"Vehicle" is a song recorded by American rock band

The Ides of March The Ides of March (; la, Idus Martiae, Late Latin: ) is the 74th day in the Roman calendar, corresponding to 15 March. It was marked by several Religion in ancient Rome, religious observances and was notable in Rome as a deadline for settling d ...

for their debut studio album of the same name (1970). It was released as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

from the album in March 1970 through

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

. Written by vocalist and frontman Jim Peterik, the song is about a girl that often used him for her mode of transportation, leading Peterik to surmise that he was little more than her "vehicle". The arrangement includes a distinctive horn section riff, which caused some listeners to mistake the band for

Blood, Sweat and Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is a jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. In addition to original music, the group has performed popular songs by Laura N ...

, who were also popular in that era. "Vehicle" was a commercial success, and was purported to be the fastest-selling single in the history of Warner Bros. at that time. It peaked at number 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the US, while reaching the top 5 in Canada and just outside the top 30 in the United Kingdom. Despite this, the Ides of March never had another hit single, leaving them one-hit wonders. Peterik, however, was to go on to found the rock group Survivor, and become an extremely successful songwriter.

Background

Peterik wrote "Vehicle" as a

tongue-in-cheek The idiom tongue-in-cheek refers to a humorous or sarcastic statement expressed in a serious manner. History The phrase originally expressed contempt, but by 1842 had acquired its modern meaning. Early users of the phrase include Sir Walter Scot ...

joke, having been initially inspired by anti-drug pamphlets passed out to high-schoolers. He expanded on the song's genesis in a piece for ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'': Peterik had an on-again/off-again relationship with the woman after the song came out, and they eventually wed. Fourteen seconds of the completed "Vehicle" master tape (primarily the guitar solo) was accidentally erased in the recording studio. The missing section was spliced in from a previously discarded take.

Chart performance

It rose to number 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart the week of May 23, 1970, behind "

American Woman "American Woman" is a song by Canadian rock band the Guess Who, released January 1970, from the album of the same name. It was later released in March 1970 as a single backed with "No Sugar Tonight", and it reached number one for three weeks ...

" by

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 ...

. It was considered to be the fastest-selling single in

history at that time.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Covers

* Richard Stoute of Barbados did a Spouge remix in 1974 on the Rainbow WIRL label. *

Bo Bice Harold Elwin "Bo" Bice Jr. (born November 1, 1975) is an American singer and musician who was the runner-up against Carrie Underwood in the fourth season of ''American Idol''. Prior to auditioning for ''American Idol'', Bice released a solo alb ...

did a cover as a B-side of his 2005 single "

Inside Your Heaven "Inside Your Heaven" is a song written by Andreas Carlsson, Pelle Nylén, Savan Kotecha, and produced by Desmond Child. Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice, the final two contestants on the fourth season of ''American Idol'', each released a version o ...

". * Singer Tom Jones performed "Vehicle" in the 1970 season of his television series ''

This is Tom Jones ''This Is Tom Jones'' is an ATV variety series starring Tom Jones. The series was exported to the United States by ITC Entertainment and was networked there by ABC. The series ran between 1969 and 1971 to total 65 colour episodes. Jones was no ...

''. * Chet Baker's version is on the 1998 compilation album ''Talkin' Verve Groovy''. *

Joe Lynn Turner Joe Lynn Turner (born Joseph Arthur Mark Linquito, August 2, 1951) is an American singer known for his work in the hard rock bands Rainbow, Yngwie J. Malmsteen and Deep Purple. During his career, Turner fronted and played guitar with pop rock ...

covered the song in his 1997 rock album of covers, '' Under Cover''. * Shirley Bassey recorded this song in 1971, but it wasn't released until 1994; it is now a bonus track on her CD '' Something Else''. * Garage punk band Adam West recorded the song in 1994. It is available on their compilation album ''Five the Hard Way!'' ll Recordings 1992-1994 * ''Star Trek'' actor

Robert Picardo Robert Alphonse Picardo (born October 27, 1953) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the Cowboy in '' Innerspace'', Coach Cutlip on '' The Wonder Years'', Captain Dick Richard on the ABC series ''China Beach'', the Doctor on '' S ...

did a parody cover on one of his parody albums. *

Roadsaw Roadsaw is an American rock band, formed in 1994. To date, the band has released six studio albums. History Early years (1994–1997) In the year 2000, the band gave the following explanation for their name:"We were really, really stoned, ...

covered this song for '' Sucking the 70s'' compilation. * Puddles Pity Party performed "Vehicle" with the Ides of March on WGN June 6, 2019 * An instrumental cover of "Vehicle" was featured in a 1980s UK television commercial for

Schweppes Schweppes (, ) is a beverage brand that originated in the Republic of Geneva; it is made, bottled and distributed worldwide by multiple international conglomerates, depending on licensing and region, that manufacture and sell soft drinks. Schw ...

soft drinks, featuring British comedian Roy Jay. * Leonid and Friends on Chicagovich. *

Gary Clark Jr. Gary Lee Clark Jr. (born February 15, 1984) is an American musician from Austin, Texas. He is known for his fusion of blues, rock and soul music with elements of hip hop. In 2011, Clark signed with Warner Bros Records and released ''The Brig ...

recorded his interpretation of "Vehicle" as part of the soundtrack in the 2022 animated film ''Minions: Rise of Gru''.

Samples

Erykah Badu Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu (), is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Influenced by R&B, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut al ...

sampled the song for her 2000 track ". . . & on" on the '' Mama's Gun'' album. *The song is heavily sampled on

Aloe Blacc Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III (born January 7, 1979), known professionally by his stage name Aloe Blacc (), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. He is best known for his singles " I Need a Dollar", " The Man", which topped the charts in t ...

's "King is Born".

References

External links

Songfacts
{{Authority control 1970 songs 1970 singles Songs written by Jim Peterik Warner Records singles