Keep On Smilin' - Wet Willie (1974) 7/10/22

In 1974, today's "Great Song of the '70s offered an excellent piece of optimistic advice.

In 2022, as we continue to fight our way through the Covid pandemic, Wet Willie's "Keep On Smilin'" retains its optimism, even if sometimes you can't see the smile behind the mask. Although the song is credited to the entire band, Wet Willie founder and front man Jimmy Hall feels the song never would have been a hit without some critical input from producer Tom Dowd. Group guitarist Ricky Hirsch came up with the guitar riff. Jimmy wrote the lyrics...and then Tom stepped in. To quote Jimmy (from an interview in "American Songwriter Magazine): “Tom came to us and said it needs one idea. ‘You have a solo, but you don’t have a bridge. Let’s take that fourth verse and do this. Just give me a downbeat hit into the bass drum.’ And the band hit it ‘Just hanging out –boom—At the local bar—boom—Are you a farmer—boom—Are you a star—boom. After that line, give me the full chorus and we’re going to ride it home with a vamp to the end. We tried it and it was just perfect!”

It was! It became the group's biggest hit by far--reaching #10 on Billboard's Hot 100.

"Keep On Smiling" by Wet Willie: a "Great Song of 1974" with some excellent advice for today!