"Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The ballad evolved from "Hey Jules", a song McCartney wrote to comfort John Lennon's son, Julian, during his parents' divorce. "Hey Jude" begins with a verse-bridge structure incorporating McCartney's vocal performance and piano accompaniment; further instrumentation is added as the song progresses. After the fourth verse, the song shifts to a fade-out coda that lasts for more than four minutes.

"Hey Jude" was released in August 1968 as the first single from the Beatles' record label Apple Records. More than seven minutes in length, it was at the time the longest single ever to top the British charts. It also spent nine weeks at number one in the United States, the longest for any Beatles single. "Hey Jude" tied the "all-time" record, at the time, for the longest run at the top of the US charts. The single has sold approximately eight million copies and is frequently included on professional critics' lists of the greatest songs of all time. In 2013, Billboard named it the 10th biggest song of all time.

Hey Jude (original title: The Beatles Again) is a 1970 collection of non-album singles and B-sides by the Beatles. It included "I Should Have Known Better" and "Can't Buy Me Love", two singles released by Capitol Records whose only previous American album appearance had been on the A Hard Day's Night soundtrack album, which had been released by United Artists Records. The Hey Jude LP had been out of print since the late 1980s, although it remained available on cassette during the 1990s. The album was issued on CD for the first time in 2014, as an individual release and in a box set titled The U.S. Albums.

History

Hey Jude is the ninth studio album by soul singer Wilson Pickett, recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama and released in 1969. The title track, a cover of The Beatles song of the same name, was a success, peaking at #13 on the Billboard R&B singles chart and #23 on the top 200. Also released as a single was a cover of Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild", which was less successful.

The album is particularly noteworthy for the early appearance of guitarist Duane Allman, later founder of The Allman Brothers Band, who made his first recordings as a sideman on the album. His guitar work on the title track is credited as what first drew Eric Clapton to him, who two years later invited Allman to join him as part of Derek and the Dominoes. Allman's performance on the album also compelled Atlantic Records executive Jerry Wexler to buy out his recording contract and use him in further Atlantic recording sessions, beginning his prolific career as a session musician. Pickett is also backed by members of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section on the album.