| "Tulsa Time" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Don Williams | ||||
| from the album Expressions | ||||
| B-side | "When I'm with You" | |||
| Released | October 1978 | |||
| Genre | Country, country rock | |||
| Length | 3:10 | |||
| Label | ABC | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Danny Flowers | |||
| Producer(s) | Don Williams Garth Fundis | |||
| Don Williams singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Tulsa Time" is a song written by Danny Flowers, and recorded by American country music artist Don Williams. It was released in October 1978 as the first single from the album Expressions. It was Williams' eighth number one on the country chart, spending a single week at number one and eleven weeks in the top 40.[1] It was also recorded by Eric Clapton for his 1978 album Backless and a live version by Clapton from his album Just One Night became a #30 Billboard hit in 1980.
Background and recording
In September, 1978,[2] Flowers and the Don Williams band members were staying at a Sheraton Hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A snowstorm had caused an interruption of their schedule.[3] Flowers said, "We were all snowed in, and there was absolutely nothing to do. I was sitting there in my room, watching ‘The Rockford Files’ with some hotel stationery beside me, just bored, and I started writing out some verses”.[4] He spent only a half-hour on it and the song had only two chords. Flowers said he intended to add another chord later, "but Don heard it and liked it the way it was."[5]
About two months later, Flowers was performing with Don Williams in Nashville as the opening act for an Eric Clapton concert.[2] After the performance, Flowers and Williams went to Clapton's hotel room where the three men took turns playing songs. Flowers sang and played guitar on his new song, "Tulsa Time" with Williams singing harmony and Clapton playing slide guitar on a dobro.[2] Clapton said, "I love that song and I want to record it right away".[2] Williams said, "You can't record it— I'm going to record it".[2] Both artists recorded the song, but Williams was first.
Don Williams' recording of "Tulsa Time" was the first song on his album, "Expressions", released in August, 1978. By October the song was number one on the country singles chart.[4] It became the number one Billboard Country song of 1979.[6]: 142 The song was named single record of the year in 1979 by the Academy of Country Music[7]: 539 and Don Williams won CMA Male Vocalist of the Year. Eric Clapton released two versions of the song: first his 1979 album Backless and second in 1980 on a live album, Just One Night.[6]: 142 The latter version was more successful and reached number 30 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.[4][6]: 142
Charts
Don Williams version
Weekly charts
| Chart (1978–1979) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[8] | 1 |
| US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[9] | 106 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 1 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1979) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[10] | 25 |
Eric Clapton version[lower-alpha 1]
Weekly charts
| Chart (1980) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100[12] | 30 |
Other versions
- A live version from 1978 appears on Eric Clapton's Crossroads 2: Live in the Seventies, a boxed set released in 1996. This is a different performance from that featured on Just One Night.
- Reba McEntire recorded "Tulsa Time" for her 1995 album Starting Over but it was not included on the final release. It was eventually released on her 1999 compilation album Comfort from a Country Quilt.
- Jason Boland & the Stragglers recorded "Tulsa Time"' for their 2010 live album High in the Rockies.
- After Williams' death, Brothers Osborne sang the song as a tribute during the 51st Annual Country Music Association Awards on November 8, 2017.
Notes
- ↑ The Clapton version is a live version from his album Just One Night released b/w a live version of "Cocaine" from the same album; both songs were credited to Eric Clapton and his Band on the single.[11]
References
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 386.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Pedraza, Esteban; Pryka, Aaron. "Episode 3: The Songwriter (Nashville), Season 1". youtube.com. Movie Time Picture Company and HouseKopp Management. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
- ↑ Danny Flowers' souvenirs about Tulsa Time creation might be blurred after all these years. Indeed, no snowstorm has ever been recorded in September in Tulsa by the meteorological services. The night he wrote the song in his room at the Sheraton hotel probably occurred on January 11th, 1978, the only day of this month when a terrible weather has been reported. He must have spent the night sharing songs with Don Williams and Eric Clapton in Nashville on February 28th, 1978. The timeline of these events is then coherent with the release of Expressions, the Don Williams' album featuring Tulsa Time, in August 1978.
- 1 2 3 Smith, Michael (September 8, 2020). "'Tulsa Time': A classic song 30 minutes in the making turns 40 years old". Tulsa World. e–edition. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
- ↑ "Danny Flowers song Blossoms". The Tennessean (Nashville). 86:249: 38. October 14, 1990. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
- 1 2 3 Lindblad, Elven (2019). Tulsa Sounds: Celebrating the City's Musical Heritage. p. 142. ISBN 9780999122334. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
- ↑ Stambler, Irwin; Landon, Grelun (2000). Country music : the encyclopedia (3rd ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 539. ISBN 9780312264871. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
- ↑ "Don Williams Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
- ↑ "Don Williams Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard.
- ↑ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 1979". Billboard. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
- ↑ "Cocaine / Tulsa Time" at Discogs (list of releases)
- ↑ "Eric Clapton Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.