"Don't Worry, Be Happy" is a 1988 song by American musician
Bobby McFerrin
Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American folk and jazz singer. He is known for his vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also rap ...
, released as the first single from his fourth album, ''
Simple Pleasures'' (1988). It was the first ''
a cappella
''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...
'' song to reach number-one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, a position it held for two weeks. Originally released in conjunction with the film ''
Cocktail
A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as tonic water, fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely acr ...
'', the song peaked at number-one on September 24, 1988,
displacing "
Sweet Child o' Mine
"Sweet Child o' Mine" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses. It appears on their debut album, ''Appetite for Destruction''. In the United States, the song was released in June 1988 as the album's third single, topping the ''Billboard'' ...
" by
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff ...
.
The song also peaked at number 11 on the
''Billboard'' Hot Black Singles chart and number seven on the
''Billboard'' Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart.
It was also a hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number two during its fifth week on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
. In Canada, the song reached number-one in its eighth week. One critic noted it as a "formula for facing life's trials".
At the
1989 Grammy Awards, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" won the awards for
Song of the Year,
Record of the Year, and
Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a male in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The award wen ...
.
Background
Indian mystic
Meher Baba (1894–1969) often used the expression "Don't worry, be happy" when cabling his followers in the West, and the expression was printed on inspirational cards and posters during the 1960s. In 1988, McFerrin noticed a similar poster in the apartment of jazz duo
Tuck & Patti
Tuck & Patti are an American jazz duo consisting of guitarist William Charles "Tuck" Andress (born Oct. 28, 1952 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) and singer Patricia "Patti" Cathcart Andress (born October 4, 1949, in San Francisco).
Music career
Guitarist Tu ...
in San Francisco, and he was inspired by the expression's charm and simplicity. He wrote the song that was included in the soundtrack of the movie ''
Cocktail
A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink. Most commonly, cocktails are either a combination of spirits, or one or more spirits mixed with other ingredients such as tonic water, fruit juice, flavored syrup, or cream. Cocktails vary widely acr ...
'' and became a hit single the next year.
[Fessier, Bruce (1988). Interview. '' USA Weekend'' magazine, 1988.]
Composition
The "instruments" in the ''a cappella'' song are entirely
overdubbed voice parts and other sounds made by McFerrin, using no instruments at all; McFerrin also sings with an affected
accent, though he stated that "I hate to go so far as to say it's Jamaican. It was heavily influenced by Juan's Mexican Restaurant, which was just around the corner from the studio." "Don't Worry, Be Happy" is written in the key of
B major
B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A are all part of the B major scale. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative minor is G-sharp minor, its parallel minor is B minor, and ...
.
Critical reception
Kieran McCarthy of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...
expected that the song would "probably remain prevalent in
pop culture
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* ''Pop'' ...
as long as humans speak English and play music." Pan-European magazine ''
Music & Media
''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...
'' picked it as Single of the Week. They wrote, "Cool a capella by this unusual artist. Uncomplicated music stripped down to the basics, but missing absolutely nothing. This recording will appeal to everybody who is on the lookout for something different. With the
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
-style vocals and a snappy rhythm, this Linda Goldstein produced US top 10 single is a
novelty record
A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and wit ...
of considerable substance."
Music video
The comedic original
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...
for the song, directed by Drew Takahashi, stars McFerrin,
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...
, and
Bill Irwin
William Mills Irwin (born April 11, 1950) is an American actor, clown, and comedian. He began as a vaudeville-style stage performer and has been noted for his contribution to the renaissance of American circus during the 1970s. He has made a num ...
, and is somewhat shorter than the album version.
Awards
At the
1989 Grammy Awards, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" won the awards for
Song of the Year,
Record of the Year, and
Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a male in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The award wen ...
.
Impact and legacy
The song is ranked No. 31 on VH1's "
100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the '80s" and also appears on ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
''s list of the 15 Best Whistling Songs of All Time. It was also featured at #301 in the
Recording Industry of America and the
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
' 'Songs of the Century' in 2001.
However, in 2011, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" was named as the worst song of all time by ''
Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...
'' critic
Michael Musto
Michael Musto (born December 3, 1955) is an American journalist who has long been a prevalent presence in entertainment-related publications, as well as on websites and television shows. Musto is best known as a columnist for '' The Village Voi ...
,
and it topped
Q100 DJ Bert Weiss's list of tracks he would forever ban from radio. In the "50 Worst Songs Ever", ''Blender'' said that "it's difficult to think of a song more likely to plunge you into suicidal despondency than this", and also lambasted its "appalling" lyrics.
[Run for Your Life! It's the 50 Worst Songs Ever!](_blank)
''Blender'', May 2004. Wayback Machine archive of 24 January 2005. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
Use by the George Bush campaign
The song was used in
George H. W. Bush's
1988 U.S. presidential election as Bush's 1988 official presidential
campaign song, without Bobby McFerrin's permission or endorsement. In reaction, McFerrin (a Democrat) publicly protested that particular use of his song, including stating that he was going to vote against Bush, and completely dropped the song from his own performance repertoire, to make the point even clearer. The Bush campaign then reportedly desisted from further use of the song.
See also
*
Big Mouth Billy Bass
Big Mouth Billy Bass is an animatronic singing prop, representing a largemouth bass, invented by Gemmy Industries on December 16, 1998; sold beginning January 1, 1999; and popular in the early 2000s.
Gemmy Industries
Gemmy (IPA : ) is an Americ ...
, a toy which "sang" a version of this song
References
External links
Lyrics of this songon Bobby McFerrin's official website
{{authority control
1988 debut singles
1988 songs
Grammy Award for Record of the Year
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
Cashbox number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in Iceland
European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles
RPM Top Singles number-one singles
A cappella songs
Meher Baba
Manhattan Records singles
EMI Records singles