- Abraham, Martin & John
Infobox Single
Name = Abraham, Martin and John
Cover size =
Caption =
Artist = Dion
from Album =
A-side =
B-side = "Daddy Rollin' (In Your Arms)"
Released = Late 1968
Format =7-inch
Recorded = Allegro Sound Studios; Engineer Bruce Staple
Genre =Folk rock
Length = 3:15
Label =Laurie Records
Writer = Dick Holler
Producer = Phil Gernhard
Certification =
Last single =
This single =
Next single =
Misc ="Abraham, Martin & John" is a 1968 song written by Dick Holler and first recorded by Dion. It is a tribute to the memories of icons of social change,Abraham Lincoln ,Martin Luther King, Jr. ,John F. Kennedy andRobert F. Kennedy . It was written as a response to theassassination s of King and the younger Kennedy in April and June 1968.Each of the first three verses features one of the men named in the song's title, for example::"Has anybody here, seen my old friend John -:"Can you tell me where he's gone?:"He freed a lot of people, but it seems the good die young:"But I just looked around and he's gone.
After a bridge, the fourth and final verse mentions Bobby Kennedy, and ends with a verbal image of him walking over a hill with the other three men.
The original version, recorded by Dion, featured a gentle
folk rock production from Phil Gernhard and arrangement from John Abbott, most audibly featuringharp flourishes at multiple points. Quite unlike the ethnic rock sound that Dion had become famous for in the early 1960s, and even more unlike Holler and Gernhard's previous collaboration, the 1966 novelty smash "Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron ", "Abraham, Martin and John" nonetheless was a major American hit single in late 1968, reaching #4 on the U.S. pop singles chart and #1 in Canada, being awarded anRIAA gold record for selling a million copies. In 2001 this recording would be ranked number 248 on theRIAA 'sSongs of the Century list. The record was also popular with adult listeners, reaching #8 on Billboard's Easy Listening survey.Other famous late-1960s versions were recorded in short order by
Motown 'sSmokey Robinson & the Miracles (whose cover also became an AmericanTop 40 single in 1969, reaching #33) andMarvin Gaye (whose cover became a top-ten hit (#9) in England in 1970). Gaye's version was never released in the U.S. as a single but was featured on his 1970 album, "That's the Way Love Is", and was one of his first experiments with social messages in his music which would culminate in his legendary 1971 album, "What's Going On ". In addition, comedianMoms Mabley performed a version that hit the U.S. Top 40, reaching #35 in 1969. This version was featured on the soundtrack ofBrazil iansoap opera "Beto Rockfeller " (1968-1969).The song is also featured on
Tom Clay 's 1971 "What the World Needs Now is Love/Abraham, Martin, and John", a medley combining Dion's recording withJackie DeShannon 's recording ofBurt Bacharach 's "What the World Needs Now Is Love ", along with vocals by The Blackberries. Clay's recording features narration, sound bites from speeches given by PresidentJohn F. Kennedy ,Robert Kennedy , andMartin Luther King Jr. , along with sound bites from the live press coverage of Robert Kennedy's assassination. It reached number eight on the U.S. pop singles chart in August 1971.During a 1981 tour,
Bob Dylan sang the song in concert: the implicit "John" in Dylan's rendition wasJohn Lennon , who had been killed the year before.Subsequently, various artists have performed or recorded their rendition of the song, including the likes of
Emmylou Harris , who also typically made it part of medley, such as on her 1992 "At the Ryman " concert recording. British rockersMarillion have played the song in acoustic and electric versions; one such hybrid performance can be heard on their 1999 "Unplugged at the Walls" album.
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.