B-side "Lay His Head" Format 7-inch 45 rpm Length 3:50 | Released 12 October 1987 Genre Rock, pop rock | |
Recorded 1987, Friar Park Studios, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire | ||
"Got My Mind Set on You" is a song written and composed by Rudy Clark and originally recorded by James Ray in 1962, under the title "I've Got My Mind Set on You". An edited version of the song was released later in the year as a single on the Dynamic Sound label. In 1987, George Harrison released a cover version of the song as a single, and released it on his album, Cloud Nine, which he had recorded on his own Dark Horse Records label.
Contents
George Harrison version
Of Harrison's three number-one singles in the US, it was both the only song not written or composed by Harrison himself and the only one without religious overtones. It also was not only the last US number 1 hit by Harrison, but also from any of the ex-Beatles in the US. When the song hit number 1, it broke a three-way tie among Harrison, John Lennon, and Ringo Starr, all of whom had two number 1 hit singles as solo artists (discounting Paul McCartney's work with Wings). It also happened to be the number 1 single in the US the week immediately preceding the induction of The Beatles into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, making Harrison one of the few inductees to have an active single on the US record charts at the time of induction. Billboard ranked it as the No. 3 song for 1988.
The single's B-side is "Lay His Head", a remixed version of the unreleased song from Harrison's originally intended Somewhere in England album. The 12-inch version of the single also adds an extended version of "Got My Mind Set on You".
In the UK the single spent four weeks at number two. It was kept off the number 1 spot by T'Pau's "China in Your Hand".
The song was included in the Harrison compilation albums Best of Dark Horse 1976–1989 (1989) and Let It Roll: Songs by George Harrison (2009).
A live version was recorded for his Live in Japan (1992) album.
In 2010, AOL radio listeners chose "Got My Mind Set on You" as one of the 10 Best George Harrison Songs, appearing at number 4 on the list.
Music videos
Two music videos were released for the cover version.
The first, directed by Gary Weis, starred Alexis Denisof vying for the heart of a girl in an amusement arcade. It featured Harrison and the band inside of a movie viewer, while the young man tries to win a toy ballerina for the girl.
The second, which Weis also directed, depicts Harrison sitting and playing in a study. As the song progresses, furniture and knick-knacks (like a stuffed squirrel, sentient chainsaw, a statue and mounted stag and warthog) begin to dance along with the song. In the middle of the video, Harrison (through the use of a stunt double) performs a backflip from his chair and follows it with a dance routine before jumping back to his seat.
The second received significant airplay, and was nominated for three MTV VMAs.
Track listing
- "Got My Mind Set on You" – 3:51
- "Lay His Head" – 3:51
- "Got My Mind Set on You" (Extended Version) – 5:17
- "Lay His Head" – 3:51
- "Got My Mind Set on You" – 3:51
Personnel
Other covers and parodies
Harrison's version of the song was parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic on his 1988 album Even Worse, as "(This Song's Just) Six Words Long" poking fun at the repetitive nature of the lyrics.
Shakin' Stevens recorded the song for his 2006 album Now Listen.