and performed by The Beatles. The film draws primarily from two of their albums, 1967's Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club...

, in which the band also appeared. The single was an immediate success, reaching #23 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

, following on the heels of a string of Top 40 hits for the band in the mid-1970s. However it would be the last Top 40 hit for the band for nearly a decade.

A rare live demo of the song was also released months later on Aerosmith's live album Live! Bootleg. The song also featured on Aerosmith's Greatest Hits, the band's first singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 compilation released in 1980. The song has also surfaced on a number of Aerosmith compilations and live albums since then, as well as on the soundtrack for the film Armageddon.

The Aerosmith version is still frequently heard on mainstream and album rock radio stations. Aerosmith still occasionally perform "Come Together" in concert.

Since 2006, New Zealand telecommunications company Telecom
Telecom New Zealand
Telecom New Zealand is a New Zealand-wide communications service provider , providing fixed line telephone services, a mobile network, an internet service provider , a major ICT provider to NZ businesses , and a wholesale network infrastructure provider to other NZ CSPs...

 used a cover of this song for its "Come Together" campaign.

Other notable covers

The song has since become one of the most covered songs of all time; covers are listed as follows:
  • The Supremes
    The Supremes
    The Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...

     covered the song on their 1970 album, New Ways But Love Stays
    New Ways but Love Stays
    New Ways But Love Stays is a 1970 album by the Jean Terrell-led version of The Supremes. Building on the foundation of the group's first LP, Right On, New Ways was produced by Frank Wilson and features The Supremes' most successful single with Terrell, "Stoned Love"...

    .
  • Diana Ross
    Diana Ross
    Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...

     covered the song on her 1970 album Everything Is Everything.
  • Chairmen of the Board covered the song on one of their first LPs (1970).
  • Tina Turner
    Tina Turner
    Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...

     covered the song for the 1976 musical documentary All This and World War II
    All This and World War II
    All This and World War II is a 1976 musical documentary that juxtaposes Beatles songs, performed by a number of musicians, with World War II newsreel footage and 20th Century Fox films from the 1940s...

    . Prior to that, her cover was featured on her and then-husband Ike's album of the same name. This version peaked at #57 on the U.S. Hot 100 and #21 on the R&B charts in 1970.
  • The Brothers Johnson released a cover of the song on their 1976 album Look Out for #1.
  • Eurythmics
    Eurythmics
    Eurythmics were a British pop rock duo, formed in 1980, currently disbanded, but known to reunite from time to time. Consisting of members Annie Lennox and David A...

     covered the song in 1987, but it was not released until 2005 as a bonus track on the digitally remastered version of Savage
    Savage (album)
    -Personnel:*Annie Lennox - vocals, keyboards and programming*Dave Stewart - backing vocals, guitar, keyboards and programming*Olle Romo - programming-Production:*Producer: Dave Stewart*Engineers: Fred DeFaye, Manu Guiot, Alan Moulder...

    .
  • Michael Hedges
    Michael Hedges
    Michael Alden Hedges was an American composer, Acoustic guitarist and singer-songwriter.-Background:...

     released his version on the 1987 album Live on the Double Planet.
  • Michael Jackson
    Michael Jackson
    Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

    , who owned the rights to the song, also covered "Come Together" for the concert portion of the film Michael Jackson: Moonwalker
    Moonwalker
    Moonwalker, also known as Michael Jackson: Moonwalker, is an American anthology film released in 1988 by singer Michael Jackson....

    (1987). The same recording also appears on Jackson's studio album, HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I (in a shorter edit), and was performed live at certain concerts during Jackson's HIStory World Tour
    HIStory World Tour
    The HIStory World Tour was the third and final worldwide solo concert tour by American megasuperstar Michael Jackson, covering Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania and North America. The tour included a total of 82 concerts and was attended by approximately 4.5 million fans, beating his previous Bad Tour...

    . The longer version appears on Jackson's 1992 single "Remember the Time
    Remember the Time
    "Remember the Time" is a single by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson recorded in the Hit Factory Miami. The song was released by Epic Records on January 14, 1992, as the second single from Jackson's eighth studio album, Dangerous. Written and composed by Teddy Riley, Michael Jackson and...

    ", the music video was released on the box set Michael Jackson's Vision
    Michael Jackson's Vision
    Michael Jackson's Vision is a deluxe DVD box set released on November 22, 2010. It includes three DVDs, featuring 4.5 hours of content of 42 music videos by Michael Jackson, with newly restored color and remastered audio. Michael referred to each of these productions as a "short film" and not a...

    .
  • Shalamar
    Shalamar
    Shalamar was an American music group, primarily of the 1970s and 1980s, that was originally a disco-driven vehicle created by Soul Train booking agent Dick Griffey and show creator Don Cornelius. They went on to be an influential dance trio, masterminded by Soul Train producer Don Cornelius...

     covered the song on their 1990 album Wake Up.
  • Boris Grebenshchikov
    Boris Grebenshchikov
    Boris Borisovich Grebenshchikov also known as Boris Purushottama Grebenshikov, is one of the most prominent members of the generation which is widely considered the "founding fathers" of Russian rock music...

     & Joanna Stingray released their version and its video in the 1990s.
  • Soundgarden
    Soundgarden
    Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...

     covered the song on the "Hands All Over" (1990) single, giving it a very grunge
    Grunge
    Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...

     sound. The band's cover also appeared on its Loudest Love
    Loudest Love
    Loudest Love is an EP by the American rock band Soundgarden. It was released in October 1990 through A&M Records.-Overview:The EP was first released in Japan, and later released in the United States. The track listing is the same as that for the "Loud Love" single, but with the addition of "Hands...

    EP.
  • Robin Williams
    Robin Williams
    Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...

     and Bobby McFerrin
    Bobby McFerrin
    Robert "Bobby" McFerrin, Jr. is an American vocalist and conductor. He is best known for his 1988 hit song "Don't Worry, Be Happy". He is a ten-time Grammy Award winner.-Life:...

     recorded in 1997 a unique version for the Beatles' tribute album In My Life in which McFerrin performs the characteristic bass and guitar intro with his voice, and Williams sings.
  • Defunkt
    Defunkt
    Defunkt is a musical group founded by trombonist/singer Joseph Bowie 1978 in New York, United States, and still active. Their music touches on elements of punk rock, funk and jazz....

     covered "Come Together" on the 1992 album Downtown Does The Beatles Live at the Knitting Factory.
  • Axl Rose
    Axl Rose
    W. Axl Rose is an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist and only remaining original member of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he enjoyed great success and recognition in the late 1980s and early 1990s, before disappearing from the public eye for several years...

     and Bruce Springsteen
    Bruce Springsteen
    Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...

     played "Come Together" before Lennon's induction into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.
  • Gotthard
    Gotthard (band)
    Gotthard is a Swiss hard rock/heavy metal band founded in Lugano by Steve Lee and Leo Leoni. Their last eleven albums have all reached number 1 in the Swiss album charts, making them one of the most successful Swiss acts ever....

     recorded "Come Together" for their 1994 album Dial Hard
    Dial Hard
    Dial Hard is the second studio album released by the hard rock band Gotthard.-Track listing:All songs written by Steve Lee/Leo Leoni/Chris von Rohr except where noted.# "Higher" – 4:32# "Mountain Mama" – 3:52# "Here Comes the Heat" – 3:01...

    .
  • Christos Dantis
    Christos Dantis
    Christos Dantis , is a Greek singer, songwriter, and musician best known for his hits such as "To Palio Mou Palto" and "Ena Tragoudi Akoma" and later for composing and co-writing the song "My Number One" for Elena Paparizou, winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 for Greece.- Early music career...

     remixed and covered the song on his 1994 album 4.
  • Marcus Miller
    Marcus Miller
    Marcus Miller is an American jazz composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. Miller is best known as a bassist, working with trumpeter Miles Davis, singer Luther Vandross, and saxophonist David Sanborn, as well as maintaining a prolific solo career...

     included an instrumental version on his album Tales
    Tales (album)
    Tales is a 1995 studio album of Marcus Miller.-Track listing:All tracks composed by Marcus Miller; except where indicated# "The Blues" – 5:35# "Tales " – 0:12# "Tales" – 5:42...

    (1994).
  • Pride and Glory
    Pride and Glory (band)
    Pride and Glory was a side project for Black Label Society guitarist Zakk Wylde. This was Zakk's first self-fronted project, then he released his solo-album Book of Shadows in 1996...

     covered this song on their album Pride and Glory (1994).
  • Noel Gallagher
    Noel Gallagher
    Noel Thomas David Gallagher is an English musician and singer-songwriter, formerly the lead guitarist, backing vocalist and principal songwriter of the English rock band Oasis. He is currently fronting his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.Raised in Burnage, Manchester with his...

     and Paul Weller played with McCartney on a version of the song for the 1995 HELP charity record
    The Help Album
    The Help Album is a 1995 charity album devoted to the War Child charity's aid efforts in war-stricken areas, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina...

    , under the name The Smokin' Mojo Filters. This version made #19 on the British chart in December. In 2005 Weller recorded a new version of the song as part of a double A-sided single.
  • Delbert McClinton
    Delbert McClinton
    Delbert McClinton is an American blues rock and electric blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, harmonica player, and pianist....

     released the song as a single from the 1995 Beatles tribute album Come Together: America Salutes The Beatles
    Come Together: America Salutes The Beatles
    Come Together: America Salutes The Beatles is a tribute album to The Beatles. Released in 1995 on Liberty Records, the album features covers of various Beatles songs, as performed by country music artists. The album cover features artwork by John Lennon.-Track listing:-Chart performance:...

    .
  • A very short cover of "Come Together" was featured on the 1995 compilation album The Hole Truth... and Nothing Butt
    The Hole Truth... and Nothing Butt
    The Hole Truth... and Nothing Butt is the first compilation album by American punk band Butthole Surfers, officially released in March 1995. All songs were written by the Butthole Surfers, except for "Come Together" and "Hurdy Gurdy Man"....

    by Butthole Surfers
    Butthole Surfers
    Butthole Surfers is an American alternative rock band formed by Gibby Haynes and Paul Leary in San Antonio, Texas in 1981. The band has had numerous personnel changes, but its core lineup of Haynes, Leary, and drummer King Coffey has been consistent since 1983. Teresa Nervosa served as second...

    .
  • Enrique Bunbury
    Enrique Bunbury
    Enrique Ortiz de Landázuri Izardui , born August 11, 1967 is a Spanish rock singer-songwriter.Bunbury was born in Zaragoza, Spain. He got involved in music in the early 1980s, making his debut in a high school band called Apocalipsis, and later played along with Proceso Entrópico...

     covered the song on his 1997 single Planeta Sur.
  • Catupecu Machu
    Catupecu Machu
    Catupecu Machu is an Argentine rock band, usually classified as within Rock en Español. Its current band members are Fernando Ruíz Díaz in voices and guitar; Sebastián Cáceres in bass guitar; Javier "Il Grosso" Herrlein in drums and accordion; and Macabre in keyboards and samplers.-Biography:The...

     covered this song on their 1997 album Dale!.
  • Black Label Society
    Black Label Society
    Black Label Society is a heavy metal band formed by Zakk Wylde, with nine studio albums, one live album, two compilation albums, one EP, and three video albums released since formation of the band.-Formation and Sonic Brew :...

     covered the song for their album Kings of Damnation 98–04.
  • Spiralmouth
    Spiralmouth
    Spiralmouth is an a cappella group. The group is most famous for their original music for Vivendi Games's Crash Twinsanity. They also co-performed the soundtrack for Crash Tag Team Racing along with Marc Baril, and have a self-titled album featuring covers of songs by the Beatles, Sheryl Crow,...

     covered the song on their 1999 self-titled album
    Spiralmouth (album)
    Spiralmouth is the self-titled album by the a cappella band Spiralmouth.It includes covers of Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", The Beatles' "Come Together", Soundgarden's "Spoonman", Nine Inch Nails' "Closer", and Sheryl Crow's "Love Is A Good Thing".This is Spiralmouth's only...

    , their arrangement also incorporating elements of "I Want You (She's So Heavy)
    I Want You (She's So Heavy)
    "I Want You " is a song by The Beatles, from their album Abbey Road. It was written by John Lennon, although credited to Lennon–McCartney....

    ".
  • Tom Jones
    Tom Jones (singer)
    Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...

     released a live version of "Come Together" on his album 1999 Reload
    Reload (album)
    Reload is the title of an album, released in 1999 by Welsh singer Tom Jones.After a lengthy career, and a notable absence from the music charts for several years, Jones resurrected his career with this album of 15 cover versions and 2 original tracks recorded as duets with current artists...

    .
  • Elton John
    Elton John
    Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...

     covered the song as a tribute to Lennon during his One Night Only: The Greatest Hits Live at Madison Square Garden
    One Night Only: The Greatest Hits Live at Madison Square Garden
    One Night Only: The Greatest Hits Live at Madison Square Garden is a DVD release, featuring Elton John performing some of his best known hits live from Madison Square Garden in New York...

    2000 concert.
  • Alkinoos Ioannidis
    Alkinoos Ioannidis
    Alkinoos Ioannidis is a Greek-Cypriot composer, lyricist, singer and orchestrator.He was born in Nicosia on 19 September 1969. His artistic family, with a painter father and poet brother was a source of inspiration for him. He first wanted to study drums, but couldn't due to the lack of a drum...

     covered the song in concerts, a version was released on his live album Ektos topou kai hronou (Εκτός τόπου και χρόνου) in 2000.
  • Craig David
    Craig David
    Craig Ashley David is an English singer and songwriter. He has released five studio albums: Born to Do It, Slicker Than Your Average, The Story Goes..., Trust Me, Signed Sealed Delivered and a Greatest Hits album...

     performed a live version on Top of the Pops 2 in 2003.
  • Toxic Audio
    Toxic Audio
    Toxic Audio is a five-person a cappella singing group from Orlando, Florida. They began with appearances at the Orlando International Fringe Festival in the late 1990s. Upon achieving frequent appearances at the Jazz Club in Pleasure Island at Walt Disney World Resort's Downtown Disney, their fame...

     covered the song on their album Captive Audience in 2003.
  • Avishai Cohen covered the song for his album Lyla
    Lyla (album)
    Lyla is the 11-song album by jazz bassist Avishai Cohen, released in 2003.-Track listing :# "Ascension" # "Lyla" # "How Long" # "Watcher" – a cover of the Dr...

    in 2003.
  • The Lynne Arriale Trio
    Lynne Arriale
    Lynne Arriale is an American jazz pianist. She was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She received her Master's Degree from the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music and in her initial training was classical. However her interest in the works of Keith Jarrett and Herbie Hancock led her to jazz. She gained...

     recorded a jazz version of the song, which was the title track of their album Come Together in 2004.
  • The Plague
    The Plague (English punk rock band)
    The Plague are an English punk rock band. Formed in South East London during 1976, the band were initially in existence until 1981. They reformed in 2005...

     recorded the song in the late 1970s. It remained unreleased until their compilation album The X Tapes was released in 2005.
  • Sugababes
    Sugababes
    The Sugababes are an English pop girl group based in London, consisting of members Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Jade Ewen. The Sugababes were formed in 1998 with founding members Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan. Their debut album, One Touch, was released in 2000 under London...

     covered the song as a B-Side for their single "Ugly
    Ugly (Sugababes song)
    "Ugly" is a pop song by British girl group Sugababes. It was written and produced by Dallas Austin for the group's fourth studio album, Taller In More Ways. It is the last single to feature founding member Mutya Buena...

    " in 2005.
  • Saxophonist Warren Hill, who is very much known to perform popular song covers, performed "Come Together" from his release PopJazz in 2005.
  • The Roots
    The Roots
    The Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...

     sampled this song on their 2006 Best of the Roots mixtape produced by J. Period.
  • Victoria Beckham
    Victoria Beckham
    Victoria Caroline Beckham is an English singer-songwriter, dancer, model, actress, fashion designer and businesswoman. In the late 1990s, Beckham rose to fame with the all-female pop group Spice Girls and was dubbed Posh Spice by the July 1996 issue of the British pop music magazine Top of the Pops...

     and Damon Dash
    Damon Dash
    __NOINDEX__...

     sampled the song as an intro to one of Dash's mixtape
    Mixtape
    A Mix Tape or Mixed Tape is a compilation of songs recorded in a specific order, traditionally onto an audio Compact Cassette.A Mix Tape, which usually reflects the musical tastes of its compiler, can range from a casually selected list of favorite songs, to a conceptual mix of songs linked by a...

    s.
  • The Punkles
    The Punkles
    The Punkles were a band performing songs by The Beatles in punk style. They formed in 1998 in Hamburg, Germany and it was actually a side project of Prollhead!....

     did a punk cover version on their fourth album For Sale (2006).
  • The Rutles
    The Rutles
    The Rutles are a band that are known for their visual and aural pastiches and parodies of The Beatles. Originally created by Eric Idle and Neil Innes as a fictional band to be featured as part of various 1970s television programming, the group recorded, toured, and released two UK chart hits in...

    ' song "Eine Kleine Middle Klasse Musik" is a pastiche
    Pastiche
    A pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...

     of this song.
  • Vyvienne Long
    Vyvienne Long
    Vyvienne Long is a musician from Co. Dublin, Ireland. A classically trained cellist from the College of Music, Dublin and the Escola de Musica in Barcelona, she also sings and plays piano and writes music for her quintet which comprises 2 cellos, piano, doublebass and drums.After touring for many...

     performed this song for an Irish radio station.
  • Labyrinth
    Labyrinth (band)
    Labyrinth is a power metal band formed in 1991 in Massa, Italy. The band underwent a change in style and themes after the departure of Olaf Thorsen in 2002.-1990s:...

     covered the song on their 2007 album 6 Days to Nowhere.
  • Joe Cocker
    Joe Cocker
    John Robert "Joe" Cocker, OBE is an English rock and blues musician, composer and actor, who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is most known for his gritty voice, his idiosyncratic arm movements while performing, and his cover versions of popular songs, particularly those of The Beatles...

     covers the song on the 2007 soundtrack to the film Across the Universe
    Across the Universe (film)
    Across the Universe is a musical romantic drama film directed by Julie Taymor, produced by Revolution Studios, and distributed by Columbia Pictures. The film's plot is centered around songs by The Beatles. It was released in the United States on October 12, 2007. The script is based on an original...

    .
  • Another jazz version from French trumpeter Erik Truffaz
    Erik Truffaz
    Erik Truffaz is a Swiss-born French jazz trumpeter, infusing elements of hip hop, rock and roll and dance music into his compositions. He signed with the French EMI label in 1996. Truffaz gained international attention with his second album on Blue Note, The Dawn, produced together with Pat...

     with the Sly Johnson was included on the album Rendez-vous - Paris in 2008.
  • Carly Smithson
    Carly Smithson
    Carly Smithson is an Irish soul/pop rock singer-songwriter and actress from San Diego, California who was the sixth place finalist on the seventh season of American Idol. In 2001, Smithson released her first studio album for MCA Records called Ultimate High. Smithson was dropped from the record...

     covered this song on American Idol
    American Idol (season 7)
    The seventh season of American Idol, the annual reality show and singing competition, began on January 15, 2008 and concluded on May 21, 2008. Ryan Seacrest continued to host the show with Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returning as judges...

    , so did Kris Allen
    Kris Allen
    Kristopher Neil "Kris" Allen is an American musician and singer-songwriter from Conway, Arkansas, and the winner of the eighth season of American Idol...

     on season eight
    American Idol (season 8)
    The eighth season of American Idol premiered on January 13, 2009, and concluded on May 20, 2009. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson continued to judge the show's contestants, along with Ryan Seacrest as host. The season introduced Kara DioGuardi as the fourth judge on the Idol...

    , and Crystal Bowersox
    Crystal Bowersox
    Crystal Lynn Bowersox is an American singer-songwriter and actress, who was the runner-up on the ninth season of American Idol...

     on season nine
    American Idol (season 9)
    The ninth season of American Idol premiered on January 12, 2010 and concluded on May 26, 2010 on Fox. Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi all returned as judges, and Ellen DeGeneres permanently replaced Paula Abdul as the fourth judge. Idol Gives Back also returned for the season and was...

    .
  • Olly Murs
    Olly Murs
    Oliver Stanley "Olly" Murs is an English singer-songwriter and TV presenter. Murs rose to fame after being the runner-up on the sixth series of The X Factor...

     performed this song for Rock Week on the X Factor in 2009
    The X Factor (UK series 6)
    The sixth series of British television music competition The X Factor started on ITV on 22 August 2009 and was won by Joe McElderry on 13 December 2009. Cheryl Cole emerged as the winning mentor for the second consecutive year, the first time in the show's history that a mentor has won back-to-back...

    , as did Matt Cardle
    Matt Cardle
    Matthew Sheridan "Matt" Cardle is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist who rose to fame after winning the seventh series of The X Factor in 2010. He received a £1 million recording contract with Syco Music by winning, and his debut number one single "When We Collide" was released immediately...

     on the 2010 series
    The X Factor (UK series 7)
    The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent; the winner of which receives a £1 million recording contract with the Syco Music record label. The seventh series started on ITV on 21 August 2010 and ended on 12 December 2010. The winner was Matt Cardle and...

    .
  • Twin Atlantic
    Twin Atlantic
    Twin Atlantic are an alternative rock band from Glasgow, Scotland. The band is composed of Sam McTrusty , Barry McKenna , Ross McNae and Craig Kneale ....

     covered the song in 2009 for XFM Scotland and released it on their 7" Vinyl "What is light? Where is laughter?".
  • In 2009, the song was included in a posthumous release by Jeff Healey
    Jeff Healey
    Norman Jeffrey "Jeff" Healey was a blind Canadian jazz and blues-rock vocalist and guitarist who attained musical and personal popularity, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s.-Early life:...

    , Songs from the Road.
  • Meat Loaf
    Meat Loaf
    Michael Lee Aday , better known by his stage name, Meat Loaf, is an American hard rock musician and actor...

     covered the song live. It also appeared on one version of his single "Not a Dry Eye in the House
    Not a Dry Eye in the House
    "Not a Dry Eye in the House" is a song composed and written by Diane Warren, and recorded by Meat Loaf. The song was released in 1995 as the second single from the album Welcome to the Neighborhood.-Music video:...

    ", which contained two Beatles' covers, "Let It Be" and "Come Together".
  • Dutch mash-up artist MadMixMustang mashed-up this song with Queen's
    Queen (band)
    Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

     "Fat Bottomed Girls
    Fat Bottomed Girls
    "Fat Bottomed Girls" is a song by the English rock band Queen. Written by guitarist Brian May, the track featured on their 1978 album Jazz, and also appears on the band's compilation album, Greatest Hits...

    ".
  • Pain of Salvation
    Pain of Salvation
    Pain of Salvation is a Swedish progressive rock band featuring Daniel Gildenlöw, who is the lyricist, chief composer, guitarist, and lead vocalist. Their sound is characterised by powerful, accentuated guitar work, broad vocal range, abrupt switching between heavy and calm passages, intense...

     covers this song occasionally, while playing live.
  • The Canadian funk band Schizophonic
    Schizophonic (band)
    Schizophonic, based in Nanaimo, British Columbia, is a nine piece band playing a mix of genres from rock, to jazz. Formed in late 2010 by students of Vancouver Island University, the group play mostly original songs, many written by band leader Troy Lucas....

    , has regularly covered this song, while playing live, since their formation in 2010.
  • Brisbane bands Hungry Kids of Hungary
    Hungry Kids of Hungary
    Hungry Kids of Hungary are an Australian five-piece indie pop band from Brisbane, Queensland. The band consists of Dean McGrath , Kane Mazlin , Ben Dalton , Remy Boccalatte and Ryan Strathie .- Origins and self-titled EP :Forming in mid 2007, the band appears to be the...

    , with Ball Park Music
    Ball Park Music
    Ball Park Music is a six-piece indie rock/pop band from Brisbane, Australia, made up of frontman Sam Cromack , Jennifer Boyce , Paul Furness , Brock Smith and twins Dean Hanson and Daniel Hanson .-Origins:Ball Park Music began its life as a vehicle for Sam...

    , covered the song to promote the Come Together Brisbane campaign in 2011.
  • RMM
    RMM Records & Video
    RMM Records, also known as RMM Records & Video Corp, was an independent Latin music record label based in New York City, The record label was formed originally as RMM Management by one of Fania Records promoter Ralph Mercado, but in 1987 it started operating as a record label, with Angelito...

    's Tropical Tribute to The Beatles
    Tropical Tribute to The Beatles
    Tropical Tribute to the Beatles is a tribute album of tropical artists released in 1996 by RMM Records , produced by Oscar Gomez ....

    , features the cast of the album performing the song. This version peaked at #38 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs
    Hot Latin Songs
    Hot Latin Songs is a record chart published by Billboard magazine. It is often recognized as the most important music chart for Spanish language Latin music in the American music market. It was established by the magazine on September 6, 1986 with La Guirnalda by Rocío Dúrcal being the first song...

     chart.

External links

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