Classic Song Backstories
The Fascinating Backstories Behind Five Classic Pop and Rock Hits
Anonymous
Several enduring pop hits have stories that go beyond their memorable melodies. The Association’s “Cherish” topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966, showcasing the group’s harmonies in a ballad about unrequited love. Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle with You,” a 1973 hit later brought to a new audience by Reservoir Dogs, grew out of Gerry Rafferty’s discomfort at a record-company party. The Box Tops’ “The Letter” spent four weeks at No. 1 in 1967, with 16-year-old Alex Chilton delivering the song’s distinctive lead vocal. Billy Preston wrote “You Are So Beautiful” with his mother in mind, while Joe Cocker’s 1974 recording became the song’s best-known version and reached No. 5 in the U.S. George Harrison’s “Something,” initially held back from a Beatles album, became a centerpiece of Abbey Road and a widely covered love-song standard, though Harrison said he did not write it specifically for his wife.
Key Points
1
“Stuck in the Middle with You” reached No. 6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 8 in the U.K., and climbed to No. 2 in Canada. Gerry Rafferty recalled that he and Joe Egan wrote it in half an hour after he was seated between “two rather boring label executives and their wives” at a record-company party.
2
“The Letter” spent 16 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold more than 4 million copies worldwide. Alex Chilton later recalled that he was failing tenth grade when the No. 1 hit gave his parents reason to encourage him to pursue music.
3
“You Are So Beautiful” was co-written by Billy Preston and Bruce Fisher. Preston’s version appeared on his 1974 album *The Kids & Me* and was also issued as the B-side to “Struttin’,” before Joe Cocker released his recording as a single.
4
Before “Something” became a Beatles recording, Harrison gave it to Joe Cocker, who included it on his second album. When Harrison later played it for the Beatles, John Lennon called it the album’s best song, while Paul McCartney called it the best song Harrison had written.
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