On This Day in 1977, Glen Campbell Topped the Hot 100 for the Final Time With a Song He Immediately Knew Would Be a Hit

On This Day (April 30) in 1977, Glen Campbell reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the second and final time with “Southern Nights.” A little more than a month earlier, the single spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart. In February, it had spent four weeks atop the Adult Contemporary chart. Later that year, it won Song of the Year at the CMA Awards.

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Released in January 1977 as the sole single from the album of the same name. The song’s wide appeal is an example of what made Campbell so successful in the 1970s. His songs leaned far enough into the pop world to capture contemporary listeners while remaining enough country sensibility to appeal to the genre’s audience. For instance, it boasts slick production and backing vocals that helped it find traction on pop radio. At the same time, Campbell learned the song’s main guitar part from Jerry Reed.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1969, Glen Campbell Released a No. 1 Hit That Became an Unintentional Counterculture Anthem and Protest Song]

More than anything, “Southern Nights” showcases Campbell’s ability to find songs and adapt them into hits. His version of the song sounds nothing like the original version, released two years earlier by singer/songwriter Allen Toussaint. However, he immediately knew he had to record the song upon hearing it.

Glen Campbell Immediately Fell in Love with “Southern Nights”

Allen Toussaint wrote “Southern Nights” and released it on his 1975 album of the same name. His version was slow and stripped-down. Its arrangement consisted of only Toussaint singing and playing an electric piano, and Tony Owens playing the light percussion on an ashtray. That is how Glen Campbell heard it for the first time.

Jimmy Webb wrote “Wichita Lineman,” “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” and “Galveston,” all of which had been major hits for Campbell. Webb also inadvertently introduced him to this major hit, according to Songfacts.

“I remember I was playing an Allen Toussaint record. I liked this record. It had a real lowdown kind of delta feeling, great piano, syncopated piano chops, and interesting songs on it,” Webb recalled. “I was playing along, and he said, ‘What was that song?’ I said, ‘Southern Nights.’ And he said, ‘Is that your record?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ And he said, ‘Well, can I have it?’”

Webb gave Campbell the record, and he left. “That record, I mean, within four weeks that record was on the air,” Webb said. “He worked at a frightening pace once he got going.”

Campbell said the song’s lyrics reminded him of his childhood in rural Arkansas. “It’s real peaceful and remote,” he said of the area. “My head is still there.”

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