In 1967, Glen Campbell had his first hit with the Jimmy Webb-penned "By The Time I Get To Phoenix." Two years later, Isaac Hayes had his first hit with a much different take on the tune. It barely made the top 40, but anyone who has heard it likely hasn't forgotten it. Campbell's version is a concise tale of a couple having problems. Hayes digs deeper in a much longer version; his rendition starts on one keyboard note and sustains it for a long while as Hayes does a monologue, explaining how tortured the man in the song feels and why he believes he has to exit the relationship, yet again. Hayes finally starts to sing when the song reaches its chorus. The result is a longer, fleshed-out back story that gives the listener a greater understanding of why the man feels so anguished.
It's also, as I found out, an offbeat way to start a radio air shift. I started a KCOU shift with the Isaac Hayes rendition one afternoon, and a listener, who was probably used to hearing mostly hard, uptempo indie rock on the station, called and asked, "Is this some special kind of show?" "No," I replied. "It might be an unusual way to kick things off, but I want to give a good song the attention it deserves."
