George Harrison – When We Was Fab Lyrics - Genius

2025, In ReviewFeaturedChartsVideosPromote Your MusicSign Up8When We Was FabGeorge HarrisonProducersJeff Lynne & George HarrisonTrack 13 onLet It Roll: Songs by George Harrison  Nov. 2, 19871 viewer55.6K views37 Contributors

When We Was Fab Lyrics

Written by and produced by George Harrison and Jeff Lynne, “When We Was Fab” is a reminiscence on George Harrison’s time as a member of the Beatles. The song was conceived by Harrison and Lynne while… Read More [Intro: Ringo Starr]One! Two![Verse 1: George Harrison]Back then long time ago when grass was greenWoke up in a dazeArrived like strangers in the night[Chorus: George Harrison](Fab! Doo, doo, doo, doo) Long time ago, when we was Fab(Fab!) Back when income tax was all we had (Aaah-aaah)[Verse 2: George Harrison]Caresses fleeced you in the morning lightCasualties at dawnAnd we did it all Long time ago, when we was Fab (Wooo!)(Fab!) You're my world, you are my only love (Aaah-aaah)(Whaaee-oooh!)[Bridge: George Harrison]And while you're in this worldThe fuzz gonna come and claim youBut you mo' better wiseWhen the buzz gonna come and take you awayTake you awayTake you awayYou might also like[Verse 3: George Harrison]The microscopes that magnified the tearsStudied warts and allStill the life flowed on and on[Chorus 3: George Harrison](Fab!, gear!) Long time ago, when we was Fab(Fab!) But it's all over now, Baby Blue (Aaah-aaah)[Outro](Doo, doo, doo, doo; Fab!) Long time ago, when we was Fab(Fab!) Like this pullover you sent to me (Aah-ahh)(Fab! Doo, doo, doo, doo; Gear!)And you really got a hold on me(Fab! Doo, doo, doo, doo; Gear!) Long time ago, when we was Fab (Wooo!)Aaah-aaah8EmbedCancel

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AboutSong Bio2 contributors

Written by and produced by George Harrison and Jeff Lynne, “When We Was Fab” is a reminiscence on George Harrison’s time as a member of the Beatles.

The song was conceived by Harrison and Lynne while vacationing in Australia, with Harrison and Lynne sitting at opposite ends of a piano in “some rich bloke’s house”, before they’d entered the studio to begin work on Cloud Nine. Its original working title was “Aussie Fab” and was the first song written for the album.

The production emulates the feeling of Beatles recordings during their later psychedelic period. Rolling Stone called the track “Harrison’s droll sendup of and tribute to his days as a Beatle.”

Originally released as an album cut from George Harrison’s 1987 release Cloud Nine, it was later released as a single in early 1988, breaking the top 30 in both the UK and the US.

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Ask a questionWhat did George Harrison say about "When We Was Fab"?Genius Answer1 contributor

Harrison told Rolling Stone about the genesis of the song:

I had this guitar that somebody had loaned me and, I don’t know why, I thought I’d like to write a song like that (Beatles) period. And I could hear Ringo in my head, going, ‘one, two… da-ka-thump, da-ka-thump’ … Those little fills are just pure Ringo.

He then added:

It’s got complete joke words.

What has Jeff Lynne said about this song?Genius Answer1 contributor

In 1989, Lynne told the BBC:

We wrote that in Australia when we went to go to see the Grand Prix … in Adelaide. And we wrote it on this piano, like one on each end of the piano. I was playing the high bit; George was playing the low bit. And we never sort of got ‘round to finishing it 'til about halfway through the sessions. And once we did, it was like this license to do sort of Beatle music, which was a fabulous thrill for me. That was great, really enjoyed that. All those silly bits that, y'know, I like to do, suddenly you can do 'em without anybody saying, 'Oh, you’re nicking off the Beatles.’ ‘Cause it supposed to be like the Beatles anyway. It was great. It was lovely.

In 2016, Lynne shared with Rolling Stone:

I decided to pack it in [disband his group ELO] in 1986. About six months later, George Harrison got in touch with me to ask me to work on his new album. A few days after he met me, he said, ‘Let’s go on holiday. I’m going to Australia for a while.’ He took me to the Grand Prix in Adelaide, which was amazing. It felt like an adventure, since I used to just bang out tunes in my little studio. It was now on an international scale. George came up with the words for “When I Was Fab”. It was magical for me, since it was supposed to sound like a Beatles song…

+2Who produced “When We Was Fab” by George Harrison?When did George Harrison release “When We Was Fab”?Who wrote “When We Was Fab” by George Harrison?Let It Roll: Songs by George Harrison (2009)George Harrison

1. 1. Got My Mind Set On You
2. 2. Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)
3. 3. Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)
4. 4. My Sweet Lord
5. 5. While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Live from Madison Square Garden, New York, U.S.A, 1971 / 2009 Remaster)
6. 6. All Things Must Pass
7. 7. Any Road
8. 8. This Is Love
9. 9. All Those Years Ago
10. 10. Marwa Blues
11. 11. What Is Life
12. 12. Rising Sun
13. 13. When We Was Fab
14. 14. Something (Live from Madison Square Garden, New York, U.S.A, 1971 / 2009 Remaster)
15. 15. Blow Away
16. 16. Cheer Down
17. 17. Here Comes the Sun (Live from Madison Square Garden, New York, U.S.A, 1971 / 2009 Remaster)
18. 18. I Don’t Want to Do It
19. 19. Isn’t It a Pity
20. 20. Isn’t It a Pity (Demo Version)

Cloud Nine (1987)George HarrisonBest of Dark Horse 1976–1989 (1989)George HarrisonExpand CreditsReleased onNovember 2, 1987ProducersJeff Lynne & George HarrisonWritersJeff Lynne & George HarrisonVideo Art DirectorGodley & CremeAcoustic GuitarGeorge HarrisonElectric GuitarGeorge HarrisonLabelDark Horse RecordsBackground VocalsGeorge Harrison, Jeff Lynne & Ringo StarrSitarGeorge HarrisonKeyboardsGeorge Harrison & Jeff LynneBass GuitarJeff LynneCelloBobby KokDrumsRingo StarrPianoGary WrightRecorded AtFriar Park Studios, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, EnglandSongs That Sample When We Was FabFour Guys by James Richards (Ft. The Beatles)View When We Was Fab samplesTagsRockSinger-SongwriterIn EnglishNeo-PsychedeliaPsychedelic RockUKExpand CommentsAdd a commentSign Up And Drop Knowledge 🤓Genius is the ultimate source of music knowledge, created by scholars like you who share facts and insight about the songs and artists they love.Sign Up