"No Matter What" is a song originally recorded by Badfinger for their album No Dice in 1970, written and sung by Pete Ham and produced by Mal Evans.
Recording
As a demo, "No Matter What" was originally recorded by Ham on acoustic guitar and performed with a mambo beat. A similar sound to the original demo can be heard on an album track from their next album Straight Up called "Perfection". A rough, rockier version of the song was recorded by Badfinger in March 1970 and produced by Mal Evans. The song was recorded again by the band in April 1970 at Abbey Road Studios and it was this version that would appear on the album and single. Although the song and recording was a favourite of Badfinger's shortly after it was recorded, the hierarchy at Apple reportedly was not inclined to release it in any format. It was not until Al Steckler, the American director of Apple in New York, heard the tape in the summer of 1970 and considered it a strong entry by the band that it was slotted for the upcoming LP and as a single release. This song is also noted for its false ending, after the final chorus, where, after a short pause, the song repeats the last line twice before its final ending chord.
Release
In the United States, the single was released with the Tom Evans–Pete Ham song "Carry On Till Tomorrow", the theme song for the movie The Magic Christian, as the B-side. This was an edited version of the recording that appeared on Badfinger's previous album, Magic Christian Music. In all other countries, the single was backed with the Tom Evans–Joey Molland song "Better Days", which also appeared on No Dice.
Reception
It was the band's first UK Top 10 single to be composed by Badfinger, reaching number 5 in the UK in January 1971. In the US it peaked at number 8 on Billboard Hot 100. In South Africa it topped the charts. The band also scored with "Come and Get It", number 4 in the UK in January 1970, which was composed by Paul McCartney, and "Day After Day", number 10 in the UK in January 1972. The song is notable for being one of the first successful records associated with the power pop sound, using all of the elements attributed to the genre. A subsequent single released by Badfinger, "Baby Blue", along with several album tracks in a similar vein, succeeded in categorising the band themselves as power pop.
