Rewind, album: 'Wichita Lineman' by Glen Campbell
Is there a pop song more perfect than Wichita Lineman? Written by prolific genius Jimmy Webb and sung by Glen Campbell, it is faultless.
Glen Campbell
Capitol
Is there a pop song more perfect than ? Written by prolific genius Jimmy Webb and sung by Glen Campbell, it is faultless. It has poignant romantic lyrics, a glorious string arrangement and a sophisticated and memorable melody.
Campbell was already a star in 1968, and had recently had a massive hit with , another Webb composition. topped the US country charts and went to number three in the US pop charts. Like , the song immediately became a pop standard. It also gave its name to Campbell's 1968 LP.
Webb's song is often mistakenly thought to be about a railwayman. But the titular linemen installed wires on telephone poles. Webb got the idea when he saw a lone lineman up a pole in Washita county in Oklahoma - the lyric was apparently changed to Wichita because it sounded better.
Webb imagined a telephone conversation between the lineman and his wife taking place up the pole, and so emerged a story of a man missing his loved one, perhaps hundreds of miles away.
Campbell is best known for being a country singer, but that tells only part of the story. A musical prodigy, he played guitar with the legendary Wrecking Crew before - and during - his country career. These musicians worked uncredited on many of the big hits of the 1960s.
On the track , as with most of the songs on the album, Campbell is channelling the 1960s melodic pop style that was in vogue at the time - notably, Scott Walker's deep, emotive tones - rather than country music. The gentle orchestral arrangements follow suit.
As with many albums of the time, is patchy. , a story of suburban drudgery, sounds dated; is an annoying light country ditty. Campbell's song is reportedly based on words his grandfather wrote. is well sung, but lives in the shadow of Walker's ear-busting version. But his work on Tim Hardin's still sounds pleasant.
Campbell went from strength to strength after , racking up the hits and achieving superstardom as host of his own TV series. Although he became primarily a country singer, he has never lost the respect of the rock crowd. An Alzheimer's sufferer, he performed his last show in 2012, before retiring at 76.