"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 and songwriter. Starting her career in 1954, James frequently performed in Nashville's R&B clubs, collectively known as the Ch ...

. The song was written by James,

Leroy Kirkland Leroy Edward 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, Sout ...

and Pearl Woods, while production was handled by

Leonard Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English language, English masculine given name and a surname. The given name and surname originate from the Old High German ''Leonhard'' containing the prefix ''levon'' ("lion") from the Greek wikt:Λέων#Greek, Λ ...

and

Phil Chess Philip Chess (born Fiszel Czyż; March 27, 1921 – October 18, 2016) was a Polish-born American record company executive, the founder of Chess Records alongside his brother Leonard. Early life Chess was born to a Polish-Jewish family in the ...

. 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 The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

and

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

. 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 ...

and

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: * Sample (graphics), an intersection of a color channel and a pixel * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of something * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample ...

by various contemporary artists. Australian singer

Jessica Mauboy Jessica Hilda Mauboy (; born 4 August 1989) is an Australian singer. Born and raised in Darwin, Northern Territory, she rose to fame in 2006 on the Australian Idol (season 4), fourth season of ''Australian Idol'', where she was runner-up and s ...

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 The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...

winning film CODA.

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 an ...

and

. 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 record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

in the United States. Later, the track was included on the singer's 1963 compilation album '' Etta James Top Ten''. 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 (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th centur ...

, ''

Etta James Rocks the House ''Etta James Rocks the House'' is the first live album by the American singer Etta James. It was recorded live on the nights of September 27 and 28, 1963, at the New Era Club in Nashville, Tennessee, and was released on December 13, 1963. Hot wi ...

'' (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 Sony Music Publishing. In May 2018, Sony Music Publishing agreed to increase its stake in EMI to 90%, pending regulatory approva ...

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

D major D major is a major scale based on D (musical note), D, consisting of the pitches D, E (musical note), E, F♯ (musical note), F, G (musical note), G, A (musical note), A, B (musical note), B, and C♯ (musical note), C. Its key signature has two S ...

. James' vocals in the song span on nearly two

octave In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...

s, from the low-note of E₃ to the high-note of D₅.

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, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

; 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, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1987, James performed the song again with American blues musician

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

. 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 advertis ...

'' 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. In 1973, it was covered by the choir of the infamous People's Temple cult under

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American cult leader, preacher and mass murderer who founded and led the Peoples Temple between 1955 and 1978. Jones and the members of his inner circle planned and orchestrat ...

. The song also appears on the Belgian band Vaya Con Dios' second studio album, Night Owls, released in 1990. The album achieved great international success, selling around 2 million copies worldwide. 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 singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to prominence in the mid-1970s, with the release of her debut ...

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

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater (formerly the Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre; also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre) is a multi-use Theater (structure), theater at 253 125th Street (Manhattan), West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of U ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. In 2010, American singer-songwriter

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...

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 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 (writer), Eric Olsen and Phillip Winn. Blogcritics features more than 100 original articles every week, and maintains an archive of a ...

wrote that "

he song He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

really 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 former senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of multiple artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance ...

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 Mus ...

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 Marc Almond, Jayne County, To ...

, with

Paloma Faith Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. After signing with Epic Records in 2008, Faith released her debut album, '' Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?'' (2009), which produced the UK ...

, recorded a version for his 2012 album, The Golden Age of Song. Australian R&B singer

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 number ...

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 inde ...

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 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 Pretty Lights sampled the song again in his track "Finally Moving" from the album '' Taking Up Your Precious Time''. In 2011, two smash hits sampled "Something's Got a Hold on Me": " Levels" by Swedish DJ

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

and

Flo Rida Tramar Lacel Dillard (born September 16, 1979), known professionally as Flo Rida ( ), is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 debut and breakout single "Low (Flo Rida song), Low" was number one for 10 weeks in the United States and broke the ...

's " Good Feeling".

Jessica Mauboy version

"Something's Got a Hold on Me" was covered by Australian R&B singer

. 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 ...

. Brad Stern of ''

MTV Buzzworthy MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on August 1, 1981, th ...

'' Brad Stern called Mauboy's version a "

power-pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a subgenre of rock music and 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 en ...

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 (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'' 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 thought that it sounds impressive. A writer for Take 40 Australia 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 name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...

' 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, formally titled National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Music, Sport, Arts and Community Awards and commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander a ...

. The song entered the Australian

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

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

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 Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. 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 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

) 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 are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

artist.

Charts

References

External links

* {{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