Little Child

"Little Child" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1963 UK album With the Beatles. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney for Ringo Starr, but Starr was instead given "I Wanna Be Your Man" as his album song.^[1]

"Little Child"
Cover of the song's sheet music
Song by the Beatles
from the album With the Beatles
Released	22 November 1963 (mono) 30 November 1963 (stereo)
Recorded	11–12 September and 3 October 1963
Studio	EMI, London
Genre	Rock and roll
Length	1:48
Label	Parlophone
Songwriter(s)	Lennon–McCartney
Producer(s)	George Martin

Background

McCartney describes "Little Child" as being a "work song" or an "album filler". He admits to taking the melody of the line "I'm so sad and lonely" from the song "Whistle My Love" by British balladeer and actor Elton Hayes.^[2] The phrase "sad and lonely" also appears in the Lennon-McCartney number "Bad to Me",^[3] originally recorded by Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, as well as "Act Naturally", which the Beatles covered (with Starr singing) for the album Help!.

Recording

The song was recorded in three different sessions, with the first on 11 September 1963, where the Beatles recorded two takes. They later returned to it the next day, recording 16 takes, including overdubs of piano from McCartney and harmonica from Lennon, which he plays non-stop throughout the song.^[4] They later returned to it on 3 October, when they recorded three more takes.^[5] In the stereo mix, the harmonica pans from left to right for the solo, then pans back from right to left after the solo. The song's solo follows a "twelve-bar blues format that does not appear in the rest of the [song]."^[6]

Reception

Music critic Richie Unterberger of AllMusic said of the song: "It might have been one of the less sophisticated and impressive tracks on the record, but it was still pretty good", and "'Little Child' might not be a work of genius, but it's sheer rock 'n' roll fun".^[7]

Personnel

• John Lennon – vocal, rhythm guitar, harmonica
• Paul McCartney – vocal, piano, bass
• George Harrison – lead guitar
• Ringo Starr – drums, additional drums

Personnel per Ian MacDonald^[1]

According to MacDonald, the vocals were "credited to Lennon and McCartney, but more [likely] the former double-tracked."^[1] However, it is possible that McCartney sings a lower harmony to Lennon's lead during the verses. Moreover, McCartney can be heard singing "Oh yeah" at the end on his own, which suggests the original credit is probably correct.

Cover versions

Wreckless Eric covered the song with James Nicholls for Mojo magazine's CD We're With the Beatles in 2013.^[8] The song was also covered by the fictional band Snow Pink on an episode of the television series CHiPs, titled "Battle of the Bands" (1982).