On this day, May 27, 1968, Glen Campbell recorded "Wichita Lineman."

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Last edited Sat May 27, 2023, 12:11 PM - Edit history (1)

I thought it was a few years older than that. Tempus fugit. It's such a great tune.

It looks as this was the first of two recording sessions.

It is well known that the Music Appreciation group always has room for Hal David, Jimmy Webb, Burt Bacharach, and Glen Campbell.

{Edited: He’s Glen Campbell, not Glenn Campbell.}

Hat tip, This Day in Country Music

May 27th: On this day

1968
Glen Campbell {recorded} "Wichita Lineman" at Capitol Records Hollywood, California. Campbell's version, which appeared on his 1968 album of the same name, reached #3 on the US pop chart, and in addition, the song topped the American country music chart for two weeks.

Wichita Lineman



Single by Glen Campbell from the album Wichita Lineman
B-side: "Fate of Man"
Released: October 26, 1968 (week of)
Recorded:
May 27, 1968
August 14, 1968
Studio:
Capitol Records
Hollywood, California

"Wichita Lineman" is a song written by the American songwriter Jimmy Webb in 1968. It was first recorded by the American country music artist Glen Campbell with backing from members of The Wrecking Crew and has since been widely covered by other artists. It has been referred to as "the first existential country song".

Background and content

Jimmy Webb stated in an interview for the BBC Radio 4 Mastertapes programme that the song was written in response to a phone call from Campbell for a "place" or "geographical" song to follow up "By the Time I Get to Phoenix". Webb's inspiration for the lyric came while driving through Washita County in rural southwestern Oklahoma. At that time, many telephone companies were county-owned utilities, and their linemen were county employees.

Heading westward on a straight road into the setting sun, Webb drove past a seemingly endless line of telephone poles, each looking exactly the same as the last. Then he noticed, in the distance, the silhouette of a solitary lineman atop a pole. He described it as "the picture of loneliness". Webb then "put himself atop that pole and put that phone in his hand" as he considered what the lineman was saying into the receiver.

It was a splendidly vivid, cinematic image that I lifted out of my deep memory while I was writing this song. I thought, I wonder if I can write something about that? A blue collar, everyman guy we all see everywhere – working on the railroad or working on the telephone wires or digging holes in the street. I just tried to take an ordinary guy and open him up and say, 'Look there's this great soul, and there's this great aching, and this great loneliness inside this person and we're all like that. We all have this capacity for these huge feelings'.

{snip}

Glen Campbell - Wichita Lineman (Live Goodtime Hour)

Glen Campbell
140K subscribers

2,055,746 views Mar 12, 2009
Official video of Glen Campbell performing his hit song Wichita Lineman on The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour.

For more information on Glen Campbell:
Website: http://www.glencampbellmusic.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glencampbellofficial
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/glencampbell

From Austin City Limits:

Glen Campbell on Austin City Limits "Wichita Lineman" (1985)

AustinCityLimitsTV
234K subscribers

1,267,635 views Aug 8, 2017
The one and only Glen Campbell performs his signature tune "Wichita Lineman" during his only Austin City Limits performance, taped and aired in 1985.

About Austin City Limits
ACL offers viewers unparalleled access to featured acts in an intimate setting that provides a platform for artists to deliver inspired, memorable, full-length performances. The program is taped live before a concert audience from The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. ACL is the longest-running music series in American television history and remains the only TV series to ever be awarded the National Medal of Arts. Since its inception, the groundbreaking music series has become an institution that's helped secure Austin's reputation as the Live Music Capital of the World. The historic KLRU Studio 6A, home to 36 years of ACL concerts, has been designated an official Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark. In 2011, ACL moved to the new venue ACL Live at The Moody Theater in downtown Austin. ACL received a rare institutional Peabody Award for excellence and outstanding achievement in 2012.

ACL is produced by KLRU-TV and funding is provided in part by Dell, the Austin Convention Center Department, Shiner Beers and HomeAway.com. Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Austin City Limits. Learn more about Austin City Limits, programming and history at acltv.com.

A few years on:

GLEN CAMPBELL LIVE WICHITA LINEMAN

Dinkydoo40
7.61K subscribers

7,849,407 views Apr 20, 2009
WICHITA LINEMAN LIVE FOR PBS

[twodogsbarking]

1. He was a great guitar player including studio work.

[Chipper Chat]

2. The song has no tonic chord.

Very unique.

[jpak]

3. Jeebus H Krist

[LiberalLoner]

4. The great Jim Gordon played drums on this song, not Hal Blaine actually.

Jim wrote me a letter where he said he remembered recording that song so clearly (many songs he didn’t remember clearly or at all due to drinking and drugs)….

We had discussed the song because I had told Jim how much I loved that song.

RIP, Jim Gordon. Thank you for all the great music.