Hear a New Version of ‘Baby Blue’ by Badfinger — Featuring Matthew Sweet (Listen)

“Baby Blue,” taken from the 1971 Badfinger album Straight Up, ranks among the band‘s most celebrated tracks — and a special new recording of the song was released on Thursday.

This new spin on the classic finds Joey Molland, guitarist/vocalist and the only surviving member of Badfinger’s original lineup, joined by guitarist Matthew Sweet for an invigorating, fresh spin on the anthem:

The profile of “Baby Blue” was elevated when the song was featured in the 2013 series finale of Breaking Bad. The track’s placement, in the closing scene of the long-running AMC drama, introduced the song to legions of new fans – earning “Baby Blue” its very first spot on the UK music charts, where it landed at No. 73.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R95f7VwXqIw

What’s more, the song’s feature in the episode generated the sale of more than 5,000 digital copies of the song the night of the Breaking Bad finale (this was a bit before the prevalence of streaming platforms took hold).

The original version of “Baby Blue” was written by late Badfinger vocalist/guitarist Pete Ham and produced by Todd Rundgren.

In a 2013 chat with Entertainment Weekly, joey Molland explained that he actually had no idea the song was going to be in the show, primarily because it was a song owned by the estate of Pete Ham: