Monday 12 July 2021

exordium and terminus

Charting first at the number one spot in the US and UK on this day in 1969 for a run of several weeks, Zager and Evans’ song with the above parenthetical title was the duo’s only hit. The single was recorded in a single take at a studio in Odessa, Texas in a cattle pasture with members of the city’s symphony orchestra providing backup accompaniment. As the lyrical narrative advances over each successive millennia, the time and key steps up as well. Ain’t gonna need to tell the truth—tell no lies—everything you think, do and say is in the pill you took today.