
Piggies
Sign in to save"Piggies" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 album The Beatles (also known as the "White Album"). Written by George Harrison as a social commentary, the song serves as an Orwellian satire on greed and consumerism. Among several elements it incorporates from classical music, the track features harpsichord and orchestral strings in the baroque pop style, which are contrasted by Harrison's acerbic lyrics and the sound of grunting pigs. Although credited to George Martin, the recording was largely produced by Chris Thomas, who also contributed the harpsichord part.
Key facts
- Song.name
- Piggies
- Song.cover
- frameless|center|upright=0.75
- Song.caption
- Cover of the Apple Publishing sheet music (depicting John Lennon)
- Song.artist
- the Beatles
- Song.album
- The Beatles
- Song.released
- 22 November 1968
- Song.recorded
- 19–20 September and 10 October 1968
- Song.studio
- EMI, London
- Song.genre
- Baroque pop, folk
- Song.length
- 2:04
- Song.label
- Apple
- Song.writer
- George Harrison
- Song.producer
- George Martin
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Part of
- The Beatles
- Author
- George Harrison
- Genre
- rock music
- Composer
- John Lennon
- Producer
- George Martin
- Performer
- The Beatles
- Record label
- Apple Records
- Lyrics by
- George Harrison
Show 5 more facts
- language of work or name
- English language
- title
- Piggies
- publication date
- 1968-00-00
- form of creative work
- song
- published in
- The Beatles
Sources (2)
via Wikidata · CC0
~26 min read
Encyclopedic overview
16 sectionsContents
- Background and inspiration
- Composition
- Music
- Lyrics
- Production
- Recording
- Overdubbing
- Release and reception
- Charles Manson interpretation
- Retrospective assessment and legacy
- Other versions
- Personnel
- Notes
- References
- Sources
- External links
"Piggies" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 album The Beatles (also known as the "White Album"). Written by George Harrison as a social commentary, the song serves as an Orwellian satire on greed and consumerism. Among several elements it incorporates from classical music, the track features harpsichord and orchestral strings in the baroque pop style, which are contrasted by Harrison's acerbic lyrics and the sound of grunting pigs. Although credited to George Martin, the recording was largely produced by Chris Thomas, who also contributed the harpsichord part.
In the context of the turbulent political climate of 1968, "Piggies" was adopted by the counterculture as an anti-establishment theme song. It was also among the tracks on The Beatles that cult leader Charles Manson used as the foundation for his Helter Skelter theory of an American race-related countercultural revolution. Inspired especially by the line "What they need's a damn good whacking", Manson's followers left clues relating to the lyrics at the scenes of the Tate–LaBianca murders in August 1969.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Piggies” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.