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TL;DR:

  • George Harrison said The Beatles’ “Piggies” predated widespread use of “pigs” to refer to police.
  • George compared the meaning of the song to the lyrics of one of Phil Collins’ songs.
  • The former Beatle discussed his feelings about the way society allots its money.
George Harrison in a suit at The Beatles’ Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction
George Harrison at The Beatles’ Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction | Sonia Moskowitz/IMAGES/Getty Images

George Harrison discussed the social commentary in The Beatles‘ “Piggies.” Subsequently, he compared the track to one of Phil Collins’ songs. Notably, Collins’ song became a massive hit in the United States.

George Harrison said The Beatles’ ‘Piggies’ offered ‘gentle’ commentary

The book George Harrison on George Harrison: Interviews and Encounters includes an interview from 1989. In it, he discussed the song “Piggies.” “I don’t know where that came from,” he said. “I remember writing it; I don’t remember where the whole idea of ‘Piggies’… because it was before this sort of … what would you call it when the police started beating everybody up in the … ?”

George noted the song predates the widespread use of the word “pigs” to describe police officers. “It was a much sort of gentler thing, and it was before that kind of consciousness,” he said. 

George Harrison compared The Beatles’ song to Phil Collins’ ‘Another Day in Paradise’

George elaborated on the tune. “It was just an awareness that the big guys up there, they’re the ones who are in the stuffed white shirts — ‘starched white shirts,'” he said. “It was a social comment because it’s still the same.” 

George compared “Piggies” to Collins’ “Another Day in Paradise.” “Like Phil Collins has that song about people sleeping in the streets, but still everybody else is all tucked away cozy in their big government offices,” he said. “It’s just a portion of the money that’s being just squandered on ridiculous things like the military.”

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How ‘Piggies’ and ‘Another Day in Paradise’ performed on the pop charts in the United States

“Piggies” was not a single, so it did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The tune appeared on The Beatles’ The White Album, which topped the Billboard 200 for nine weeks. It spent a total of 215 weeks on the chart.

On the other hand, “Another Day in Paradise” reached No. 1 for four of its 18 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. “Another Day in Paradise” stayed atop the Billboard Hot 100 longer than any of Collin’s other solo songs. Collins included the tune on the album …But Seriously. The album peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for four weeks and stayed on the chart for 90 weeks. Besides No Jacket Required, it was Collins’ biggest album.

“Piggies” was not a hit but the public was apparently willing to hear the same sentiment in another song.

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