Harrison wrote the song while sick in bed at a hotel room in Bournemouth, England, where the Beatles were playing some shows during the summer of 1963. Harrison never regarded it highly, saying, "It was a fairly crappy song. I forgot all about it completely once it was on the album." He considered it an exercise in whether he could write a song, later saying, "at least it showed me that all I needed to do was keep on writing, and then maybe eventually I would write something good." Harrison received a writing credit for two earlier songs, "In Spite of All the Danger" (McCartney/Harrison) and "Cry for a Shadow" (Harrison/Lennon). Both were recorded by the Beatles but neither was released officially by the band until 1995's "Anthology 1" compilation. "Don't Bother Me" is considered Harrison's first song by most (including the composer himself).