| "Leave Me Be" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by the Zombies | ||||
| A-side | "Tell Her No" (US) | |||
| B-side | "Woman" (UK) | |||
| Released | 16 October 1964 | |||
| Recorded | 31 August and 5 September 1964 | |||
| Studio | Decca, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:05 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | Chris White | |||
| Producer(s) | Ken Jones | |||
| The Zombies UK singles chronology | ||||
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| The Zombies US singles chronology | ||||
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| Audio sample | ||||
Original UK version | ||||
"Leave Me Be" (also recorded as "You'd Better Leave Me Be") is a song by the English rock band the Zombies. Written by Chris White, the band's bass guitarist, "Leave Me Be" was released on a non-album single in October 1964. Following the release of the band's debut single "She's Not There" in July 1964, White wrote a handful of songs in between performances during the band's heavy schedule. Most of the work on the song occurred in August 1964, when the Zombies recorded both a demo and the backing track for it. The instrumentation largely differs from both earlier and later Zombies records; it features electric organ played by Rod Argent, compared to his previous usage of the electric piano. Together with record producer Ken Jones, they returned in September to finish the vocal track, which was disliked by most band members for its similarity to "She's Not There"; the vocals would eventually be re-recorded a few months later.
Decca Records released the song as the follow-up to "She's Not There". Characterized by its usage of minor chords and chord progression, the song lyrically deals with loneliness, a theme previously present in the band's music. The United States release was cancelled and instead, the song appeared as the B-side of "Tell Her No" in the US. The song received mixed reviews upon release, with some critics deeming it inferior to "She's Not There". Unlike its predecessor, which was a top-20 hit in the United Kingdom, "Leave Me Be" became a commercial failure due to flopping worldwide, only gracing the lower regions of the Australian charts. First appearing on the compilation album I Love You in 1966, the song has since been re-released on several occasions. Although largely ignored and forgotten after release, the song has received retrospective praise, becoming a cult song among fans. It has been covered by several notable artists, including Ola & the Janglers, Sonny & Cher and the Posies.