Got My Mind Set on You

"Got My Mind Set on You" (also written as "(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 Dynamic Sound Records credited to James Ray with Hutch Davie Orchestra & Chorus.

"I've Got My Mind Set on You"
B-side label of US single
Song by James Ray with Hutch Davie Orchestra & Chorus
A-side"Always"
ReleasedDecember 8, 1962
Recorded1962
Genre
Length3:26
LabelDynamic Sound
Songwriter(s)Rudy Clark
Producer(s)Hutch Davie

In 1987, George Harrison released a cover version of the song on his album Cloud Nine, which he had recorded on his Dark Horse Records label.

George Harrison version
"Got My Mind Set on You"
Standard artwork
Single by George Harrison
from the album Cloud Nine
B-side"Lay His Head"
ReleasedOctober 12, 1987[2]
RecordedJanuary–August 1987
StudioFriar Park Studios, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire
Genre
Length3:50
LabelDark Horse
Songwriter(s)Rudy Clark
Producer(s)
George Harrison singles chronology
"Shanghai Surprise"
(1986)		 "Got My Mind Set on You"
(1987)		 "When We Was Fab"
(1988)
Music video
"Got My Mind Set on You" ver. 1 on YouTube
Music video
"Got My Mind Set on You" ver. 2 on YouTube

The first time Harrison heard the song was during a visit to his sister in the United States in 1963—five months before the Beatles first appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. His sister lived in the countryside of Illinois. While there, Harrison visited record shops and bought a variety of albums. One was James Ray's 1962 album that contained the song "I've Got My Mind Set on You." In January 1987, Harrison began recording the song at his Friar Park home studio, with Jeff Lynne producing and playing bass and keyboards, Jim Keltner on drums, Jim Horn on sax, and Ray Cooper on percussion.[3]

Of Harrison's three number-one singles in the US, it was the only song not written or composed by Harrison himself. Not only was it the last US No. 1 hit by Harrison, but, as of 2022, his last top 10 hit in the US, as well as the last time a former Beatle hit No. 1 in the US. When the song hit No. 1, it broke a three-way tie between Harrison, John Lennon, and Ringo Starr, all of whom had two No. 1 hit singles as solo artists (discounting Paul McCartney's work with Wings). It also happened to be the No. 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 the song as No. 3 for 1988.[4]

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" becoming the 5th best selling single of 1987.

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.[5]

Music videos

Two music videos were released for the single, both directed by Gary Weis. The first features Alexis Denisof trying to win the heart of a girl in an amusement arcade. While the girl watches Harrison and his band (including Jeff Lynne on bass) in a movie viewer, the young man tries to win a toy ballerina for the girl. He succeeds, but the ballerina somehow drops into Harrison's performance, to the girl's amusement.[6]

The second video, inspired by the then-recently released comedy horror film Evil Dead II, depicts Harrison playing a guitar while seated in a study.[7][8][9] As the song progresses, furniture and knick-knacks (including a stuffed squirrel, sentient chainsaw, a statue, and mounted stag and warthog), begin to sing or 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. It was choreographed by Vincent Paterson.

The second video received significant airplay and was nominated for three MTV VMAs.[7]

Personnel

Credits sourced from Andrew Jackson and Mix[10][11]

Track listings

7-inch

  1. "Got My Mind Set on You" – 3:51
  2. "Lay His Head" – 3:51

12-inch

  1. "Got My Mind Set on You" (Extended Version) – 5:17
  2. "Got My Mind Set on You" – 3:51
  3. "Lay His Head" – 3:51

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. Irish-Australian singer–songwriter Damien Leith recorded the song in 2012 for his album Now & Then. Irish singer Lee Matthews covered it in his 2015 album It's a Great Day to Be Alive. British entertainer and musician, Warren James, performed the song following his 2003 live performance for the show business charity the Grand Order of Water Rats—an organisation that Harrison was an active member of. Brandon Flowers recorded the song in 2014 for his 2016 album George Fest.

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Sweden (GLF)[46] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[47] Gold 400,000‡
United States (RIAA)[48] Gold 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

References
  1. Smith, Troy L. (May 13, 2021). "Every No. 1 song of the 1980s ranked from worst to best". Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  2. Smith, Robin (October 17, 1987). "Index: Releases". Record Mirror. p. 8. ISSN 0144-5804.
  3. Womack, Kenneth. "How George Harrison made his last number 1 hit, 'Got My Mind Set On You'". Salon. February 24, 2020
  4. Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1988
  5. AOL, 2010.
  6. "George Harrison - "Got My Mind Set on You [version 1: nickelodeon]"". mvdbase.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved April 23, 2009.
  7. "George Harrison - "Got my mind set on you [version 2: chair]"". mvdbase.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved April 23, 2009.
  8. @GeorgeHarrison (March 25, 2021). "The music video for George's "Got My Mind Set on You" was a spoof of the 1987 horror comedy film, 'Evil Dead II' and was his third #1 single in the US..." (Tweet). Retrieved January 5, 2022 – via Twitter.
  9. Breihan, Tom (April 7, 2021). "The Number Ones: George Harrison's "Got My Mind Set On You"". Stereogum. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  10. Jackson, Andrew (2012). Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of The Beatles' Solo Careers. Scarecrow Press. p. 199. ISBN 978-0-8108-8222-5.
  11. "Classic Tracks: George Harrison's "Got My Mind Set on You"". mixonline.com. December 2011. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  12. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: This reference gives Australian albums and singles information. It is used for chart peak positions as early materials were released before ARIA regulated the Australian charts itself (1989).
  13. "George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  14. "George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  15. "Radio2 Top 30: George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You | Radio2". VRT Top 30. Radio2. Archived from the original on September 27, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  16. "RPM 100 Singles (January 16, 1988)". Library and Archives Canada. July 17, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
  17. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. December 26, 1987. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  18. Danish Singles Chart December 18, 1987
  19. "George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  20. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Got My Mind Set On You". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  21. "George Harrison – Chart Archives on the Japanese Oricon Top 100". Homepage1.nifty.com. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  22. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 50, 1987" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
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  26. "South African Rock Lists Website – SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (H)". Springbok Radio. rock.co.za. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  27. "George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You". Singles Top 100. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  28. "George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  29. "George Harrison – Chart Archives in the UK". Homepage1.nifty.com. Archived from the original on February 11, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  30. "George Harrison – Chart Archives on the Billboard Hot 100". Homepage1.nifty.com. Archived from the original on September 23, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  31. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. p. 112.
  32. "Cloud Nine – George Harrison | Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  33. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles – 1987". Cash Box Charts. Cash Box Magazine. Archived from the original on August 14, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  34. "Offiziellecharts.de – George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  35. "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  36. "Australian Music Report No 701 – 28 December 1987 > National Top 100 Singles for 1987". Australian Music Report. Retrieved December 11, 2019 – via Imgur.
  37. "Top Singles – Volume 47, No. 12, December 26 1987". RPM Magazine. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  38. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1987". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  39. "Gallup Year End Charts 1987: Singles". Record Mirror. London, England: Spotlight Publications. January 23, 1988. p. 36.
  40. "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 50 Singles 1988". Kent Music Report. ARIA Charts. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  41. "George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You". Associação Brasileira dos Produtores de Discos. Steve Hawtin. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  42. "Barry's Hits of All Decades Pop rock n roll Music Chart Hits". RPM Magazine. Hits of All Time. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  43. "Top 100 Hits of 1988/Top 100 Songs of 1988". Billboard Magazine. Music Outfitters, Inc. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  44. "Billboard.BIZ". Billboard.BIZ. December 31, 1988. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  45. "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  46. "Swedish single certifications – George Harrison – Got My Mind Set On You". IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  47. "British single certifications – George Harrison – Got My Mind Set on You". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  48. Womack, Kenneth (June 30, 2014). Beatles Encyclopedia, The: Everything Fab Four. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9780313391729.
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