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Song · The Beatles

“Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” by The Beatles

Released 1968

“Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” by The Beatles appears on 29 radio countdowns from 8 stations between 2002 and 2026. It was first released in 1968. Its best result is #22 on the BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2013). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #4,888 indie & aaa song of all time.

29countdowns
8stations
#22best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
2002–2026years charted

Watch

Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (Remastered 2009)

Video from YouTube (The Beatles - Topic). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" is Paul McCartney's mock-Jamaican ska romp from the White Album, the Beatles' 1968 double LP, and its title and chorus are a phrase McCartney picked up from Jimmy Scott, a Nigerian musician working in London, who later tried and failed to get a writing credit. Cut at Abbey Road with George Martin producing, it bounces along on Lennon's piano, McCartney's bass, Harrison's acoustic guitar, Ringo's drums and bongos and four sets of clapping hands.

Behind the grin, the sessions were miserable: McCartney's perfectionism wore on everybody, and a blowup during one session drove engineer Geoff Emerick to quit. It was never a single in Britain or America in the '60s, yet it topped the charts in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and West Germany. An early take with Scott on congas finally surfaced on Anthology 3.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

All Rock Formats

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2002 187 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (2002) 500
2002 592 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2002) 923
2004 591 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2011 551 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 560 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2012 388 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2012) 500
2013 22 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 258 Big 100 BIG 500 Labor Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 427 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2014 490 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 432 Big 100 BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) 1000
2015 428 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2015 445 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2015) 499
2016 28 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2016) 500
2016 566 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2017 32 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2017) 500
2018 51 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2018) 500
2019 618 102.5 KZOK KZOK Top 1025 of 2019 1025
2020 953 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2020 581 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2020) 1025
2021 681 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2022 127 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) 1043
2022 525 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2022) 1025
2022 480 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2022) 500
2023 818 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2023 564 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2024 457 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2024) 1043
2025 900 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043
2026 386 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2026) 500

Also listed as: Ob La Di, Ob La Da; Ob La Di Ob La Da; Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da; Ob-la-di Ob-la-da; Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da.

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