I Think It's Going to Rain Today
"I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (or "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today") is a song by American singer-songwriter Randy Newman. It appears on Julius La Rosa's 1966 album You're Gonna Hear from Me, Eric Burdon's 1967 album Eric Is Here, on Newman's 1968 debut album Randy Newman, in The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 (2003), and in Newman's official and bootleg live albums. It is one of his most covered songs.
| "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Randy Newman | ||||
| from the album Randy Newman | ||||
| A-side | "The Beehive State" | |||
| Released | 1968 | |||
| Length | 2:55 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Randy Newman | |||
| Producer(s) | Lenny Waronker Van Dyke Parks | |||
| Randy Newman singles chronology | ||||
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Background
Newman told Rolling Stone that he wrote the song around 1963 or 1964. He went on to say that the "music is emotional – even beautiful – and the lyrics are not." Newman also said that the song bothered him due to the darkness and that the song felt "sophomoric" and "too maudlin".[1]
Newman stated in 2017 that he had signed away the publishing rights on his first album and as a result, does not see any money from people doing covers of those songs.[2]
Tom Northcott version
| "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Tom Northcott | ||||
| from the album Upside Downside | ||||
| B-side | "It's True" | |||
| Released | 1971 | |||
| Length | 2:37 | |||
| Label | UNI | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Randy Newman | |||
| Producer(s) | Barry DeVorzon Tom Northcott | |||
| Tom Northcott singles chronology | ||||
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The song was covered by Canadian folk-rock artist Tom Northcott in 1970. It was released in 1971 as the second single from his debut album, Upside Downside. The song reached number 46 in Canada and number 17 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart.
UB40 version
| "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by UB40 | ||||
| from the album Signing Off | ||||
| A-side | "My Way of Thinking" | |||
| Released | 6 June 1980 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:41 | |||
| Label | Graduate | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Randy Newman | |||
| Producer(s) | Bob Lamb UB40 | |||
| UB40 singles chronology | ||||
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The song was covered by British reggae band UB40 in 1980. It was released in June 1980 as the second and final single from their debut album, Signing Off. The song reached number 6 in the UK.[4] The UB40 single was a double A-side with "My Way of Thinking", which was the first-named track and received most of the radio airplay. However, the German single (which appeared later) had "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" as the A-side.[5] The group covered the song for bandmembers Robin and Ali Campbell's father, folksinger Ian Campbell, who was a fan of Newman and who had recorded his own version of the song in the 1960s.[6]
Charts
| Chart (1980–81) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 90 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[8] | 12 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[9] | 6 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[10] | 6 |
Other cover versions
The song was covered numerous times by a variety of artists, especially during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
| Artist | Album | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Judy Collins | In My Life | 1966 |
| Bobby Darin | Inside Out | 1967 |
| Dusty Springfield | Dusty... Definitely | 1968 (UK) |
| Claudine Longet | Colours | 1968 (US) |
| Peggy Lee | A Natural Woman | 1969 |
| Nina Simone | Nina Simone and Piano | 1969 |
| Neil Diamond | Stones | 1971 |
| Françoise Hardy | If You Listen | 1971 |
| Dave Van Ronk | Van Ronk | 1971 |
| Barbra Streisand | Release Me (2012 release of 'Stoney End' session; Newman on piano) | 1971 |
| Brian Short[11] | Anything for a Laugh | 1971 |
| Cass Elliot[12] | Cass Elliot | 1972 |
| Melanie | Madrugada | 1974 |
| Joe Cocker | Jamaica Say You Will | 1975 |
| Tony Rice | Cold on the Shoulder | 1984 |
| Katie Melua | Call Off the Search | 2003 |
| Norah Jones | Higher Ground | 2005 |
| Audra McDonald | Build a Bridge | 2006 |
| Peter Gabriel | Scratch My Back | 2010 |
| Paul Carrack | A Different Hat (with Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) | 2010 |
| Tom Odell | Long Way Down | 2013 |
| Blackmore's Night | Dancer and the Moon | 2013 |
In popular culture
Bette Midler included the song in her film Beaches (1988) and it appears in the soundtrack recording. A portion of Claudine Longet's version of the song is played in the Episode 22, Season Five of the Gilmore Girls, "A House is Not a Home." The song is also featured in the TV series Designated Survivor in the episode, "Two Ships".[13] Nina Simone's version of the song's first verse was the opening theme for the BBC One series Broken. Simone's version also appears in the "Spies Like Us" episode from season two and “The Decision” from season six of the TV series Scandal.[14] A short excerpt of the song is played in the final episode of the Childhood's End miniseries.
References
- Fricke, David (15 September 2017). "Randy Newman: My Life in 15 Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
- Episode 831, WTF with Marc Maron, July 24, 2017
- Harrington, Jim (2016). "UB40 - Signing Off". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. London: Cassell Illustrated. p. 468.
- Roberts, David (2005). British Hit Singles & Albums (18th ed.). London: Guinness World Records. p. 522. ISBN 1-904994-00-8.
- "45cat.com". 45cat.com. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
- Cashmere, Paul (2021-07-01). "Robin Campbell of UB40 Says His Father Folk Singer Ian Campbell Helped Him On Early Songs". Noise11.com. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St. Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 316. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988.
- "Chart Track: Week 29, 1980". Irish Singles Chart.
- "UB40 – I Think It's Going to Rain Today". Top 40 Singles.
- "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 7, 2012.
- "Brian Short - Anything for a Laugh". Discogs. 1971.
- "Cass Elliot - Cass Elliot". Discogs. 1972. Retrieved 2019-12-06.
- "Designated Survivor (TV Series) - Two Ships (2017)". IMDb.com.
- "Scandal" Spies Like Us (TV Episode 2012) - IMDb, retrieved 2021-04-06