White Bird (song)

"White Bird" is a 1969 song by San Francisco rock group It's a Beautiful Day, written by David LaFlamme and his then wife Linda LaFlamme (née Neska).

"White Bird"
Original 1969 single cover
Single by It's a Beautiful Day
from the album It's a Beautiful Day
B-side"Wasted Union Blues"
ReleasedOctober 4, 1969
Recorded1969
GenrePsychedelic rock[1] Soft Rock
Length
  • 3:02 (single)
  • 6:06 (album)
LabelColumbia (4-44928)
Songwriter(s)David LaFlamme, Linda LaFlamme
Producer(s)Matthew Katz, David LaFlamme
It's a Beautiful Day singles chronology
"Bulgaria"
(1968)		 "White Bird"
(1969)		 "Soapstone Mountain"
(1970)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help
Music video
"White Bird" (live) on YouTube

Background and arrangement

"White Bird" was written in December 1967, in Seattle, Washington. Manager Matthew Katz had moved the band there to polish their act at a Seattle venue before booking them into San Francisco nightclubs. Living in the attic of a Victorian house across the street from Volunteer Park, the band had inadequate food and no transportation during a dreary Seattle winter. The song evolved from the depression of the band's circumstances and yearning to be free.[2] The song's repeated chorus is, "White bird must fly or she will die."[3]

In a later interview, LaFlamme said:

Where the 'white bird' thing came from ... We were like caged birds in that attic. We had no money, no transportation, the weather was miserable. We were just barely getting by on a very small food allowance provided to us. It was quite an experience, but it was very creative in a way.[4]

The song was arranged and produced by LaFlamme and sung as a duet between him and group member Patti Santos. A prominent stylistic feature of the song's original arrangement are multiple violin parts overdubbed by LaFlamme.

Release and reception

It was first released on the band's 1969 eponymous debut album It's a Beautiful Day by Columbia Records.

The song quickly became the band's signature tune and a staple of FM Album-oriented rock radio.[5] The album rose to Number 47 on the Billboard 200 album chart.[6] Following the popularity of the album track, a single version was edited and remixed for radio play, with a running time of 3:02, and released on October 4, 1969.[7] It rose to as high as Number 3 the week of October 18, 1969 on San Francisco radio station KYA.[8] The single never reached a wide national audience and only made it to Number 118 on Billboard's Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart.[9] Adult Contemporary No. 10

A nearly 10-minute-long version also appeared on the 1972 live album It's a Beautiful Day at Carnegie Hall. It later appeared on nine compilation albums and four more retrospective albums.[5]

Legacy

The song "White Bird" is featured in the first season of Knight Rider in the episode of the same name (Season 1, Episode 19, 4 March 1983). The song also featured in two further episodes of Knight Rider: "Let it Be Me" (Season 2, Episode 23, 13 May 1984) and "The Scent of Roses" (Season 4, Episode 12, 3 January 1986). In all three episodes, it represented the love theme between the characters of Michael Knight and Stephanie 'Stevie' Mason (who had the surname alias of March in the 2nd Season episode).

The song was also used in the soundtrack of A Walk on the Moon, a 1999 American drama about a married woman's infidelity, including Woodstock Music Festival scenes.

A version of "White Bird" by violinist Vanessa-Mae was released in 2001, and reached number 66 in the UK Singles Chart.[10]

Sam Bush covered the song on his 2006 Laps in Seven album.

The song was also used in Adult World, a 2013 American film comedy starring Emma Roberts, Evan Peters, and John Cusack.[11]

The song was used in the 2015 film Focus, starring Will Smith and Margot Robbie, and in 2017, the premiere PBS-TV episode of Prime Suspect: Tennison.

References
  1. Vorel, Jim (June 23, 2014). "10 Great Folky Covers of Pop, Rock & Rap Songs". Paste. Retrieved July 23, 2016.
  2. Sam Carlson (July 8, 2010). "It's a Beautiful Day - Seattle/San Francisco (Late 60's)". Pnwbands.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  3. "It'S A Beautiful Day - White Bird Lyrics". Songlyrics.com. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  4. "It's A Beautiful Day". pnwbands.com. Retrieved July 7, 2009.
  5. Song Review by Richie Unterberger (1971-07-01). "White Bird - It's a Beautiful Day | Song Info". AllMusic. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  6. Biography by Jason Ankeny (1941-04-05). "It's a Beautiful Day | Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
  7. "It's A Beautiful Day - White Bird [Mono] / White Bird [Stereo] - Columbia - USA - 4-44928". 45cat. Retrieved December 31, 2015.
  8. Blecha, Peter (April 10, 2009). "the Free Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History". HistoryLink.org. Retrieved December 31, 2015.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-11-03. Retrieved 2013-10-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. "Vanessa-Mae | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  11. "Adult World (2013) - Soundtracks". IMDb.com.
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