"Easier Said Than Done" is a

popular song Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Funk ...

sung by

The Essex The Essex was an American R&B vocal group formed in 1962. They are best known for their 1963 song " Easier Said Than Done". Career Founding members Walter Vickers (guitar) and Rodney Taylor (drums) were members of the United States Marine Corps ...

that was a number-one song in the United States during 1963. It topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart on July 6, 1963, and remained there for two weeks. The song was written by William Linton and Larry Huff. The Essex were active-duty members of the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

at the time, as was Linton, who wrote the song at the request of Essex member Walter Vickers. Linton said the song's rhythm was inspired by the sound of the

Teletype A teleprinter (teletypewriter, teletype or TTY) is an electromechanical device that can be used to send and receive typed messages through various communications channels, in both point-to-point and point-to-multipoint configurations. Initia ...

machines in the communications office at

Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune () is a United States military training facility in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Its of beaches make the base a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports ( Wilmingt ...

. The group was not thrilled with the composition, but recorded it for use as the B-side of their debut single, "Are You Going My Way". The recording was unusually short, and editing was used to repeat part of the recording; even so, the song was only a little over two minutes. The single was released in May 1963, but "Easier Said Than Done" quickly emerged as the more popular side. It became a major hit with broad appeal, reaching #1 on both the pop and

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

charts. The song became the title track of the group's first album, which reached #113 on the ''Billboard'' album chart, becoming their only charting album.Joel Whitburn, Top Pop Albums 1955-2001 (Menomonee Falls, WI: Record Research, 2001), 272.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{authority control 1963 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Roulette Records singles 1963 songs