Don't Hurt My Little Sister

"Don't Hurt My Little Sister"
Song by the Beach Boys
from the album The Beach Boys Today!
ReleasedMarch 8, 1965
RecordedJune 22, 1964
StudioWestern, Hollywood
GenrePop[1]
Length2:07
LabelCapitol
Composer(s)Brian Wilson
Lyricist(s)Brian Wilson, Mike Love
Producer(s)Brian Wilson
Audio sample

"Don't Hurt My Little Sister" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1965 album The Beach Boys Today!. Written by Brian Wilson with additional lyrics by Mike Love,[2] it was inspired by Wilson's interactions with sisters Marilyn, Diane, and Barbara Rovell. It was produced on June 22, 1964, making it the earliest-recorded song on the album.

The lyrical inspiration is often attributed to Wilson's conflicted infatuation for the Rovell sisters. In its lyrics, the narrator appears to conflate fraternal and romantic feelings for his younger sister, as he chides her male suitor, "Why don't you love her like her big brother?"[3] Wilson later married Marilyn.

Cover versions of the song have been recorded by the Surfaris (in 1965) and Shonen Knife (in 1996). Wilson originally wrote the song for the Ronettes and submitted it to their producer, Phil Spector, for his approval. Spector accepted on the condition that the song be rewritten with different lyrics as "Things Are Changing (For the Better), a version ultimately recorded by the Blossoms.

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