Stand By Me

From Wikipedia:

“Stand by Me” is a song originally performed in 1961 by American singer-songwriter Ben E. King and written by him, along with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who together used the pseudonym Elmo Glick. According to King, the title is derived from, and was inspired by, a spiritual written by Sam Cooke and J. W. Alexander called “Stand by Me Father”, recorded by the Soul Stirrers with Johnnie Taylor singing lead.

“Stand by Me” was featured on the soundtrack of the 1986 film Stand by Me, and a corresponding music video, featuring King along with actors River Phoenix and Wil Wheaton, was released to promote the film. The song was also featured in a 1987 European commercial of Levi’s 501 jeans, contributing to greater success in Europe. In 2012, its royalties were estimated to have topped $22.8 million (£17 million), making it the sixth highest-earning song of its era. 50% of the royalties were paid to King. In 2015, King’s original version was inducted into the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress, as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”, just under five weeks before his death. Later in the year, the 2015 lineup of the Drifters recorded it in tribute.

There have been over 400 recorded versions of the song, performed by many artists, notably Otis Redding, John Lennon, Muhammad Ali, 4 the Cause, Tracy Chapman, musicians of the Playing for Change project, Florence and the Machine, Weezer, and the Kingdom Choir. […]

According to Mark Lewisohn in “The Complete Beatles Chronicle“, The Beatles performed “Stand By Me” regularly in 1961 and 1962, with John Lennon on lead vocals. However, no known recordings from that period exist.

On January 8, 1969, during the Beatles’ “Get Back” sessions, Paul McCartney and George Harrison played a version of “Stand By Me.“ On January 24, 1969, The Beatles played another version of it.

After The Beatles’ breakup, John Lennon and Paul McCartney played the song when they met in March 1974, in Los Angeles. The informal recording was surfaced on the bootleg “A Toot and a Snore in ’74.”

Bootlegs

Cover versions played during the "Get Back" sessions

"Stand By Me" was covered during The Beatles' "Get Back" sessions in January 1969. Here is the complete list of covers recorded by Paul McCartney, either alone or with other Beatles, during these sessions: