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Don't Worry, Be Happy
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Don't Worry, Be Happy
"Don't Worry, Be Happy" is a 1988 song by Bobby McFerrin, released as the first single from his album Simple Pleasures (1988). It was the first a cappella song to reach number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, a position it held for two weeks. Released in conjunction with the film Cocktail, the song peaked at number-one on September 24, 1988, displacing "Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N' Roses.
The song also peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart and number seven on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. It hit number one in Australia and stayed there for 7 weeks. It was also a hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number two during its fifth week on the UK Singles Chart. In Canada, the song reached number one in its eighth week. One critic noted it as a "formula for facing life's trials".
At the 1989 Grammy Awards, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" won the awards for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
In 2024, the single was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Indian spiritual Guru Meher Baba (1894–1969) often used the expression "Don't worry, be happy" when communicating with his followers in the West, and the expression was printed on inspirational cards and posters during the 1960s. In 1988, McFerrin noticed a similar poster in the apartment of jazz duo Tuck & Patti in San Francisco,[citation needed] and he was inspired by the expression's charm and simplicity. He wrote and recorded the song for his album Simple Pleasures and it was included in the soundtrack of the movie Cocktail, which subsequently led to it becoming a hit single the next year.
The "instruments" in the a cappella song are entirely overdubbed voice parts and other sounds made by McFerrin, using no instruments at all; McFerrin also sings with an affected accent, though he stated that "I hate to go so far as to say it's Jamaican. It was heavily influenced by Juan's Mexican Restaurant, which was just around the corner from the studio." "Don't Worry, Be Happy" is written in the key of B major.
The song was recorded by McFerrin at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California, using only eight tracks. McFerrin sang his vocal parts into his preferred microphone, a Neumann U 87.
Kieran McCarthy of AllMusic expected that the song would "probably remain prevalent in pop culture as long as humans speak English and play music." Pan-European magazine Music & Media picked it as Single of the Week, writing "Cool a capella by this unusual artist. Uncomplicated music stripped down to the basics, but missing absolutely nothing. This recording will appeal to everybody who is on the lookout for something different. With the reggae-style vocals and a snappy rhythm, this Linda Goldstein produced US top 10 single is a novelty record of considerable substance."
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Don't Worry, Be Happy
"Don't Worry, Be Happy" is a 1988 song by Bobby McFerrin, released as the first single from his album Simple Pleasures (1988). It was the first a cappella song to reach number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, a position it held for two weeks. Released in conjunction with the film Cocktail, the song peaked at number-one on September 24, 1988, displacing "Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N' Roses.
The song also peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart and number seven on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. It hit number one in Australia and stayed there for 7 weeks. It was also a hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number two during its fifth week on the UK Singles Chart. In Canada, the song reached number one in its eighth week. One critic noted it as a "formula for facing life's trials".
At the 1989 Grammy Awards, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" won the awards for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
In 2024, the single was selected for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Indian spiritual Guru Meher Baba (1894–1969) often used the expression "Don't worry, be happy" when communicating with his followers in the West, and the expression was printed on inspirational cards and posters during the 1960s. In 1988, McFerrin noticed a similar poster in the apartment of jazz duo Tuck & Patti in San Francisco,[citation needed] and he was inspired by the expression's charm and simplicity. He wrote and recorded the song for his album Simple Pleasures and it was included in the soundtrack of the movie Cocktail, which subsequently led to it becoming a hit single the next year.
The "instruments" in the a cappella song are entirely overdubbed voice parts and other sounds made by McFerrin, using no instruments at all; McFerrin also sings with an affected accent, though he stated that "I hate to go so far as to say it's Jamaican. It was heavily influenced by Juan's Mexican Restaurant, which was just around the corner from the studio." "Don't Worry, Be Happy" is written in the key of B major.
The song was recorded by McFerrin at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California, using only eight tracks. McFerrin sang his vocal parts into his preferred microphone, a Neumann U 87.
Kieran McCarthy of AllMusic expected that the song would "probably remain prevalent in pop culture as long as humans speak English and play music." Pan-European magazine Music & Media picked it as Single of the Week, writing "Cool a capella by this unusual artist. Uncomplicated music stripped down to the basics, but missing absolutely nothing. This recording will appeal to everybody who is on the lookout for something different. With the reggae-style vocals and a snappy rhythm, this Linda Goldstein produced US top 10 single is a novelty record of considerable substance."