Fooled Around and Fell in Love

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"Fooled Around and Fell in Love"
Fooled Around and Fell in Love Elvin Bishop.jpg
Single by Elvin Bishop
from the album Struttin' My Stuff
B-side "Have a Good Time"
ReleasedFebruary 1976
Recorded1975
Studio Criteria (Miami) [1]
Genre
Length4:35 (album version)
2:59 (single version)
Label Capricorn
Songwriter(s) Elvin Bishop
Producer(s) Bill Szymczyk
Elvin Bishop singles chronology
"Sure Feels Good"
(1975)
"Fooled Around and Fell in Love"
(1976)
"Struttin' My Stuff"
(1976)
Official audio
"Fooled Around And Fell In Love" on YouTube

"Fooled Around and Fell in Love" is a song written and performed by blues guitarist Elvin Bishop with Mickey Thomas on lead vocals. It appeared on Bishop's 1975 album Struttin' My Stuff, and was released as a single the following year.

Contents

Background

Bishop does not sing lead vocals on the track. He felt that his gravelly voice would not do the song justice; he invited vocalist Mickey Thomas, who was a background singer in his band at the time, to sing it. It peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in May 1976. [4] The record was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on June 23, 1976. [5] In Canada, the song reached #22 on the singles chart [6] and #8 on the Adult Contemporary chart. [7] The single reached #3 in the New Zealand Singles Chart. [8]

Based on his work with Bishop, Thomas was invited to become the lead singer for Jefferson Starship (which would later evolve into simply Starship). [3]

The song is featured in the films Queens Logic (1991), Illtown (1996), Boogie Nights (1997), Summer of Sam (1999), Big Daddy (1999), According to Spencer (2001), The Devil's Rejects (2005), The Family Stone (2005), Invincible (2006), The Education of Charlie Banks (2007), Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay (2008), Stand Up Guys (2012), Lovelace (2013), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and Handsome: A Netflix Mystery Movie (2017).[ citation needed ]

Style

In their 1990 essay "Rock and Sexuality", Simon Frith and Angela McRobbie suggest the song "lyrically captures" the distinction in rock music between "cock rock" and "teeny bop". [9]

Personnel

Chart performance

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [21] Silver200,000
United States (RIAA) [22] Gold1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Thomas (singer)</span> American rock singer

John Michael Thomas is an American rock singer. He is best known as one of the lead vocalists of Jefferson Starship and Starship. Prior to joining Jefferson Starship, he was a member of Elvin Bishop's band as a backing and occasional lead vocalist. He was the lead singer on Bishop's most well-known song, "Fooled Around And Fell In Love."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elvin Bishop</span> American musician (born 1942)

Elvin Richard Bishop is an American blues and rock music singer, guitarist, bandleader, and songwriter. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in 2015, and in the Blues Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 2016.

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References

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