"I Don't Want to Do It" was written by Bob Dylan in 1968 and was little known until George Harrison's version was first released in March 1985. The song marked the first new release from Harrison in over two years, since his
Gone Troppo album in November 1982. Harrison recorded the song in Los Angeles in November 1984, with producer
Dave Edmunds, who was overseeing musical contributions from a number of different artists for the ''
Porky's Revenge!'' soundtrack. The film soundtrack, featuring Harrison's version of "I Don't Want to Do It", was then released the following year on March 14 1985. The album was issued on
Columbia Records in America on March 14, with a British release following on July 1. The single was issued on April 22 by Columbia, with Edmunds' "
Queen of the Hop" as the B-side. The single version is distinguished by a guitar solo in the middle, while the mix chosen for the film instead features an organ solo from
Chuck Leavell. A
demo of the song, recorded before the main sessions for Harrison's 1970 triple album
All Things Must Pass, can be found on
bootlegs such as
Beware of ABKCO! and
12 Arnold Grove. This early version had remained officially unreleased until its inclusion on the 50th Anniversary box set of “All Things Must Pass” on 6 August 2021. In 2009, the ''Porky's Revenge
version of the song was remastered by Giles Martin and Dave Edmunds for inclusion on the compilation album Let It Roll: Songs by George Harrison''. ==Reception==