"Hair"
Song by Original Broadway cast
from the album Hair
Released1968 (1968)
RecordedMay 6, 1968
Genre
Length2:55
LabelRCA Victor
Composer(s)Galt MacDermot
Lyricist(s)
Producer(s)

"Hair" is the title song to the 1967 musical Hair and the 1979 film adaptation of the musical.

Context in the musical

The musical’s title song begins as character Claude slowly croons his reason for his long hair, as tribe-mate Berger joins in singing they "don't know."[1] They lead the tribe, singing "Give me a head with hair," "as long as God can grow it,"[1] listing what they want in a head of hair and their uses for it. Later the song takes the tune of "The Star-Spangled Banner" with the tribe punning "Oh say can you see/ My eyes if you can/Then my hair’s too short!"[1] Claude and Berger’s religious references continue with many a "Hallelujah" as they consciously compare their hair to Jesus’s, and if Mary loved her son, "why don’t my mother love me?"[1][2] The song shows the Tribe's enthusiasm and pride for their hair as well as comparing Claude to a Jesus figure.[2]

The Cowsills version

"Hair"
Single by The Cowsills
from the album The Cowsills in Concert
B-side"What Is Happy?"
ReleasedMarch 1969 (1969-03)
RecordedOctober 1968
StudioCleveland, Ohio
Genre
Length3:32
LabelMGM
Composer(s)Galt MacDermot
Lyricist(s)
Producer(s)
The Cowsills singles chronology
"The Impossible Years"
(1968)		 "Hair"
(1969)		 "The Prophecy of Daniel and John the Divine"
(1969)

The song was a major hit for the Cowsills in 1969 and their most successful single. The Cowsills version cuts out most of the religion-themed lyrics, changing "long as God can grow it" to "long as I can grow it" and removing some verses. Their version spent two weeks at number one on the Cash Box Top 100[5] and reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100.[6] "Hair" was kept out of the number-one spot by another song from the Hair cast album: "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" by The 5th Dimension.[7] It also reached number one on the RPM Canadian Singles Chart.[8]

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1969) Peak
position
Australia KMR 1
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[9] 1
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[10] 12
New Zealand [11] 1
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[12] 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[13] 2
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[14] 19
U.S. Cash Box Top 100[15] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1969) Rank
Canada [16] 14
South Africa [17] 20
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [18] 13
U.S. Cash Box [19] 10

Other versions

"Hair" was also covered in Australia in 1969 and released as a single by Doug Parkinson in Focus (B-side with "Without You") and was a top ten hit for him there that year.[20]

A version by Dutch rock band Zen reached the top of the Dutch Top 40 in January 1969.[21] A cover was released as a B-side by girl group Gilded Cage in 1969.[22]

Appearances in media

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Hair lyrics by Hair Cast from Hair soundtrack". Stlyrics.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 Dayton. "Scott Miller on Hair". Orlok.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  3. ↑ Molanphy, Chris (June 28, 2019). "The Lullaby of Broadway Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  4. ↑ Doherty, Bob (2001). "The Cowsills". In Cooper, Kim; Smay, David (eds.). Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth. Los Angeles: Feral House. p. 58.
  5. ↑ "cashboxmagazine.com". cashboxmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 7 August 2012. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  6. ↑ "The Cowsills Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard.com. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "The Hot 100". Billboard. 2 January 2013.
  8. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 28 July 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  9. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6045." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  10. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1969-05-26. Retrieved 2018-12-10.
  11. ↑ "flavour of new zealand - search listener". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  12. ↑ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  13. ↑ [Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002]
  14. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 59.
  15. ↑ "Cash Box Top 100 5/17/69". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on 2 October 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  16. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  17. ↑ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1969". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  18. ↑ "Top 100 Hits of 1969/Top 100 Songs of 1969". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  19. ↑ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1969". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on 25 January 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  20. ↑ [Australian Chart Book 1970-1992]
  21. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 - week 1, 1969". Top40.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved March 13, 2010.
  22. ↑ "Gilded Cage - My Bonnie / Hair". Discogs.com. 1969. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  23. ↑ ""Mystery Science Theater 3000" Hercules Unchained (TV Episode 1992)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  24. ↑ ""The Simpsons" Simpsoncalifragilisticexpiala(Annoyed Grunt)cious (TV Episode 1997)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  25. ↑ ""The Simpsons" D'oh-in' in the Wind (TV Episode 1998)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  26. ↑ ""Glee" Hairography (TV Episode 2009)". IMDb.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.

Sources

  • Joel Whitburn, The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (6th ed. 1996), p. 148.
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