Drift Away

"Drift Away"
Single by Dobie Gray
from the album Drift Away
B-side	"City Stars"
Released	March 31, 1973
Format	7" (45 rpm)
Genre	R&B, Pop, Rock
Label	Decca
Writer(s)	Mentor Williams
Dobie Gray singles chronology
"See You at the Go-Go" (1972) "Drift Away" (1973) "Loving Arms" (1973)

"Drift Away" is a song written by Mentor Williams and originally recorded by John Henry Kurtz on his 1972 album Reunion. In 1973 the song became Dobie Gray's biggest hit, peaking at number five on the Billboard Hot 100, though it did not enter the charts in the United Kingdom.

This song is also a famous "goodbye" or ending song for concerts. Its use is often as filler for a last song, usually in preparation for an encore, since it has a catchy beat and a guitar solo can be easily added to the end of the song in order to spice things up before the encore. As such, many live covers have been performed by a multitude of bands and it has become a hit among soft rock fans. Appropriately, it was the final pop hit for Decca Records in the United States.

Gray's version of Drift Away remains a staple on many classic rock stations.

Chart performance (Dobie Gray)

Chart (1973)	Peak position
Canadian RPM Top Singles	7
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	5
U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles	42

Covers

"Drift Away" has been covered by many bands and vocalists across the world. Known versions include those of Roy Orbison, Ike and Tina Turner, Humble Pie, Rod Stewart, Waylon Jennings, Ray Charles, Neville Brothers, Michael Bolton, Christian Kane, Ringo Starr, and John Kay.^[1] There is an unreleased 1973 recording of this song by The Rolling Stones. This version features all of the members of the then-current lineup of the Stones with the exception of Keith Richards and the addition of keyboardist Nicky Hopkins. This version is frequently and erroneously referred to as having been recorded by The Rolling Stones and The Beatles together, which would have been impossible, as The Beatles were already broken up three years by the time of this recording. The Heptones recorded a reggae version which is included on many compilation cds. Street Corner Symphony also sang a version of this songs as their swan song on the season 2 finale of the NBC series, The Sing-Off.

Narvel Felts version

"Drift Away"
Single by Narvel Felts
Released	1973
Genre	Country
Label	Cinnamon
Narvel Felts singles chronology
"Rockin' Little Angel" (1973) "Drift Away" (1973) "All in the Name of Love" (1973)

A country version was recorded by Narvel Felts in 1973. His was a mid-tempo country ballad version, compared to Gray's bluesy rendition. Felts' version — which changed the lyrics "I wanna get lost in your rock and roll" to "I wanna get lost in your country song" — peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard' Hot Country Singles chart in mid-August 1973, about three months after Gray's version reached its popularity peak.^[2]

Chart performance (Narvel Felts)

Chart (1973)	Peak position
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	48
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles	8

Uncle Kracker featuring Dobie Gray version

"Drift Away"
Single by Uncle Kracker featuring Dobie Gray
from the album No Stranger to Shame
Released	March 17, 2003
Genre	Pop rock, Adult contemporary
Length	4:15
Label	Lava
Uncle Kracker featuring Dobie Gray singles chronology
"In a Little While" (2002) "Drift Away" (2003) "Memphis Soul Song" (2003)

A cover version was released by Uncle Kracker in 2003. This version, which featured Dobie Grey singing the final verse, reached number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It spent a record-setting 28 weeks atop the adult contemporary chart in the U.S. It also peaked at number 25 on the New Zealand Singles chart.

Music video

The music video was directed by Bronston Jones.

Chart performance (Uncle Kracker)

Chart (2003–2004)	Peak position
New Zealand Singles Chart	25
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	9
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks	1
U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40	2
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Top 40	10

Preceded by "The Game of Love" by Santana	Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single Uncle Kracker featuring Dobie Gray (2003-2004 version) June 7 - November 8, 2003 (first run)	Succeeded by "Forever and for Always" by Shania Twain
Preceded by "Forever and for Always" by Shania Twain"	Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single November 22- November 29, 2003 (second run)	Succeeded by "Forever and for Always" by Shania Twain
Preceded by "Sending You a Little Christmas" by Jim Brickman / Kristy Starling	Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single January 10–17, 2004 (third run)	Succeeded by "Calling All Angels" by Train
Preceded by "Calling All Angels" by Train"	Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single January 31 - February 7, 2004 (fourth run)	Succeeded by "Calling All Angels" by Train

In popular culture

• Nashville Star contestant Coffey Anderson sang the song during the sixth season of the singing competition.^[3]

References

1. ^ SecondHandSongs.com: "Drift Away" page
2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 143. ISBN 0-89820-177-2. 
3. ^ Coffey Anderson performance of "Drift Away" during Nashville Star