| By the Time I Get to Phoenix | |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Glen Campbell |
| Album: | By the Time I Get to Phoenix |
| B-Side: | You've Still Got a Place in My Heart |
| Released: | October 23, 1967 |
| Recorded: | August 29, 1967 |
| Studio: | Capitol, Hollywood |
| Genre: | Country pop[1] |
| Label: | Capitol |
| Producer: | Al De Lory |
| Prev Title: | Gentle on My Mind |
| Prev Year: | 1967 |
| Next Title: | Hey Little One |
| Next Year: | 1968 |
"By the Time I Get to Phoenix" is a song written by Jimmy Webb. Originally recorded by Johnny Rivers in 1965, it was reinterpreted by American country music singer Glen Campbell on his album of the same name. Released on Capitol Records in 1967, Campbell's version topped RPM Canada Country Tracks, reached number two on Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, and won two awards at the 10th Annual Grammys.[2] Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) named it the third most performed song from 1940 to 1990.[3] The song was ranked number 20 on BMI's Top 100 Songs of the Century.[4] Frank Sinatra called it "the greatest torch song ever written."[5] It was No. 450 on Rolling Stone magazine's Top 500 Songs of All Time.[6]
The inspiration for "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" originated in Jimmy Webb's breakup with Susan Horton. They remained friends after her marriage to Bobby Ronstadt, a cousin of singer Linda Ronstadt. Their relationship, which peaked in mid-1965, was also the primary influence for "MacArthur Park", another Webb composition.[7]
Webb did not intend the song to be geographically literal. "A guy approached me one night after a concert [...] and he showed me how it was impossible for me to drive from L.A. to Phoenix, and then how far it was to Albuquerque. In short, he told me, 'This song is impossible.' And so it is. It's a kind of fantasy about something I wish I would have done, and it sort of takes place in a twilight zone of reality."
Webb called the song a "succinct tale" with an "O. Henry-esque twist at the end, which consists merely of the guy saying, 'She didn't really think that I would go,' but he did." Although the protagonist in the song plans to leave his lover, Webb did not leave Horton.[8]
In 1990, Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI), which monitors songs in its role as a performance rights organisation, listed "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" as the third-most performed song from the period from 1970 to 1990,[3] and in 1999 listed it as the 20th most performed of the 20th century.[4] Many cover versions have been recorded. Charted versions include: