The inspiration for "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" originated inJimmy Webb's breakup with Susan Horton. They remained friends after her marriage to Bobby Ronstadt, a cousin of singerLinda Ronstadt. Their relationship, which peaked in mid-1965, was also the primary influence for "MacArthur Park", another Webb composition.[8]
Webb did not intend the song to be geographically literal. "A guy approached me one night after a concert [...] and he showed me how it was impossible for me to drive fromL.A. toPhoenix, and then how far it was toAlbuquerque. In short, he told me, 'This song is impossible.' And so it is. It's a kind of fantasy about something I wish I would have done, and it sort of takes place in a twilight zone of reality."[9]
Webb called the song a "succinct tale" with an "O. Henry-esque twist at the end, which consists merely of the guy saying, 'She didn't really think that I would go,' but he did." Although the protagonist in the song plans to leave his lover, Webb did not leave Horton.[9]
In 1990,Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI), which monitors songs in its role as aperformance rights organisation, listed "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" as the third-most performed song from the period from 1970 to 1990,[4] and in 1999 listed it as the 20th most performed of the 20th century.[5] Many cover versions have been recorded. Charted versions include:
Isaac Hayes' version of the song, included on the albumHot Buttered Soul, runs for 18 minutes and 40 seconds, and recounts the events that transpired before the actual roadtrip.[10] The track was edited to under seven minutes for single release, hitting #37 on both the U.S. pop and R&B charts in 1969, and #48 in Canada.[11]Nick Coleman ofNME called the full version "the greatest Country & Western ever committed to vinyl."[12]
The Mad Lads covered the song in 1969 forStax Records; their version reached #28 on the R&B singles chart and #56 in Canada.[13]
Anne Murray and Glen Campbell recorded a medley of "I Say a Little Prayer" and "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" in 1971. The track hit #1 on the Canadian country charts and charted on the U.S. country charts and the U.S. and Canadian pop charts (#19[15]).
Isaac Hayes andDionne Warwick released the song as a live medley with "I Say a Little Prayer" in 1977. The single reached #65 on the R&B singles chart.[citation needed]
^Breihan, Tom (August 6, 2019)."The Number Ones: Glen Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy"".Stereogum. RetrievedJune 26, 2023....a series of lush, considered, heartsick country-pop singles that Campbell recorded with his Wrecking Crew comrades: 1967's "By The Time I Get To Phoenix"...
