What I Got

"What I Got"
Single by Sublime
from the album Sublime
B-side"Rivers of Babylon"
ReleasedJuly 23, 1996 (1996-07-23)
Studio
GenreAlternative rock[1][2]
Length2:51
Label
  • Gasoline Alley
  • MCA
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)David Kahne
Sublime singles chronology
"Badfish"
(1993)
"What I Got"
(1996)
"Santeria"
(1997)
Music video
"What I Got" on YouTube

"What I Got" is a song from American band Sublime's self-titled third album (1996). The song's chorus is a lift from "Loving" by reggae artist Half Pint, who is credited as a co-writer.[3][4] The melody and pacing of the verses is identical to the Beatles' "Lady Madonna".[3][5]

It was released after singer Bradley Nowell's death in 1996 from a heroin overdose and became the band's biggest radio hit. It was the second single to be released by the band, following "Date Rape" in 1991.

"What I Got" reached the number-one spot on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and was also a radio hit, peaking at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. In New Zealand, "What I Got" peaked at number 34 on the RIANZ Singles Chart; What I Got: The Seven Song EP charted higher, reaching number 33 on the same chart. Elsewhere, the single reached number two on the Canadian RPM Alternative 30 chart and number 19 in Iceland. It is ranked on Rolling Stone magazine's "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time" at number 83.[6]

  1. ^ "The 96 Best Alternative Rock Songs of 1996". Spin. 31 August 2016. p. 5. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  2. ^ "Ranking: Every Alternative Rock No. 1 Hit From Worst to Best". March 28, 2016. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Bennett, Sarah (30 January 2013). "Five Songs That Prove Why Sublime Still Matters – OC Weekly". OC Weekly. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  4. ^ "What I Got by Sublime". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
  5. ^ Marah Eakin (July 23, 2014). "Jonah Ray on his intense, burning hatred for Sublime's "What I Got"". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 15, 2017.
  6. ^ "100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 30, 2008. Retrieved January 24, 2011.