The title comes from a reggae band called Jimmy Scott and his Obla Di Obla Da Band. Says McCartney, "A fella who used to hang around the clubs used to say in a Jamaican accent, "Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on," and he got annoyed when I did a song of it, 'cause he wanted a cut. I said, 'Come on, Jimmy, it's just an expression." When Jimmy Scott needed money for bail (he was jailed for missing alimony payments), McCartney had his friend Alistair Taylor put up the money in exchange for Scott dropping rights to the name. Taylor had to get the money from a friend, since no one in the Beatles camp carried much cash.
Reggae caught fire in America in the early '70s with the rise of Bob Marley and the #1 Johnny Nash hit "I Can See Clearly Now," but there was little trace of it on pop radio in the '60s. "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" was one of the first popular songs to incorporate a reggae beat.
Paul McCartney wrote this and The Beatles spent a great deal of time recording and overdubbing it. John, George, and Ringo became very annoyed. Harrison hinted at his frustration on "Savoy Truffle," which was recorded three months later. In the song he wrote: But what is sweet now, turns so sour We all know Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da But can you show me, where you are?
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