Money (That's What I Want)
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"Money (That's What I Want)" is a 1959 hit single by Barrett Strong for the Tamla label, distributed by Anna Records. The song was written by Tamla founder Berry Gordy and Janie Bradford, and would become the first hit record for Gordy's label, soon to be renamed Motown.
Anna Records was owned by husband-and-wife team Gwen Gordy and Harvey Fuqua. Gwen's brother Berry Gordy had just established his Tamla (later Motown) label, and had Gwen release this single through her label in hopes of making it a national hit. The song, features Strong curtly demanding that money is what he needs, more than anything else. The single became Motown's first hit, making it to #2 on the US R&B charts and #23 on the US pop charts.
The song has been covered by a plethora of artists, including Buddy Guy, The Beatles, The Kingsmen, The Rolling Stones, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Flying Lizards, Shonen Knife, Secret Machines, The Sonics, The Smashing Pumpkins and Motown labelmates The Supremes and The Miracles.
I Need Some Money
In 1960, John Lee Hooker recorded I Need Some Money, a song he may have been performing live for some time. The lyrics are more than coincidentally similar to Money (That's What I Want). For example, the first verses are "The best thing in life are free/But you can give it to the birds an' bees/ I need some money/ Need some money/ Oh yeah, what I want" versus "The best things in life are free/But you can keep 'em for the birds and bees/ Now give me money, (that's what I want) that's what I want". The music is, however, different.
The question of which lyrics came first never seems to have been settled in any formal way; John Lee Hooker has full composition credits for this song, and it has been independently covered by other artists such as James Blood Ulmer.
References
- Lenny Carlson, "John Lee Hooker Vintage Blues Guitar", Mel Bay Publications, 1996.
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