Spirit in the Sky

"Spirit in the Sky" is a song by American singer-songwriter Norman Greenbaum, originally written and recorded by Greenbaum and released in late 1969 from the album of the same name. The single became a gold record in the United States, selling two million copies from 1969 to 1970, and reached No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 where it lasted for 15 weeks in the Top 100. Billboard ranked the record as the No. 22 song of 1970. It also climbed to No. 1 on the UK, Australian and Canadian charts in 1970.

Rolling Stone ranked "Spirit in the Sky" No. 333 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Cover versions by Doctor and the Medics and Gareth Gates have also made the No. 1 spot in the UK. The song was voted one of the top ten one-hit wonders in a Rolling Stone reader's poll.

Original version by Norman Greenbaum

"Spirit in the Sky" makes several religious references to Jesus, and Greenbaum himself is Jewish. In a 2006 interview with The New York Times, Greenbaum told a reporter he was inspired to write the song after watching Porter Wagoner singing a gospel song on TV. Greenbaum said: "I thought, 'Yeah, I could do that,' knowing nothing about gospel music, so I sat down and wrote my own gospel song. It came easy. I wrote the words in 15 minutes." Greenbaum had previously been a member of psychedelic jug band Dr. West's Medicine Show and Junk Band. When they split up, he won a solo contract with producer Erik Jacobsen for Reprise Records. Jacobsen had previously worked with the Lovin' Spoonful.

Greenbaum first arranged the song for an acoustic jug band; then he tried a folk version and then a Delta blues style, but none of these were satisfactory. Under Jacobsen's direction, the song started to gel at Coast Recorders studio on Bush Street in San Francisco, with Jacobsen's chosen session players Russell DaShiell on guitar, Doug Killmer from the band Crowfoot on bass, and drummer Norman Mayell from the band Sopwith Camel. Greenbaum used a Fender Telecaster guitar with a fuzz-tone circuit built into the body to generate the song's characteristic guitar sound. Jacobsen finally brought in the Stovall Sisters (Joyce, Lillian, and Netta) from Oakland to support the song with gospel hand percussion and vocal stylings, joined by additional singers.

The resulting sound was an "oddly good and compelling" combination of boogie rock, blues, gospel and hard rock music, with loud drums, distorted electric guitar, clapping hands, and tambourines. Because of the song's length and lyrics, the record company was initially reluctant to issue it, but it was finally released as a single after two other singles from the album had poor sales. "Spirit in the Sky" became a worldwide hit and was the best-selling single for the Reprise label. In his famous 1970 Lennon Remembers interview for Rolling Stone, John Lennon stated that he liked the song.

The song received criticism from some Christians for including the lines, "Never been a sinner/I've never sinned/I got a friend in Jesus", as most Christian views on sin state that "there is no one who has never sinned". Greenbaum had explained that because he was not a Christian, he had been unaware of that when he wrote the song. In an interview with American Songwriter, he said, "I did flub it I guess, cause if I was a Christian and was writing from that mindset, I would have said, 'I've been a sinner' .... But since I didn't have that upbringing, it never occurred to me that it was wrong." While some Christian artists have recorded the song using Greenbaum's original lyrics, others have changed those lines, such as DC Talk, who instead sang, "You know I've been a sinner/We've all sinned".

Later albums and singles by Greenbaum were not embraced by the market. By the 1980s, Greenbaum had abandoned his music career and worked as a sous-chef and restaurant kitchen manager.

The song was reworked by Doctor and the Medics in June 1986, achieving chart success in the UK. This cover version was heard in the 1987 film Maid to Order, catalyzing renewed media interest in the original song. The original version is heard in the films Miami Blues (1990), Wayne's World 2 (1993), Apollo 13 (1995), Remember the Titans (2000), Ocean's Eleven (2001), The Sandlot 2 (2005), Katie and Orbie, Suicide Squad, and The Founder (2016). Kellogg's cereal tapped the song for a television advertisement in 1997, and it was the highlight of a lengthy television commercial for Nike shoes in 2005. Greenbaum reflected on the song in 2011, saying, "It sounds as fresh today as when it was recorded. I've gotten letters from funeral directors telling me that it's their second-most-requested song to play at memorial services, next to 'Danny Boy'."

Charts

Certifications

Doctor and the Medics version

In June 1986, Doctor and the Medics reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart with their version of the song, spending three weeks at the top. In New Zealand, the song reached No. 2 on the RIANZ Singles Chart, while in Canada, it peaked at No. 1 for a week and was the fifth-highest-selling single of 1986. The song has been certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA).

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Gareth Gates (with the Kumars) version

"Spirit in the Sky" served as the first single from Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates's second studio album, Go Your Own Way. The single was released on March 10, 2003, and was the official Comic Relief charity single for 2003. The song features guest vocals from the Kumars. The song peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Gates' fourth number-one single. Gates' version has been certified platinum by BPI in the UK.

Track listings

UK CD1

1. "Spirit in the Sky" (with the Kumars)
2. "Dance Again"
3. "Spirit in the Sky"
4. "Spirit in the Sky" (video)

UK CD2

1. "Spirit in the Sky" (with the Kumars)
2. "Will You Wait for Me?"
3. Interview with Gareth Gates

UK cassette single

1. "Spirit in the Sky" (with the Kumars)
2. "Dance Again"
3. "Will You Wait for Me?"

UK DVD single

1. "Spirit in the Sky" (video)
2. Making of "Spirit in the Sky" (video)
3. "Dance Again" (video)
4. Interview with the Kumars (video)

Charts

Certifications

Other versions

A version by Dorothy Combs Morrison reached No. 99 on Billboard's Hot 100 in October 1970, and No. 47 in Canada during November of that same year.

In popular culture

Since the 1970s, Manchester United fans have used the song as the base for a chant to support George Best.

See also

• List of one-hit wonders in the United States

References