"Right Place, Wrong Time" is a song by American musician Dr. John. It was the first single from his sixth album, '' In the Right Place'', and became his biggest hit single. During the summer of 1973, the song peaked at number nine on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It is ranked as the 24th biggest hit of 1973. In Canada, the song reached number six. Some of the lines came from contributions by

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

Bette Midler Bette Midler ( ;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and author. Throughout her five-decade career Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Bette Midler, numero ...

and

Doug Sahm Douglas Wayne Sahm (November 6, 1941 – November 18, 1999) was an American musician, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from San Antonio, Texas. He is regarded as a key Tejano music, Tex-Mex music and Music of Texas, Texan Music pe ...

. A verse lyric from the song ("Just need a little brain salad surgery/got to cure my insecurity") was the inspiration for the title of the album ''

Brain Salad Surgery ''Brain Salad Surgery'' is the fourth studio album by English progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer, released on 7 December 1973 by their new record label, Manticore Records, and distributed by Atlantic Records. Following the tour in sup ...

'' by the English

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

band

Emerson, Lake & Palmer Emerson, Lake & Palmer (informally known as ELP) were an English progressive rock Supergroup (music), supergroup formed in London in 1970. The band consisted of Keith Emerson (keyboards) of The Nice, Greg Lake (vocals, bass, guitars, producer) ...

, replacing the working title of ''Whip Some Skull on Yer''. Both titles are slang expressions for fellatio.

Personnel

* Dr. John – lead vocals ;

The Meters The Meters (later The Funky Meters) are an American funk band formed in 1965 in New Orleans by Zigaboo Modeliste (drums), George Porter Jr. (bass), Leo Nocentelli (guitar) and Art Neville (keyboards). The band performed and recorded their o ...

Art Neville Arthur Lanon Neville Jr. (December 17, 1937 – July 22, 2019) was an American singer, songwriter and keyboardist from New Orleans. Neville was a staple of the New Orleans music scene for over five decades. He was the founder of the funk band T ...

– organ *

Leo Nocentelli Leo Nocentelli (born June 15, 1946) is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the funk band the Meters. He wrote the original versions of several funk classics such as " Cissy Strut" and "Hey ...

– lead guitar * George Porter Jr. – bass guitar * Zigaboo Modeliste – drums ;Additional personnel *Gary Brown – saxophone * Robbie Montgomery – backing vocals * Jessie Smith – backing vocals *

David Spinozza David Spinozza (born August 8, 1949) is an American guitarist and producer. He worked with former Beatles Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and John Lennon during the 1970s, and had a long collaboration with singer-songwriter James Taylor, producing T ...

– guitar solo *

Allen Toussaint Allen Richard Toussaint (; January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015) was an American musician, songwriter, arranger, and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, descr ...

– piano, percussion, rhythm guitar, horn arrangements

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Use in media

"Right Place, Wrong Time" was included in the soundtrack of the 2000 comedy film ''

Lucky Numbers ''Lucky Numbers'' is a 2000 black comedy film directed by Nora Ephron. It stars John Travolta, Lisa Kudrow, Tim Roth, Ed O'Neill, Michael Rapaport, Richard Schiff, Daryl Mitchell, Bill Pullman, and Michael Moore in a rare acting role. T ...

''. The song was featured in an episode of '' American Horror Story: Coven'', an episode of '' That 70’s Show'' and in the movies '' Dazed and Confused'' and ''Fun with Dick and Jane'' (2005). In 2008, the song was included in ''

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom created by Craig Thomas (screenwriter), Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005, to March 31, 2014, follows main char ...

s fourth season ending "Right place, right time". It also appeared over the opening credits in the film ''

Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

'', as well as the trailer for the second season of '' Fargo''. It was included in the soundtrack to the 2010 video game ''

Skate 3 ''skate 3'' is a 2010 skateboarding video game, the third installment in the '' skate'' series and the sequel to 2009's '' skate 2'', developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. It was released worldwide in May 2010 for PlayStati ...

'' and also included in '' Black Lightning'' (S3:E7). The intro was

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: * Sample (graphics), an intersection of a color channel and a pixel * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of something * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample ...

Dr. Dre Andre Romell Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, and actor. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and co-founder of ...

and used in the intro to the movie '' Deep Cover''. It was used in trailers for the television series, '' Poker Face''.

Cover versions

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of ...

the song, releasing it on ''Acme Plus'', the UK version of '' Xtra-Acme USA''. This version appeared on the ''

Scream 2 ''Scream 2'' is a 1997 American slasher film directed by Wes Craven and written by Kevin Williamson. It stars David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jamie Kennedy, Laurie Metcalf, Jerry O'Connell, Jada P ...

'' soundtrack, and the film's title, together with the names of stars Neve Campbell and Jada Pinkett, can be heard shouted several times during the intro. The Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies recorded it for their album ''Magnolia'' (Capricorn Records, 1996).

James Booker James Carroll Booker III (December 17, 1939 – November 8, 1983) was an American New Orleans rhythm and blues keyboardist and singer. Flamboyant in personality and style, and a pianist of extraordinary technical skill, he was dubbed "the Blac ...

included it on his album ''Gonzo: Live 1976'' as a medley with "Desitively Bonnaroo".

Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known as DMB) is an American rock band from Charlottesville, Virginia. The band's lineup consists of Dave Matthews (lead vocals, guitar), Stefan Lessard (bass), Carter Beauford (drums), Tim Reynolds (lead guitar), R ...

covered it with special guests Preservation Hall Jazz Band as a tribute to Dr. John, following his death, at Alpine Valley Music Theatre on July 5, 2019.

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

and

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In 1971, Raitt released her Bonnie Raitt (album), self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed Americana (mu ...

contributed it for the soundtrack to the film '' Air America''.

References

External links

* 1973 songs 1973 singles Dr. John songs Atco Records singles {{1970s-song-stub