Don't Worry, Be Happy

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Bobby McFerrin Jr. is an American jazz vocalist and conductor, presumably he has no formation whatever in psychology, but Don't Worry, Be Happy is a treaty of cognitive therapeutic thinking.

According to cognitive therapeutic thinking, we have a tendency to add more stress to our stress by dwelling it and scientists have confirmed that worrying about our worries is rather worrisome. Recent research has found prolonged negative cardiac effects of worry episodes, following a 2006 study that linked worrying to heart disease. Modern civilization is complicated but if you keep worrying all the time about everything, definitively, you never will be happy.

In addition, according to the theory of cognitive adaptation for how we adjust to threatening events, based on evidence from a number of clinical and empirical studies, we grossly overestimate the negative impact of the events that befall us and return to our previous levels of happiness shortly after these negative events take place.

 

Bobby McFerrin is the son of pioneering African-American opera singers so he has the music in his DNA! He is known for his unique vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch, for example, sustaining a melody while also rapidly alternating with arpeggios and harmonies, as well as scat singing, polyphonic overtone singing, and improvisational vocal percussion. He is widely known for performing and recording regularly as an unaccompanied solo vocal artist. He has frequently collaborated with other artists from both the jazz and classical scenes but in 1988 temporarily deviated from his serious musical background to record this reggae-inflected overdubbed production.

In an interview with a US magazine, McFerrin explained that the idea to make the song came when he saw a poster of Meher Baba with the phrase in the apartment of the married couple, guitarist  William Charles "Tuck" Andress and singer Patricia "Patti" Cathcart Andress (the jazz duo Tuck & Patti) in San Francisco and thought it was "a pretty neat philosophy in four words."

Indian guru Meher Baba (1894–1969) often used the expression "Don't worry, be happy" when cabling his followers in the West and in the '60s the expression was printed up on inspirational cards and posters of the era.

McFerrin was inspired by the expression's charm and simplicity and wrote the now famous song; "Don't worry, be happy" became a hit single the next year. Released in September 1988, it reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, displacing "Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N' Roses which had previously held the No. 1 spot. This sounds astounding for a song sung a cappella (without instruments). It became the first a cappella song getting to the top and held the position for two weeks. 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. The comedic original music video for the song stars McFerrin, Robin Williams, and Bill Irwin.

 

The song also features McFerrin's whistling, sometimes in different octaves layered on top of each other. It was voted in Rolling Stones Magazine among the all-time 15 best whistling songs.

At some moment rumors were started that McFerrin attempted suicide and even that he killed himself, after doing this song, very convenient for the "sensationalist" media but obviously untrue; he is alive and well. However, the rumors became so strong that even to this day people think Bobby McFerrinn is dead.

Another "urban legend" associated to "Don't Worry Be Happy" is that it was written by Bob Marley. But Marley passed away in 1981 so probably the rumor started because Bob Marley Jr. recorded a version of it.

Since then, the phrase "Don't Worry Be Happy" is frequently used in some cases to criticize people with a rosy outlook on the world, as if they were oblivious to problems.

In 1988, the Republican presidential campaign of George H. W. Bush used the song without Bobby McFerrin's permission or endorsement. In reaction, Bobby McFerrin (a Democrat) publicly protested that particular use of his song, stating that he was going to vote against Bush, and completely dropped the song from his own performance repertoire. The George H. W. Bush campaign reportedly stopped using the song so after McFerrin objected.

It also was featured in the films Cocktail (1988) and Casper - A Spirited Beginning (1997).

If you listen Queen's “Keep Passing the Open Windows” song released with the album "Works" from 1984, you can appreciate some interesting similarities, starting form minute 0:48 and inclusively, in the lyrics.

 

You also can find similar sounds is "What’s up?”, the one hit wonder of "4 Non Blondes" written  by Linda Perry. It was released in 23 June, 1993 as the second single from the album Bigger, Better, Faster, More! By the way the words "What's Up" are never mentioned in the song; they mostly repeat “What’s going on?”, but it happens to be the title of one of the most famous soul themes by Marvin Gaye so probably they didn't use it to avoid confusion. It was the only top hit by the "4 Non Blondes" but Linda Perry has been a successful producer and composer for Courtney Love, Pink, Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani, Celine Dion, Adele and Miley Cyrus.

 

 

 

Are these cases of conscious or unconscious rip-off or simply it’s a too commonplace riff? Neither What’s Up? Nor Don't Worry Be Happy were ever challenged for plagiarism or copyright infringement, so it’s on you to decide.

 

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