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In just a few days, I will begin my fifth year (YIKES!) of writing my daily "Great Songs" blog. So far, I've highlighted almost 1500 songs (YIKES AGAIN!), and although I've covered the '70s pretty much extensively, I've barely scratched the surface of the '80s--so the hits will just keep on coming.
Thank you for your kind indulgence, likes, comments, and criticisms.
And thanks to Kobi Shaw and Steve Russell for giving me the idea in the first place. Little
did they know...
As for today's Great Song...I'm highlighting a tune that I thought I covered years ago...but in checking over my database, I discovered to my shock that I did NOT.
Let's go back in time to 1969, and the release of the "Chicago Transit Authority" album. It's an all time classic that was full of Great Songs, like "Beginnings," "Questions 67 & 68," and one that wasn't released a single until 1970--AFTER the real CTA forced them to shorten their name to Chicago, and the release of their second album, which included "Make Me Smile" and "25 or 6 to 4."
At that point, Columbia Records, decided to jump back to the CTA album, and do a "time check," so to speak.
They edited down the album version of "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?' from 4:35 to 3:23 and waited to see if Top 40 radio stations would play it.
(In those days, a song over 4 minutes long didn't stand much of a chance on AM radio--especially if it started with a minute-long free-form piano solo.)
Turns out, the edit was perfect.
But first, a little background: founding member Robert Lamm wrote the song to be something "different," (check), and lyrically tongue-in-cheek, (check), while showcasing Chicago's fantastic brass section (check), and giving trombonist Lee Loughnane a short solo (check--at the very end).
**Note: You've got to love a song where the band sings "I don't care" several times in perfect harmony. :-)
Before long, the song was a hit, reaching #5 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart, and #7 on the Hot 100.
"Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is:" It's one of Chicago's early signature songs...and a "Great Song of 1969-70.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FzCWLOHUes
Album version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uy0ldI_1HA Tomorrow: An "Urban Cowboy" Country Crossover.
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