"Something's Got a Hold on Me" is a song by American singer

Etta James Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer who performed in various genres, including gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll, and soul. Starting her career in 1954, sh ...

. The song was written by James,

Leroy Kirkland Leroy E. Kirkland (February 10, 1904 or 1906 – April 6, 1988) was an American arranger, bandleader, guitarist and songwriter whose career spanned the eras of big band jazz, R&B, rock and roll and soul. Life and career Born in Columbia, South Ca ...

and Pearl Woods, while production was handled by Leonard and Phil Chess. It was released in 1962 as the third single from her 1962 self-titled album as a 7" vinyl disc. Musically, "Something's Got a Hold on Me" is an R&B track with elements of

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...

and

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

. Upon its release, the single was an R&B hit, peaking at number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot R&B Sides chart. "Something's Got a Hold on Me" has been

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of copy ...

and

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...

by various contemporary artists.

Pretty Lights Derek Vincent Smith (born November 25, 1981), known by his stage name Pretty Lights, is an American electronic music producer. Pretty Lights was originally a music project consisting of Smith and Michal Menert, who left after the release of thei ...

sampled the song on his 2006 album ''

Taking Up Your Precious Time ''Taking Up Your Precious Time'' is the debut studio album by the then-electronic music duo Pretty Lights (Derek Vincent Smith and Michal Menert), released on October 23, 2006, by Pretty Lights Music. It was the only album issued with Menert as ...

''. In 2010, American singer-songwriter

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...

recorded a cover version of the song on the soundtrack ''

Burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

''. In 2011, the track was sampled on two hits: " Levels" by Swedish DJ

Avicii Tim Bergling (; 8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii (, ), was a Swedish DJ, remixer and music producer. At the age of 16, Bergling began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first re ...

, which in turn was sampled on " Good Feeling" by American rapper

Flo Rida Tramar Lacel Dillard (born September 16, 1979), better known by his stage name Flo Rida (, ), is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 breakout single " Low" was number one for 10 weeks in the United States and broke the record for digital dow ...

. Australian singer Jessica Mauboy also covered "Something's Got a Hold on Me" in 2013 and released it as a single. The song plays in the opening scene of the Best Picture winning film

CODA Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

Background and composition

"Something's Got a Hold on Me" was written by

and Pearl Woods, while it was produced by two founders of the

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock a ...

, Leonard and Phil Chess. The song was released as the third single from James' 1962 self-titled studio album. It was served as a 7" vinyl disc with the other song, "Waiting for Charlie to Come Home", as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

in the United States. Later, the track was included on the singer's 1963 compilation album ''

Etta James Top Ten ''Etta James Top Ten'' is the first compilation album by the American rhythm and blues artist, Etta James. The album was released on Argo Records in 1963 and was produced by Leonard Chess. The album peaked at number 117 on the ''Billboard'' 200 ...

''. The live version of "Something's Got a Hold on Me" also appeared on Etta James' first

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

, '' Etta James Rocks the House'' (1964). In 1992, the song was a part of her greatest hits album, '' My Greatest Songs''. "Something's Got a Hold on Me" is an R&B track with elements of

, and

. The song lasts for a duration of (two minutes and 48 seconds). According to the sheet music published by

EMI Music Publishing EMI Music Publishing Ltd. is a British multinational music publishing company headquartered in London, owned by parent company Sony Corporation of America. In May 2018, Sony Music Publishing agreed to increase its stake in EMI to 90%, pendi ...

, "Something's Got a Hold on Me" was composed in the key of

G minor G minor is a minor scale based on G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has two flats. Its relative major is B-flat major and its parallel major is G major. According to Paolo Pietropaolo, it is the con ...

and set as the moderate tempo of 72 beats per minute with a "strong beat". James' vocals in the song span on nearly one and a half

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

s, from the low-note of D₄ to the high-note of G₅.

Live performances

On September 27, 1963, Etta James first performed "Something's Got a Hold on Me" at the New Era Club in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

; later the performance was recorded and was included on her first live album ''Etta James Rocks the House''. During a "King-led all-star concert" which was held at the Ebony Theater,

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

in 1987, James performed the song again with American blues musician B.B. King. There, the singer sang the track with backing guitar played by King. That performance was released as a CD and home video entitled "A Night of Blistering Blues".

Track listing

*US 7" single # "Something's Got a Hold on Me" – # "Waiting for Charlie to Come Home" –

Reception

Jay Lustig of '' New Jersey On-Line'' called "Something's Got a Hold on Me" a "scintillating" track. Upon its release, "Something's Got a Hold on Me" was an R&B hit, peaking at number four on the Hot R&B Sides chart, a music chart which was published by American music magazine ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' and now is the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart. The single also charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 37.

Cover versions and samples

"Something's Got a Hold on Me" has been covered on numerous occasions.

Ike & Tina Turner Ike & Tina Turner were an American musical duo consisting of husband and wife Ike Turner and Tina Turner. From 1960 to 1976, they performed live as the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, supported by Ike Turner's band the Kings of Rhythm and backing voca ...

covered the song in 1964; released on their album '' Live! The Ike & Tina Turner Show''. UK singer Elkie Brooks released a cover version in 1964.

The Kingsmen The Kingsmen are a 1960s rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States. They are best known for their 1963 recording of R&B singer Richard Berry's " Louie Louie", which held the No. 2 spot on the '' Billboard'' charts for six weeks an ...

released a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song relea ...

on ''

The Kingsmen Volume II ''The Kingsmen Volume II'' is the second album by the rock band The Kingsmen, released in 1964. Release and reception The Kingsmen released Volume II (subtitled "More Great Sounds From The Group That Gave You "Louie, Louie") to capitalize on the ...

'' in 1965 and on ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' in 1966. In 1970, the Michigan-based band The Rationals released a cover of this song. The Belgian band Vaya Con Dios covered the track on their album '' Night Owls'' (1990). On March 30, 2004,

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...

performed "Something's Got a Hold on Me" at the

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater is a music hall at 253 West 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (Seventh Avenue) and Frederick Douglass Boulevard (Eighth Avenue) in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is a ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. In 2010, American singer-songwriter

also covered it for the soundtrack album ''

Burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

''. The version by Aguilera was met with favorable reviews from critics; a writer from

Blogcritics Blogcritics is a blog network and online magazine of news and opinion. The site was founded in 2002 by Eric Olsen and Phillip Winn. Blogcritics features more than 100 original articles every week, and maintains an archive of all its published c ...

wrote that " he songreally digs in and makes them show stoppers" and " tsuits her voice perfectly", while

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...

from

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 ...

picked "Something's Got a Hold on Me" as one of the three best songs from the soundtrack.

Jools Holland Julian Miles Holland, (born 24 January 1958) is an English pianist, bandleader, singer, composer and television presenter. He was an original member of the band Squeeze and has worked with many artists including Jayne County, Sting, Eric C ...

, with Paloma Faith, recorded a version for his 2012 album, The Golden Age of Song. Australian R&B singer Jessica Mauboy recorded a cover version of the track and released it as a single exclusively in Australia in 2013. Blues vocalist

Beth Hart Beth Hart (born January 24, 1972) is an American musician from Los Angeles, California. She rose to fame with the release of her 1999 single " LA Song (Out of This Town)" from her second album '' Screamin' for My Supper''. The single was a numbe ...

and guitarist

Joe Bonamassa Joseph Leonard Bonamassa ( ; born May 8, 1977) is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. He started his career at age twelve, when he opened for B.B. King. Since 2000, Bonamassa has released fifteen solo albums through his ind ...

included the track on their 2011 album of blues and soul covers, ''Don’t Explain''. They also released a live version recorded at the

Royal Theater Carré The Royal Theater Carré (Dutch: ) is a Neo-Renaissance theatre in Amsterdam, located near the river Amstel. When the theatre was founded in 1887, it was originally meant as a permanent circus building. Currently, it is mainly used for musicals, ...

in 2013 on their '' Live in Amsterdam'' DVD. Doi-Oing was the first artist to sample "Something's Got a Hold on Me" in his 1991 song "Good Feeling". In 2006, electronic music artist

sampled the song again in his track "Finally Moving" from the album ''

''. In 2009, Dutch DJ Fedde Le Grand interpolated the song's intro on "Wild 'n Raw", with the vocals performed by Rob Birch of the Stereo MC's. In 2011, two smash hits sampled "Something's Got a Hold on Me": " Levels" by Swedish DJ

and

's " Good Feeling".

Jessica Mauboy version

"Something's Got a Hold on Me" was covered by Australian R&B singer Jessica Mauboy. It was released as a digital download single on 27 February 2013.

Reception

"Something's Got a Hold on Me" by Jessica Mauboy received mainly positive reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

. Brad Stern of ''

MTV Buzzworthy MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

'' Brad Stern called Mauboy's version a "

power-pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...

anthem". Daisy Dumas of ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory ...

'' was positive toward the track, noted it as a "sassy, pop-heavy spin on the Etta James classic". Simone Ubaldi of ''Beat'' magazine described the cover as "grotesque dance pop bastardisation", while a writer for radio station

96.5 Wave FM 96.5 Wave FM (call sign 2UUL) is a commercial radio station broadcasting on the FM band to the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. It is owned by ARN after ARN's purchase of the Grant Broadcasters radio network. 96.5 Wave FM compet ...

thought that it sounds impressive. A writer for

Take 40 Australia ''Take 40 Australia'' was Australia's first and longest-running music countdown. It counted down the official top 40 singles on the ARIA chart on a weekly basis. It was broadcast nationally each week to over 1.2 million listeners. Starting i ...

called it energetic, while

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...

' Anthony Costa wrote that the song does not feel like "a potential rugby league anthem" but "it suits Mauboy's vocal talents". "Something's Got a Hold on Me" won Single Release of the Year at the 2013

Deadly Awards The Deadly Awards, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The event was held from 1995 to 2013. Description T ...

. The song entered the Australian ARIA Singles Chart at number 26 on March 11, 2013. The following week, it fell down to number 50.

Promotion

On 27 February 2013, the

Australian Rugby League Commission The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARL), formerly the Australian Rugby Football League known as the Australian Rugby League is an Australian rugby league football competition operator. It was founded in 1986 as the Australian Rugby Footbal ...

released a television advertisement, which features Mauboy singing her version of "Something's Got a Hold on Me", as well as highlights from previous rugby league matches and fans playing rugby league in backyards, on beaches and running down streets. That same day, Mauboy performed the song during the official launch for the 2013 NRL season, held at The Star Casino in Sydney. NRL director of marketing and commercial operations Paul Kind said her version "is very contemporary" and "has a really broad appeal". Mauboy is the second female artist (the first being

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939) is an American-born Swiss retired singer and actress. Widely referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer o ...

) to be featured in a NRL theme song. "Something's Got a Hold on Me" is also the first theme song in major Australian sport to feature an

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

artist.

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1962 songs 1962 singles 2013 singles Etta James songs Christina Aguilera songs Jessica Mauboy songs Sony Music Australia singles Argo Records singles 2010 singles