''I Wrote a Simple Song'' is the sixth studio album by American soul musician Billy Preston. Released in November 1971, it was his first album for

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

and marked the start of a run of commercial success in the United States that lasted through to the late 1970s. The album includes the hit single " Outa-Space", which won the

Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by m ...

of 1972. Preston included a live version of the instrumental "The Bus", as part of a medley with

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

' "

Day Tripper "Day Tripper" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a double A-side single with " We Can Work It Out" in December 1965. The song was written primarily by John Lennon with some contributions from Paul McCartney a ...

", on his 1974 album '' Live European Tour''.

Recording

''I Wrote a Simple Song'' was Preston's first self-produced album. Preston's friend George Harrison played lead guitar on most of the songs, and supplied dobro accompaniment on the title track. The album continued Preston's inclusion of gospel-themed songs which had started with the 1967 album '' Club Meeting''.

Reception

The instrumental " Outa-Space" won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1973.*

15th Grammy Awards The 15th Annual Grammy Awards were held on March 3, 1973, at the Tennessee Theatre in Nashville, Tennessee. The event was the first Grammy ceremony not to be held in either New York City or Los Angeles (the 64th Grammys, staged in Las Vegas in ...

Track listing

All songs by Billy Preston and

Joe Greene Charles Edward Greene (born September 24, 1946), better known as "Mean" Joe Greene, is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1969 to 1 ...

, except where noted. Side one #"Should Have Known Better" – 2:28 #" I Wrote a Simple Song" – 3:28 #"John Henry" (Preston, Robert Sam) – 3:15 #"

Without a Song "Without a Song" is a popular song composed by Vincent Youmans with lyrics later added by Billy Rose and Edward Eliscu, published in 1929. It was included in the musical play, ''Great Day''. The play only ran for 36 performances but contained two ...

" ( William Rose, Edward Eliscu,

Vincent Youmans Vincent Millie Youmans (September 27, 1898 – April 5, 1946) was an American Broadway composer and producer. A leading Broadway composer of his day, Youmans collaborated with virtually all the greatest lyricists on Broadway: Ira Gershwin, ...

) – 4:57 #"The Bus" – 3:32 Side two #" Outa-Space" – 4:08 #"The Looner Tune" (Preston, Greene,

Jesse Kirkland Jesse Kirkland (born January 22, 1988) is a Bermudian competitive sailor. He is also a professional sports team owner of Futbol Longshots, a San Francisco based fantasy football franchise. Futbol Longshots are the current champions of the Boats ...

) – 2:47 #"You Done Got Older" (Preston, Bruce Fisher) – 3:08 #" Swing Down Chariot" (traditional; arranged by Preston and Greene) – 4:13 #"God Is Great" – 3:32 #"

My Country, 'Tis of Thee "America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)" is an American patriotic song, the lyrics of which were written by Samuel Francis Smith. The song served as one of the ''de facto'' national anthems of the United States (along with songs like "Hail, Columb ...

" (traditional) – 4:27

Personnel

*Billy Preston - vocals, piano, Hammond organ, keyboards * David T. Walker - electric guitar * George Harrison - guitar, dobro *Manuel Kellough - drums *King Errisson - congas, percussion *Rocky Peoples - tenor saxophone *Carlos Garnette - trumpet *

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

- string and horn arrangements *

Clydie King Clydie Mae King (August 21, 1943 – January 7, 2019) was an American singer, best known for her session work as a backing vocalist. King also recorded solo under her name. In the 1970s, she recorded as Brown Sugar, and her single "Loneliness ( ...

, Douglas Gibbs, Duane Rogers, Eugene Bryant,

Merry Clayton Merry Clayton (born December 25, 1948) is an American soul and gospel singer. She provided a number of backing vocal tracks for major performing artists in the 1960s, most notably in her duet with Mick Jagger on the Rolling Stones song " Gimme S ...

, Myrna Matthews,

Patrice Holloway Patrice Yvonne Holloway (March 23, 1951 – October 3, 2006) was an American soul and pop singer, and songwriter. Career Patrice Yvonne Holloway was born on March 23, 1951 in Los Angeles, California, the youngest of three children born to Wade ...

, Sherrell Atwood,

Venetta Fields Venetta Lee Fields (born 1941) is an American-born singer, musical theater actress and vocal coach. She was a backing vocalist for American and British rock and pop acts of the 1960s and 1970s, including Ike & Tina Turner, Pink Floyd, Humble Pi ...

- backing vocals ;Technical *Roland Young - art direction *

Jim McCrary Jim McCrary (August 31, 1939 – April 29, 2012) was an American photographer known for his 1970s album covers, most notably Carole King's ''Tapestry'', The Carpenters' '' Ticket to Ride,'' and Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May ...

- photography *Tommy Vicari - engineer

Charts

Singles

External links

Billy Preston-I Wrote A Simple Song at Discogs

References

{{Authority control 1971 albums Billy Preston albums A&M Records albums Albums arranged by Quincy Jones Albums conducted by Quincy Jones Albums produced by Billy Preston Albums recorded at A&M Studios