| "Geronimo's Cadillac" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Michael Murphey | ||||
| from the album Geronimo's Cadillac | ||||
| B-side | "Boy from the Country" | |||
| Released | July 31, 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Genre | Country folk | |||
| Length | 3:21 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Producer(s) | Bob Johnston | |||
| Michael Murphey singles chronology | ||||
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"Geronimo's Cadillac" is the debut single by American country folk singer-songwriter Michael Martin Murphey, then billed as Michael Murphey. It was the title cut of his 1972 debut album which was an A&M Records release.
Murphey was inspired to write "Geronimo's Cadillac" by a photograph showing Geronimo at the wheel of a luxury touring car with a backseat,: this photograph was reproduced as a drawing on the back album cover of Geronimo's Cadillac and also on the picture sleeve of the single. The July–August 1987 issue of American Songwriter quotes Murphey as saying: "the two images together Geronimo and a Cadillac just struck me as a song title. It was every irony I could ever think of about our culture in two words. Their attempt to make of him what we would define as a civilized person. That was the reason they put him in a Cadillac in the first place. He was actually in jail at the time." The photograph was taken at a show for the US press held June 11, 1905, at a ranch located southwest of Ponca City, Oklahoma: Geronimo, then imprisoned at Fort Sill, is actually posed in a Locomobile rather than a Cadillac. [1]
Released July 31, 1972, as a single which edited the track's original 4:39 length to 3:21, "Geronimo's Cadillac" reached number 37 on the Hot 100 in Billboard magazine. [2] The track also charted in Canada with a peak of number 30 on the Top Singles chart in RPM magazine. "Geronimo's Cadillac" afforded Murphey his sole Hot 100 charting until "Wildfire" on Epic Records reached number 3 in 1975. The success of "Wildfire" caused A&M to re-issue "Geronimo's Cadillac" with a new B-side: "Blessing in Disguise" a track from Murphey's 1973 album Cosmic Cowboy Souvenir , replacing "Boy from the Country". However this re-issue of "Geronimo's Cadillac" did not chart, failing to deflect interest from Epic's follow-up single release to "Wildfire", "Carolina in the Pines", which fell just short of the top 20.
| Chart (1972) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 37 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 30 |
A cover version by Jeff Stevens and the Bullets peaked at number 53 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1987. [3] "Geronimo's Cadillac" has also been recorded by Hoyt Axton, Cher, Claire Hamill, Jacques Kloes, Lost Gonzo Band, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Dick Gaughan, Mary McCaslin, Chris Leslie and Johnny Rivers. Native American singer Bill Miller performed "Geronimo's Cadillac" for his 1992 live album Reservation Road.
Michael Martin Murphey is an American singer-songwriter. He was one of the founding artists of progressive country. A multiple Grammy nominee, Murphey has six gold albums, including Cowboy Songs, the first album of cowboy music to achieve gold status since Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs by Marty Robbins in 1959. He has recorded the hit singles "Wildfire", "Carolina in the Pines", "What's Forever For", "A Long Line of Love", "What She Wants", "Don't Count the Rainy Days", and "Maybe This Time". Murphey is also the author of New Mexico's state ballad, "The Land of Enchantment". Murphey has become a prominent musical voice for the Western horseman, rancher, and cowboy.
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"Disenchanted" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Michael Martin Murphey. It was released in April 1984 as the third single from the album The Heart Never Lies. The song peaked at number 12 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles and at number 11 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart. It was written by Murphey, Jim Ed Norman and Chick Rains.
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"Making Believe" is a country music song written by Jimmy Work. Kitty Wells recorded a chart-topping version in 1955. The song is on many lists of all-time greatest country music songs and has been covered by scores of artists over the past fifty years, including Thorleifs, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Don Gibson, Roy Acuff, Lefty Frizzell, Wanda Jackson, Connie Francis, Ray Charles, Anita Carter, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Merle Haggard, The Kendalls, Ernest Tubb, Skeeter Davis, The Haden Triplets, Social Distortion and Volbeat. The song is occasionally called "Makin' Believe".
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"Never Givin' Up on Love" is a song written by Michael Smotherman, and recorded by American country music artist Michael Martin Murphey. It was released in April 1989 as the lead single from the album Land of Enchantment. The song peaked at number 9 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and at number 21 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart. The song also appears on the soundtrack of the 1989 Clint Eastwood film Pink Cadillac.
"Love Affairs" is a song recorded by American country music artist Michael Martin Murphey. It was co-written by Murphey and Mike d'Abo. It was released in March 1983 as the forth and final single from the album Michael Martin Murphey. The song peaked at number 11 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles and at number 18 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart.
"A Face in the Crowd" is a song written by Karen Staley and Gary Harrison, and recorded by American country music artists Michael Martin Murphey and Holly Dunn. It was released in January 1987 as the first single from Murphey's album Americana. The song reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart and number 7 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart.
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There's a Party Goin' On is a studio album by American singer Jody Miller. It was released in September 1972 via Epic Records and contained 11 tracks. The album blended country and pop songs. A series of popular country and pop cover recordings were included, along with some new material. There's a Party Goin' On reached the top 30 of the American country albums chart. A total of four singles were included on the album: "Be My Baby", "Let's All Go Down to the River", "There's a Party Goin' On" and "To Know Him is to Love Him". The title track was the most successful single from the album. The disc received positive reviews from publications following its release.