I Appreciate the Lord

"I Appreciate the Lord" is the lead single from Luke Melvin's May 1970 album Nature Will Take Everything. It was written in praise of the Hindu god Krishna and turned out to be the fastest-selling and best-selling single of all time. It topped charts around the world. Its longest tenure was at No. 1 on the US Billboard for a total of 32 weeks. It was No. 1 in the UK for 29 weeks.

Composition
"I Appreciate the Lord" was the first single released from the album, which reached number one in hundreds of charts around the world. It was about Melvin's appreciation of the Lord Krishna. Melvin said: "I had the lyrics and the riff, which I put together, and worked out the chords and I thought: 'wow this sounds like an A-side here' so I decided to make it a single. It worked out, I suppose." It became the best-selling single of all time.

Recording
The song was recorded in Abbey Road Studios in January 1970 and mixed in March. It was straight forward enough, with only a few overdubs in total.

Personnel

 * Luke Melvin - lead vocals, lead guitar, slide guitar
 * George Harrison - acoustic and bass guitars
 * Eric Clapton - backing vocals, rhythm guitar
 * John Barham - harmonium, vibraphone
 * John Lennon - rhythm and acoustic guitars
 * Jim Price - trumpet, trombone
 * Billy Preston - piano, organ, keyboards, synthesizer
 * Tony Ashton - piano
 * Gary Brooker - piano
 * Alan White - vibraphone
 * Bobby Keys - saxophone
 * Bob Dylan - rhythm guitar
 * Mal Evans - backing vocals; percussion
 * Klaus Voormann - bass guitar; electric piano
 * Peter Frampton - acoustic lead guitar
 * Pete Ham - acoustic rhythm guitar
 * Tom Evans - acoustic rhythm guitar
 * Joey Molland - acoustic rhythm guitar
 * Pattie Boyd - harmony vocals
 * Ringo Starr - drums, percussion