– drums, bongos, maracas, other percussion, handclaps, vocal percussion Additional musicians Three unnamed session players – saxophones George Martin – woodwind arrangement Cover versions Marmalade The Beatles' decision not to issue "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" as a single in the UK or the US led to many acts rushing to record the song, in the hope of achieving a hit in those countries. A recording by the Scottish pop band Marmalade, released in late 1968, became the most commercially successful of all the cover versions of songs from The Beatles. It reached number 1 on the Record Retailer chart (subsequently the UK Singles Chart) in January 1969, making Marmalade the first Scottish artist to top that chart. Marmalade's recording sold around half a million in the UK, and a million copies globally by April 1969. During the group's TV appearance on BBC One's Top of the Pops to promote the track, four of the five band members wore kilts; their English-born drummer instead dressed as a redcoat. Reflecting the song's popularity in the UK, according to author Alan Clayson, comedian Benny Hill included the band's name with Cream and Grapefruit in a sketch where a hungover radio disc jockey is continually confronted by phone-in requests that exacerbate his nausea. Other artists Aside from Marmalade, two other acts achieved hits in Europe with "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da". In 1968, a recording by the Bedrocks, a West Indian band from Leeds, peaked at number 20 on the Record Retailer chart. In a discussion at Twickenham Studios in January 1969, McCartney and his girlfriend, Linda Eastman, said they both liked the Bedrocks' version best out of all the cover versions up to that point, including a recent single by Arthur Conley. Also in 1968, the Spectrum reached number 19 on the German singles chart with their cover. Happy Mondays included "Desmond", which used part of the melody from "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da", on their debut album Squirrel and G-Man Twenty Four Hour Party People Plastic Face Carnt Smile (White Out), released in 1987. Partly through the involvement of Michael Jackson, who owned the Beatles' Northern Songs catalogue, the track was removed from later pressings of the album because of the strong similarity. A version of "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" by Patti LuPone and the cast of Life Goes On was the theme tune for the 1989–1993 drama of that name on ABC in the United States. The DVD release has a