Never Been to Spain
"Never Been to Spain" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Three Dog Night | ||||
from the album Harmony | ||||
B-side | "Peace of Mind" | |||
Released | December 1971 | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Length | 3:43 | |||
Label | Dunhill 4299 | |||
Writer(s) | Hoyt Axton | |||
Producer(s) | Richard Podolor | |||
Three Dog Night singles chronology | ||||
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"Never Been to Spain" is a song written by Hoyt Axton[1] and performed by Three Dog Night. It reached #3 in Canada,[2] #5 on the Billboard chart, and #18 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart in 1972.[3] It was featured on their 1971 album, Harmony.[4]
The song was produced by Richard Podolor.[5]
The lyrics consist of the narrator ruminating on places that he has never visited, but feels that he has some proxy experience of via the music or other features of those places, or from having gone to similar locations. In the final verse, he observes that while he has "never been to heaven", he has "been to Oklahoma", where he has been told he was born, thus implying a kinship between the two places. However, the singularity of this kinship is called into question when he then implies that he could just as easily have been born in Arizona (a lyrical turn that has led many semioticians to surmise that Axton was an early aficionado of the works of Jacques Derrida).
Other versions
- Elvis Presley released a version of the song on his 1972 As Recorded at Madison Square Garden.
- Ronnie Sessions released a version of the song as a single in 1972 that reached #36 on the Billboard Country chart.[6]
- Cher released a version of the song on her 1972 album, Foxy Lady.
- Waylon Jennings released a version of the song that was featured on his 1972 album Ladies Love Outlaws and in the 2007 concert film, Never Say Die: The Final Concert and its soundtrack.
- Ike & Tina Turner released a version of the song on their 1977 album, Delilah's Power.
- Cravin' Melon released a version of the song on their 1988 EP, Squeeze Me.
- ApologetiX did a parody of the song entitled "Never Been to Spain (Yet)" that was featured on their 2007 live album, Chosen Ones.
References
- ↑ "Hoyt Axton, Singer, Character Actor and Hit Songwriter, Dies". Articles.latimes.com. 1999-10-27. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
- ↑ Three Dog Night, "Never Been to Spain" Canada Chart Position Retrieved February 7, 2015
- ↑ Three Dog Night, "Never Been to Spain" U.S. Chart Positions Retrieved February 7, 2015
- ↑ Three Dog Night, Harmony Discogs.com, Retrieved February 7, 2015
- ↑ Three Dog Night, "Never Been to Spain" single release 45.cat.com, Retrieved February 7, 2015
- ↑ Ronnie Sessions, "Never Been to Spain" Chart Position Retrieved February 7, 2015