"I'm a Man" is a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

song written by Steve Winwood and record producer

Jimmy Miller James Miller (March 23, 1942 – October 22, 1994) was an American record producer and musician. While he produced albums for dozens of different bands and artists, he is most closely associated for his work with several key musical acts of ...

. It was first recorded in 1967 by

the Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numb ...

, in which Winwood sang lead vocals and played keyboards. The song was a hit in the United Kingdom and the United States, reaching No. 9 and No. 10, respectively. It has been recorded by many other performers over the years, most successfully by

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, whose version charted at No. 8 in the UK in 1970 and No. 49 in the US in 1971.

Original song

The original recording was a

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

-driven

blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre that combines elements of blues and rock music. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electric blues and rock (electric guitar, electric bass guitar, and drums, sometimes w ...

track released as a single by the

Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numbe ...

in early 1967, reaching number nine in 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 the US, it peaked at number 10 in the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, as well as number 48 in the magazine's Top Selling R&B Singles. It was the last

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

single by the band before the brothers Steve and

Muff Winwood Mervyn "Muff" Winwood (born 15 June 1943, Erdington, Birmingham, England) is a British songwriter and record producer, and the older brother of Steve Winwood. Both were members of the Spencer Davis Group in the 1960s, in which Muff Winwood pla ...

left to pursue their own separate careers. The is included on the band's 1967 album, ''I'm a Man''.

Chicago version

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

(then known as Chicago Transit Authority) recorded a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of "I'm a Man" for their 1969 debut album, '' The Chicago Transit Authority''. When the band's popularity surged after their second album, "I'm a Man" was released as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

to a re-release of "

Questions 67 and 68 "Questions 67 and 68" is a 1969 song written by Robert Lamm for the rock band Chicago (then known as Chicago Transit Authority) and recorded for their debut album ''Chicago Transit Authority''. It was their first single release. Peter Cetera is th ...

". Radio stations ended up playing both sides, and "I'm a Man" reached No. 49 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in 1971. In the UK, it reached No. 8 and No. 13 in Ireland. Chicago personnel: *

Terry Kath Terry Alan Kath (January 31, 1946 – January 23, 1978) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He played guitar and sang lead vocals on many of the band's early hit singl ...

– lead vocals (first verse), backing vocals, guitar *

Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera ( ; born September 13, 1944) is an American retired musician best known for being a lead vocalist and the bassist of the rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985, before launching a successful solo career. His ...

– lead vocals (second verse), backing vocals, bass *

Robert Lamm Robert William Lamm (born October 13, 1944) is an American keyboardist, guitarist, singer and songwriter best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He wrote many of the band's biggest hits, including " Questions 67 & 68", "Does ...

– lead vocals (third verse), backing vocals, keyboards *

Danny Seraphine Daniel Peter Seraphine (born August 28, 1948) is an American drummer, record producer, theatrical producer and film producer. He is best known as the original drummer and a founding member of the rock band Chicago, a tenure which lasted fr ...

– drums, maracas *

Jimmy Pankow James Carter Pankow is an American trombone player, songwriter and brass instrument player, best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. Early life, family and education Born in St. Louis, Missouri of German and Irish descent, Pa ...

– cowbell, trombone *

Lee Loughnane Lee David Loughnane (pronounced LOCK-nain; born October 21, 1946) is an American trumpeter, flugelhorn player, vocalist, and songwriter, best known for being a founding member of the rock band Chicago. Early life and education Lee David Loughna ...

– claves, trumpet * Walt Parazaider – tambourine, tenor saxophone

Other cover versions

*Italian-American band

Macho Machismo (; ; ; ) is the sense of being " manly" and self-reliant, a concept associated with "a strong sense of masculine pride: an exaggerated masculinity". Machismo is a term originating in the early 1930s and 1940s best defined as hav ...

recorded a 17-minute disco version of the song in 1978, based loosely off of the Chicago arrangement. A shortened version was released as a single, and reached the top 10 of the Billboard Disco Action chart. *Yugoslav rock band

Siluete Siluete ( sr-cyr, Силуете, trans. ''The Silhouettes'') were a Serbian and Yugoslav rock band formed in Belgrade in 1961. They were one of the pioneers of the Yugoslav rock scene. Soon after the formation, Siluete, fronted by charismatic ...

recorded a version of the song in 1967 for the Yugoslav TV show ''Koncert za ludi mladi svet'' (''A Concert for Young Crazy World''). The video for the song was shot in the

Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

town settings in the Avala Film Studios. *In 1987, Italian producer

Gianfranco Bortolotti Gianfranco Bortolotti (; born 2 May 1959) is an Italian electronic music producer and manager of Media Records and Media Studio. He was a member of Cappella, and 49ers who had several hits, and Fits of Gloom, who had a UK No. 47 hit with "Heave ...

released a medley under his Club House alias, with "I'm a Man" being mixed with Mory Kanté's "

Yé ké yé ké "Yé ké yé ké" is a song by Guinean recording artist Mory Kanté. It was released in 1987 as a single from his third studio album, ''Akwaba Beach''. The song became an international hit; it was one of Africa's best-ever selling hits as well as ...

". In 1989 the single was licensed to Music Man Records in the UK and became a small hit peaking at number 69 in the British charts.

VW Polo advertisement

Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German Automotive industry, motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a ...

aired a UK television commercial titled "Dog" in late winter 2008, which featured a dog miming singing "I'm a Man". The version used in the advertisement for the Polo was a cover version by a young British singer-songwriter, Charlie Winston. The

Noam Murro Noam Murro ( he, נועם מורו; born ) is an Israeli film director and film producer. He is best known for directing the films ''Smart People'', '' 300: Rise of an Empire'', and the BBC miniseries ''Watership Down''. Early and personal life ...

-directed advert was banned after complaints from the

RSPCA The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...

and over 750 viewers.

References

External links

* Review of "I'm a Man"by

Richie Unterberger Richie Unterberger (born January 19, 1962) is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing. Life and writing Unterberger attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote for the university newspaper '' ...

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:I'm A Man 1967 singles 1971 singles The Spencer Davis Group songs Chicago (band) songs Songs written by Steve Winwood Song recordings produced by Jimmy Miller Song recordings produced by James William Guercio Fontana Records singles United Artists Records singles Columbia Records singles 1967 songs