I Fought The Law (song)

"I Fought The Law" is a song written by Sonny Curtis and first recorded by The Crickets in 1959. Bobby Fuller and his recording band recorded a cover in Bobby's home recording studio, and it was put out as a single in July of 1964, backed with the song "She's My Girl." It was re-recorded multiple times, and ultimately became Bobby Fuller's biggest hit under the Bobby Fuller Four.

Personnel

 * Bobby Fuller - guitar, vocals
 * Randy Fuller - bass, vocals
 * Jerry Miller - guitar, backing vocals
 * Billy Webb - guitar, backing vocals
 * Larry Thompson - drums

Personnel

 * Bobby Fuller - guitar, vocals
 * Randy Fuller - bass, backing vocals
 * Jim Reese - guitar, backing vocals
 * DeWayne Quirico - drums

Original Version
Likely the first version recorded (at an unknown date) in Bobby's home recording studio, it was never initially released. Rather it, was recorded as a demo, and was later overdubbed the vocals to Bobby's liking before it was put out as the Exeter single. This version is the most similar to The Crickets' original version, however, a drum intro was added to the beginning, and backing vocals were added to the chorus. In addition, the second and fourth verses were swapped, and the lyrics "I miss my baby" were changed to "I left my baby." Other minor changes were also made, such as the guitar and bass parts.

Alternate Take
Some time after recording the Exeter single, the song was re-recorded in Bobby's home recording studio with other changes, the most notably being the lyric "zip gun" being changed to "shotgun." This version remained unreleased until it was posthumously issued on Shakedown! The Texas Tapes Revisited in 1996. Dalton Powell played drums, while Jim Reese played guitar.

Stereo Alternate
After "I Fought The Law" became a hit single for the Bobby Fuller Four, the song was re-recorded in stereo in Bob Keane's studio in 1965 for the I Fought The Law LP, released in February of 1966. Aside from being in stereo, the song is near identical to the single version.