Whatcha Gonna Do About It



"Whatcha Gonna Do About It" is the debut single released by the English rock group Small Faces, released in the UK on 6 August 1965. The song peaked at number 14 in the UK Singles Chart, and stayed on chart for a total of 14 weeks.

Song profile
The songwriting duo of the group Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane already had the melody for the song, the inspiration coming from Solomon Burke's hit record "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love." However they had no lyrics, so their manager, Don Arden, brought in Ian Samwell to provide the words for the song. The song entered the UK Singles Chart at number 27 and rose to number 14, just missing the all important Top Ten.

Years later, Arden admitted to spending £12,000 on chart fixing to ensure the band's debut song would be a hit. In an interview, Arden denied it was cheating: "I had a saying, you can't polish a turd. In other words, if the record's no good to begin with, it still won't be any good after you've wasted your time and money getting it played."

Personnel

 * Small Faces
 * Steve Marriott – lead vocal, lead guitar
 * Ronnie Lane – bass guitar, backing vocals
 * Kenney Jones – drums
 * Jimmy Winston – Hammond organ, rhythm guitar, backing vocals

Covers

 * In 1967, Minneapolis, Minnesota based garage band The Litter used the track on the lp "Distortions", and as the B-side to their regional hit "Action Woman" (Warick 6712)
 * The Sex Pistols recorded a cover version of "Whatcha Gonna Do About It", changing the lyrics from "I want you to know that I love you baby" to "I want you to know that I hate you baby." Apart from John Lydon, the Sex Pistols were known to be fans of the Small Faces' music.
 * Cock Sparrer and The Templars have also recorded versions of the song.
 * In 1981, Pretenders released a 7" Flexi-disc (006) for Flexipop magazine, manufactured by Lyntone (LYN 9650). The promotional disc features "Whatcha Gonna Do About It" on the A side and "Stop Your Sobbin'" (the Kinks) on the B side.