"Daydream" is a popular song written by

John Sebastian John Benson Sebastian (born March 17, 1944) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and harmonicist who founded the rock band The Lovin' Spoonful. He made an impromptu appearance at the Woodstock festival in 1969the Lovin' Spoonful The Lovin' Spoonful is an American rock band popular during the mid- to late-1960s. Founded in New York City in 1965 by lead singer/songwriter John Sebastian and guitarist Zal Yanovsky, the band is widely known for a number of hits, including ...

and appeared on their album of the same title. Sebastian played the harmonica, as well as doing his own whistling in the instrumental section plus the coda before the song's fade.

Background

"Daydream" originated with Sebastian's attempt to rewrite

The Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successf ...

' "

Baby Love "Baby Love" is a song by American music group the Supremes from their second studio album, '' Where Did Our Love Go''. It was written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland and was released on September 17, 1964 ...

". John Sebastian spoke about the success of the song: This song influenced the Beatles.

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

's jukebox included both this and " Do You Believe in Magic." It was also a major inspiration for

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

's Beatles composition "

Good Day Sunshine "Good Day Sunshine" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album ''Revolver''. It was written mainly by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. McCartney intended it as a song in the style of th ...

." '' Billboard'' described the song as "An off-beat shuffle-blues rhythm that will quickly equal their '

You Didn't Have to Be So Nice "You Didn't Have to Be So Nice" is a song by American rock band the Lovin' Spoonful. It was issued on a non-album single in November 1965 and reached number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in January 1966. The song was later included the band's M ...

' success." '' Cash Box'' described the single as an "easy-going, funky blues-soaked happy-go-lucky item with a real infectious chorus portion."

Chart performance

The song reached No. 2 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100, behind

(You're My) Soul and Inspiration "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration" is a song by American pop duo the Righteous Brothers. It was the group's first hit after leaving their long-time producer Phil Spector. The song was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, who also wrote the group ...

The Righteous Brothers The Righteous Brothers are an American musical duo originally formed by Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield but now comprising Medley and Bucky Heard. Medley formed the group with Hatfield in 1963. They had first performed together in 1962 in the Lo ...

. Outside the US, "Daydream" went to No. 2 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. In New Zealand, the song spent three weeks at No. 1. It also reached No. 1 in Canada, and No. 13 in Australia.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Recorded versions

Following the 1966 Lovin' Spoonful recording, "Daydream" has been recorded by such artists as: *

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music ...

, on his

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

album, '' C.G.P.'' *Otto Brandenburg (in

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

, under the title "Dagdrøm") (1966) *

David Cassidy David Bruce Cassidy (April 12, 1950 – November 21, 2017) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was best known for his role as Keith Partridge, the son of Shirley Partridge (played by his stepmother, Shirley Jones), in t ...

Bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...

catalog number #45-386, released July 5, 1973, with the flip side "Can't Go Home Again" *

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, pop, rock and roll, folk, swing, and country music. He started his career as a songwriter for Connie ...

, on his December 1966 album '' If I Were a Carpenter'' *

Dino, Desi, & Billy Dino, Desi & Billy were an American singing trio that existed between 1964 and 1969. The group featured Dean "Dino" Martin ( Dean Paul Martin, the son of singer and actor Dean Martin), Desi Arnaz Jr. (Desiderio Arnaz IV, the son of television st ...

, on their May 1966 album ''Memories Are Made of This'' *

Art Garfunkel Arthur Ira Garfunkel (born November 5, 1941) is an American singer, poet, and actor. He is best known for his partnership with Paul Simon in the folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel. Highlights of Garfunkel's solo music career include one top-10 h ...

, on his June 1997 album '' Songs from a Parent to a Child'' *

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist ...

and

Kermit the Frog Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created and originally performed by Jim Henson. Introduced in 1955, Kermit serves as the everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably ''Sesame Street'' and ''The Muppet Show'', as well ...

for the 1994 album '' Kermit Unpigged''. This version peaked at No. 65 on the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Country Tracks chart in Canada. * Gary Lewis and the Playboys, on their 1966 album ''Hits Again'' *Lars Lilholt Band (November 24, 2008) (in

, under the title "Dagdrømmerdreng") *

The Guess Who The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1965. The band originated in 1962 and achieved an international hit single with a cover of " Shakin' All Over" in 1965 under the name Chad Allan and the Expressions. After ...

performed this song on CBC Winnipeg's radio show "The Swingers" in 1967. *

The Mar-Keys The Mar-Keys, formed in 1958, were an American studio session band for Stax Records, in Memphis, Tennessee, in the 1960s. As the first house band for the label, their backing music formed the foundation for the early 1960s Stax sound. Career ...

, on their 1969 album ''Damifiknow!'' * Maria Muldaur (1989) *

Ricky Nelson Eric Hilliard Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician, songwriter and actor. From age eight he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he bega ...

, on his album ''Another Side of Rick'', released November 13, 1967 *

Right Said Fred Right Said Fred are an English pop band formed by brothers Fred and Richard Fairbrass in 1989. They are best known for the hit 1991 song " I'm Too Sexy". Their achievements include number 1 hits in 70 countries including one US number 1, o ...

, on their 1992 single " "Those Simple Things"/"Daydream" *Lewis Ross, on his 1996 album of the same name *

The Sandpipers The Sandpipers were an American easy listening trio who carved a niche in 1960s folk rock with their vocals and innovative arrangements of international ballads and pop standards. They are best remembered for their cover version of " Guantanamer ...

, on their 1967 album ''

Misty Roses ''Misty Roses'' was an LP album featuring The Sandpipers, released by A&M Records in 1967. The album reached #135 on the Billboard chart and the first track, "Cuando Salí de Cuba," made #3 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. The Dece ...

'' *

Bud Shank Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. (May 27, 1926 – April 2, 2009) was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and thro ...

(1967) *Sheila (in French, under the title "Le rêve") (June 1966) *

The Sweet The Sweet (often shortened to just Sweet), are a British glam rock band that rose to prominence in the 1970s. Their best known line-up consisted of lead vocalist Brian Connolly, bass player Steve Priest, guitarist Andy Scott, and drummer M ...

, on their album ''

Funny How Sweet Co-Co Can Be ''Funny How Sweet Co-Co Can Be'' is the debut album by English glam rock band the Sweet, released in November 1971 on RCA Records in the UK. It reached number one in Finland in February 1972. The album contained two singles which were hits in ...

,'' released in 1971 * Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings recorded it for their third album, ''

Groovin' "Groovin" is a single released in 1967 by American rock band the Young Rascals that became a number-one hit and one of the group's signature songs. It has been covered by many artists, including the Young Rascals themselves in other languages. ...

'', in 2000. *

Candye Kane Candice Caleb (November 13, 1961 – May 6, 2016), known professionally as Candye Kane, was an American blues singer, entertainer and adult film star. She loved to sing as a young girl and even appeared on "The Gong Show," as a kid. She dreame ...

, on her album ''White Trash Girl,'' released in November 1971 * Doris Day - '' My Heart'' (2011) *Terry Holley, on his 2010 album ''Acoustic Covers'' *

Mike Vickers Michael Graham Vickers (born 18 April 1940) is an English musician who came to prominence as the guitarist, flautist, and saxophonist with the 1960s band Manfred Mann. He was born in Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey. At the age of seven, his famil ...

, on his 1968 album ''I Wish I Were a Group Again.'' *

M. Ward Matthew Stephen Ward (born October 4, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Portland, Oregon. Ward's solo work is a mixture of folk and blues-inspired Americana analog recordings; he has released ten studio albums since 19 ...

feat. Alia Farah as a single in 2020.

References

External links

* {{authority control 1966 singles The Lovin' Spoonful songs Songs written by John Sebastian Cashbox number-one singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Number-one singles in Sweden 1966 songs Vince Gill songs Song recordings produced by Erik Jacobsen Kama Sutra Records singles