‘Instant Karma!’ (also titled ‘Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)’) is a song by English rock musician John Lennon, released as a single on Apple Records in February 1970. The lyrics focus on a concept in which the consequences of one's actions are immediate rather than borne out over a lifetime. The single was credited to "Lennon/Ono with the Plastic Ono Band", apart from in the US, where the credit was "John Ono Lennon". The song reached the top five in the British and American charts, competing with the Beatles' ‘Let It Be’ in the US, where it became the first solo single by a member of the band to sell a million copies.
‘Instant Karma!’ was conceived, written, recorded, and released within a period of ten days, making it one of the fastest-released songs in music history. The recording was produced by Phil Spector, marking a comeback for the American producer after his self-imposed retirement in 1966, and leading to him being offered the producer's role on the Beatles' Let It Be album. Recorded at London's EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios), ‘Instant Karma!’ employs Spector's signature Wall of Sound technique and features contributions from George Harrison, Klaus Voormann, Alan White, and Billy Preston. The B-side was ‘Who Has Seen the Wind?’, a song composed and performed by Ono. When released in the US, the single was given a minor remix by Spector.
Recently shorn of the long hair synonymous with their 1969 campaign for world peace, Lennon and Ono promoted the single with an appearance on Britain's Top of the Pops five days after its release. The song received positive reviews and is considered by some music critics to be among the finest recordings from Lennon's solo career. A live performance recorded at his and Ono's ‘One to One’ concerts in August 1972 was included on the posthumously released Live in New York City (1986). Paul Weller, Duran Duran, and U2 are among the acts who have covered ‘Instant Karma!’ Its chorus also inspired the title to Stephen King's 1977 novel The Shining.
John Lennon told Playboy magazine in 1980, “Everybody was going on about karma ... but it occurred to me that karma is instant, as well as it influences your past life or your future life. There really is a reaction to what you do now ... Also, I'm fascinated by commercials and promotion as an art form ... So, the idea of instant karma was like the idea of instant coffee: presenting something in a new form.” Lennon completed the writing of ‘Instant Karma!’ in an hour. Eager to record the song immediately, he then telephoned his Beatles bandmate George Harrison and American producer Phil Spector, who was in London at the invitation of Allen Klein, the manager of the Beatles' Apple Corps organisation. According to Lennon's recollection, he told Spector: "Come over to Apple quick, I've just written a monster."
‘Instant Karma!’ was commercially successful, peaking at number 3 on America's Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 2 in Canada, and number 5 on the UK Singles Chart. The single also reached the top ten in several other European countries and in Australia. The release took place two months before Paul McCartney announced the break-up of the Beatles, whose penultimate single, the George Martin-produced ‘Let It Be’, Lennon's record competed with on the US chart. ‘Instant Karma!’ went on to become the first single by a solo Beatle to achieve US sales of 1 million, earning gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America on 14 December 1970. Until Lennon's death in December 1980, ‘Instant Karma!’ remained his sole RIAA-certified gold single.
Label – Apple
Songwriter – John Lennon
Producer – Phil Spector
SONG LYRICS
[Intro]Three, four
[Verse 1]
Instant Karma's going to get you
Going to knock you right on the head
You better get yourself together
Pretty soon you're going to be dead
[Pre-Chorus 1]
What in the world you thinking of
Laughing in the face of love?
What on earth, you trying to do?
It's up to you, yeah, you
[Verse 2]
Instant Karma's gonna get you
Going to look you right in the face
Better get yourself together, darling
Join the human race
[Pre-Chorus 2]
How in the world you gonna see
Laughing at fools like me?
Who on earth d'you think you are?
A superstar? Well, right you are
[Chorus]
Well, we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Well, we all shine on
Every one, come on
[Verse 3]
Instant Karma's going to get you
Gonna knock you off your feet
Better recognize your brothers
Every one you meet
[Pre-Chorus 3]
Why in the world are we here?
Surely not to live in pain and fear?
Why on earth are you there when you're everywhere?
Come and get your share
[Chorus]
Well, we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah, we all shine on
Come on and on and on, on, on
Yeah, yeah, alright
Ah, ha, ah
[Outro]
Well, we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
And we all shine on
On and on and on, on and on
Well, we all shine on
Like the moon and the stars and the sun
Yeah, we all shine on