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10.51pm
11 November 2010
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Necko said
There isn’t love for Piggies because it’s sandwiched in the middle of a two-disc album. Many people will inevitably just see it as filler for that reason.
By the way, I like Piggies . It’s far from my favorite Beatles song and not my favorite Harrison Beatles song, but it’s not a bad song. I’m just trying to speak in terms of the general public with the above statement. Thank you for listening.
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9.53pm
15 August 2013
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8.11am
8 February 2014
Offline salviandres said
<link to live Piggies video>
Do you know when this was from? From the little peek of Eric I’d think early 80s, but you can never tell which facial hair period Eric was in at any given point. I just ask because George didn’t look or sing particularly well imo. Tons of reverb, still a thin-sounding voice from a thin, fairly short haired George.
Argh, past 4am, should try to get to bed…
7.30pm
21 November 2012
Offline It says live in Japan, 1992, so I guess it’s from then
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Matt Busby9.59pm
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1 May 2011
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Its Japan so December 1991, the live album of the tour coming out in July of 1992.
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4.41pm
2 April 2014
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@Starr Shine?, you’ll be happy to know that I’ve just learnt Piggies on piano. I’ve only heard it fully today, but I do really enjoy listening to it and the harpsichord solo is really fun to play.
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Starr Shine?10.35pm
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29 August 2013
Offline MrMoonlight said
@Starr Shine?, you’ll be happy to know that I’ve just learnt Piggies on piano. I’ve only heard it fully today, but I do really enjoy listening to it and the harpsichord solo is really fun to play.
Nice work there. I must say the harpsichord and the overall style are part of what I like about the song, it is very different musically to a lot of other Beatles tracks (as are many of the songs on the album, which is why it is one of my favourites).
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2.40am
10 August 2011
Offline YES! I agree with Annadog40. It’s TOTALLY “Animal Farm” + it goes with “Male Chauvinist Pig.” It’s a cutting little satire made a little less original by the fact that George Orwell beat him to it, but it’s got more substance to it than, say, “Savoy Truffle ” (though I prefer chocolate to pork).
Since George was quite the self-critic, it is noteworthy that he chose to play it in concert many years later. (That clip above is from “George Harrison Live in Japan with Eric Clapton”. The album/CD cover is great. It’s all black, and you have to move it around to see a drawing of George’s face.)
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7.31pm
1 December 2009
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OK, I must have listened to both “Piggies ” and the song below, “The Daily Planet” by Love, hundreds of times apiece in the nearly-30-yrs since I first heard ’em both within six months of one another; so I can’t believe it took me so long to make the connection between ’em. Listen for the opening one-bar vocal melody of “Piggies ” which recurs several times within the first half of the Love song:
[lol universe: original youtube vid was preceded by a (SKIP THIS-) ad for a “Beatles Guitar Secrets” book or video or something, amazing!]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ag242irwYH4
Like I said, I’m amazed I don’t think I ever noticed that until this morning, but I think that’s a testimony to how much I love both songs and can’t hear them as anything other than themselves, plus there’s the fact that the eight-note melody is phrased quite differently in both, and Arthur Lee added a backup harmony singer to part of his lead.
But the question is: Did George consciously borrow this melody, liking it and knowing it would fit nicely into his song? Or had he merely had the song on his mind and accidentally recycle it?
GEORGE: In fact, The Detroit Sound. JOHN: In fact, yes. GEORGE: In fact, yeah. Tamla-Motown artists are our favorites. The Miracles. JOHN: We like Marvin Gaye. GEORGE: The Impressions PAUL & GEORGE: Mary Wells. GEORGE: The Exciters. RINGO: Chuck Jackson. JOHN: To name but eighty.
12.46am
14 December 2009
Offline …because I’ll bet that it wasn’t just a total coincidence. Forever Changes was a pretty hip album to own at the time (RIGHTLY SO because it’s so so great) and even made #24 on the UK charts right around the time of the Rishikesh sojourn. And all of the band were keeping tabs on all the hip albums from the USA and the UK at the time, so…how could George not have heard it?
Paul: Yeah well… first of all, we’re bringing out a ‘Stamp Out Detroit’ campaign.
1.02am
21 January 2014
Offline I always liked Piggies ,which has such style it stands up to comparisons and accusations. Ever noticed when some band tries to copy or parody the BEATLES style they go to this type of tune which is as much ” BEATLES ” as “I Am The Walrus “et al .we love GEORGE that’s for sure, and it’s nice his debut album kicked the other boys debuts soundly in the snout. off topic sorry .
1.41am
5 July 2010
Offline I think Piggies is a great example of how they could play in whatever style/genre they wanted. It’s not very often you find a song that successfully makes you think of a certain musical era (classical or baroque I guess). The harpsichord and cello really make it. The lyrics aren’t amazing, but I never listen to a song for the lyrics really.
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3.00am
4 June 2014
Offline Piggies ‘s lyrics may seem unremarkable, but this song is another biting social commentary, think Taxman . Unlike Taxman , which is somewhat mocking in its anger, Piggies is more straight-up ferocious jabs and blows to society’s social division. My favorite part of the song, the distorted part about the “something lacking” is the most obviously vicious part. This song deserves much more credit than it gets, and it’s actually stuck in my head frequently. (Though I myself used to consider it a meaningless throwaway…)
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4.35am
2 July 2014
Offline TO EAT THEIR BACON!!
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4 February 2014
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1 December 2009
Offline Hey, I didn’t know that George did ALL the vocals himself, including those stuffy upperclass ones!
GEORGE: In fact, The Detroit Sound. JOHN: In fact, yes. GEORGE: In fact, yeah. Tamla-Motown artists are our favorites. The Miracles. JOHN: We like Marvin Gaye. GEORGE: The Impressions PAUL & GEORGE: Mary Wells. GEORGE: The Exciters. RINGO: Chuck Jackson. JOHN: To name but eighty.
4.21am
18 October 2013
Offline I like this song only just enough to comment on it.
I don’t like it!
4.48am
1 November 2012
Offline I think Annadog might recall I praised “Piggies ” on another thread. My thoughts are most like VonBontee and Bungalow Bob above.
Here’s what I said on that other thread:
“the harpsichord going through interesting final chord changes, the long pause, George saying “one more time”, the stately classical string quartet doing a drawn-out traditional blues coda, the pig chomping and burping away.”
And that’s just the ending. I like the whole song, it’s very satisfying. I feel “like a pig in clover” while listening to it.
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5.21am
1 December 2009
Offline FP, did you listen to the Love song I embedded upthread? What do you think of the similarity?
GEORGE: In fact, The Detroit Sound. JOHN: In fact, yes. GEORGE: In fact, yeah. Tamla-Motown artists are our favorites. The Miracles. JOHN: We like Marvin Gaye. GEORGE: The Impressions PAUL & GEORGE: Mary Wells. GEORGE: The Exciters. RINGO: Chuck Jackson. JOHN: To name but eighty.
6.44am
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20 August 2013
Offline I love this song. It is brilliant. Music. Words. Theme. Snorts.
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