Well, friends, I’ve really enjoyed ‘America Week’, hearing and learning about some of the music by the band, America. Today, I want to conclude with a few … two that were mentioned during the week, and one that wasn’t mentioned but that I like. No lyrics tonight, just the music and a bit of trivia.
It was Clive who mentioned this first one, Head and Heart. This was originally by John Martyn in 1971, and then covered by America in 1972.
This next one, Muskrat Love, was mentioned by Richard and is also a cover of a song originally by Willis Alan Ramsey. When he mentioned it, I thought he was making up the title, for Richard’s humour often goes over my head, but nope, he was right!
And last is one that wasn’t a chart blockbuster, but I rather like it, called You Can Do Magic. Released in 1982, this one charted at #8 in the U.S., #37 in Canada, and #59 in the UK. According to SongFacts …
America had three members – Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek – until 1977 when Peek left to pursue a career in Christian music. Beckley and Bunnell continued as a duo, but struggled to find a hit – their only Hot 100 entry from 1977-1981 was a cover of “California Dreamin'” that made #56.Until Peek’s departure, the band always wrote their own songs, composing separately with the writer also taking lead vocals. When they found themselves hitless, Beckley and Bunnell started accepting songs from outside writers, including Russ Ballard, who wrote a track on their 1980 album Alibi called “I Don’t Believe in Miracles.” For their next album, View from the Ground, Ballard gave them “You Can Do Magic,” and with a lead vocal by Gerry Beckley, it returned America to the charts.“It fit right into our body of work,” Beckley told us. “It was a huge hit and a turning point for us, because it was a hit for Dewey and I, after Danny departed. It was our first hit as a duo.”
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