"Workin' On a Groovy Thing" is a song written by

Neil Sedaka Neil Sedaka (; born March 13, 1939) is an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collabo ...

and

Roger Atkins Roger Jon Atkins (born 1944) is an American songwriter and lyricist. Among his most notable songs as a co-writer are " Make Me Your Baby" (written with Helen Miller and recorded by Barbara Lewis), " It's My Life" (written with Carl D'Errico and re ...

which had its highest profile as a 1969 hit single by

the 5th Dimension The 5th Dimension is an American vocal group. Their music encompasses sunshine pop, pop soul, and psychedelic soul. They were an important crossover music act of the 1960s and 1970s, although both praised and derided for their particular music ...

. The song was first recorded by R&B songstress

Patti Drew Patti Drew (born December 29, 1944, Charleston, South Carolina) is an American pop singer who achieved brief success in the late 1960s. Drew was raised in Nashville, Tennessee and Evanston, Illinois, where she sang in church with her sisters, Lorr ...

for her

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

album ''Workin' on a Groovy Thing'' and released as a single to reach #34 on the U.S. R&B chart while crossing-over to #62 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and reaching #86 in Canada. Future

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

frontman Garrett Scott - working with producer

Paul Leka Paul Leka (February 20, 1943 – October 12, 2011) was an American songwriter, record producer, pianist, arranger, and orchestrator, most notable for co-writing the 1960s hits "Green Tambourine" and "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", the latter of ...

- and

cut versions of the song in the summer of 1969, with the 5th Dimension's version - released a week before Scott's - reachin #20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #9 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart, and #15 on the U.S. R&B chart. Internationally the 5th Dimension version reached #17 in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and #48 in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in 1969. Produced by

Bones Howe Dayton Burr "Bones" Howe (born March 18, 1933) is an American record producer and recording engineer who scored a string of hits in the 1960s and 1970s, often of the sunshine pop genre, starting in 1965 with The Turtles (band), the Turtles cover o ...

and arranged by Bill Holman,

Bob Alcivar Bob Alcivar (born July 8, 1938, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American music producer, arranger, composer, conductor and keyboard player. He is the father of rock keyboard player Jim Alcivar ( Montrose, Gamma). Discography Film *''Butterflies ...

, and Howe,"Workin' on a Groovy Thing" was included on the 1969 5th Dimension album, '' The Age of Aquarius''.The 5th Dimension, ''The Age of Aquarius''
Retrieved January 17, 2015 "Workin' on a Groovy Thing" has also been recorded by

Lana Cantrell Lana Eleanor Cantrell AM (born 7 August 1943) is an Australian-American singer and entertainment lawyer. She was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in the Grammy Awards of 1968. Music career Cantrell recorded six albums for R ...

(album ''Lana!''/ 1968),

Allison Durbin Allison Ann Giles, who performed as Allison Durbin (born 24 May 1950), is a former New Zealand Australian singer, known for her success in the late 1960s and 1970s as a teen idol. She is a relative of Canadian-born actress and lyric soprano Dean ...

(album ''I Have Loved Me a Man''/ 1968),

Barbara Lewis Barbara Ann Lewis (born February 9, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter whose smooth style influenced rhythm and blues. Career Lewis was born in Salem Township, Washtenaw County, Michigan, Salem, Michigan, United States. She was writ ...

(album ''Workin' on a Groovy Thing''/ 1968), Friends of Distinction (album ''Highly Distinct''/ 1969),

(album, '' Workin' on a Groovy Thing''/ 1969), and

Alton Ellis Alton Nehemiah Ellis (1 September 1938 – 10 October 2008)Godfather ...

(1972). Instrumental versions of the song include those by Richard Holmes (album ''Workin' on a Groovy Thing''/ 1969), Phil Moore (album ''Right On''/ 1969), David Rose (album ''Happy Heart''/ 1969),

Mongo Santamaria Mongo may refer to: Geography Africa * Mongo, Chad, a Sahel city * Apostolic Vicariate of Mongo, Chad, a Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction * Mongo Department, Gabon * Mongo, Sierra Leone, a chiefdom * Mongo River (Little Scarces River) ...

(album ''Workin' on a Groovy Thing''/ 1969), Bola Sete (album, '' Workin' on a Groovy Thing''/ 1970), and Johnny Hammond (album/ '' Breakout''/ 1971). The song was performed on the 1973 episode of ''

The Partridge Family ''The Partridge Family'' is an American musical sitcom created by Bernard Slade, which was broadcast in the United States from September 1970 to March 1974 on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. After the final first-run telecast on ABC in March ...

'' sitcom called "Maid in San Pueblo" but the Partridge Family version has never been released.

Chart history - 5th Dimension version

References

1968 songs 1968 singles 1969 singles Songs written by Neil Sedaka Neil Sedaka songs The 5th Dimension songs Capitol Records singles Song recordings produced by Bones Howe Songs written by Roger Atkins {{1960s-single-stub