Writer: John Lennon
Producer: John Lennon
Recorded: Summer 1974 at the Record Plant in New York City
Released: October 1974
| Players: | John Lennon — vocals, guitar Elton John — keyboards, vocals Jesse Ed Davis — guitar Eddie Mottau — acoustic guitar Klaus Voorman — bass Ken Ascher — clavinet Bobby Keyes — tenor saxophone Jim Keltner — drums Arthur Jenkins — percussion |
| Album: | Walls And Bridges (Apple) |
John Lennon's “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” was notable for the guest appearance by Elton John, who was at his commercial pinnacle in 1974.
Lennon explained: “How that record came about was that Elton was in town and I was doing it and needed a harmony. He did the harmony on that and a couple more and played beautiful piano on it.”
The song went to Number One on the Billboard Hot 100, which Lennon felt was undeserved: “That was a novelty song. It's the only one I've done since I left the Beatles to get to Number One. We didn't get a good take on the musicians, but I just quite like the words. It was more commercial than, say, 'Imagine,' but in my opinion, 'Imagine' should've been Number One and 'Whatever Gets You Thru The Night' should have been Number 39. It just doesn't make sense.”
Lennon's only other solo Number One hit was “(Just Like) Starting Over,” which came shortly after his death.
“Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” was responsible for one of Lennon's last public concert appearances, however. During the session, Elton John made Lennon promise that if it reached Number One, Lennon would perform it live with him. On November 28th, 1974, Lennon honored the agreement, appearing onstage with Elton at New York City's Madison Square Garden, performing not only the hit but also two Beatles songs, “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” (which Elton John had covered) and “I Saw Her Standing There.”
Lennon's band for the Walls And Bridges sessions was named the Plastic Ono Nuclear Band.
In the album credits for “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night,” Lennon was listed as the Honorable John St. John Johnson.
The B-side of “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” was “Beef Jerky,” another track from Walls And Bridges.
Walls And Bridges topped the Billboard 200, and peaked at Number Five on the U.K. chart.