Wichita Lineman - Written By Jimmy Webb for Glen Campbell - Performed by The Unsung Heroes

After creating a big hit by recording Jimmy Webb's song 'By The Time I Get To Phoenix', Glen Campbell knew a good combination when he found one. So he asked Jimmy Webb to write him another hit... preferably about a town or place. Jimmy decided the song would be named after a place but the topic would be about a person and their life situation. And indeed, he wrote another hit song for Glen Campbell. It's an amazing musical composition which, while starting on the root chord, never revisits that chord throughout the rest of the chord, which just gives it a bit of an unfinished feel. Interestingly, Jimmy never considered the song finished, even after Glen Campbell's version was being played all over the radio. But to me, it's the story of one man's situation in just a brief moment in time that makes this song great. We can all relate to the guy and what he's feeling. While Glen Campbell gets most of the recognition when this song is mentioned, the Unsung Heroes like to give credit to the lesser known people, like Jimmy Webb, who play such a big part in creating the success of great (and deserving) artists like Glen Campbell. Just as John Hartford, the author of Glen's first big hit, 'Gentle On My Mind', was not nearly the household name he maybe could have been, his musical career was very successful in it's own right, in part due to his collaboration with Glen Campbell. Bob Dylan actually called Wichita Lineman the 'greatest song ever written' and it has been covered by dozens of notable singers and bands in virtually all styles and genres. It's an amazing list of artists who have deemed this song worthy of another version. As George Martin once stated, the most important part of music is a good song. This sounds simple and basic and it truly is. So in this case, the Heroes wish to honor not only the performing artist but the guy who wrote the great song - along with many others. To me, this is a Jimmy Webb song first and a Glen Campbell hit song second.