"Gonna Fly Now" | ||||
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Single by Bill Conti | ||||
from the album Rocky: Original Motion Picture Score | ||||
B-side | "Reflections" | |||
Released | February 1977 [1] | |||
Genre | Philly soul | |||
Length | 2:48 | |||
Label | United Artists | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | Bill Conti | |||
Bill Conti singles chronology | ||||
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"Gonna Fly Now", also known as "Theme from Rocky", is the theme song from the movie Rocky , composed by Bill Conti with lyrics by Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, and performed by DeEtta West and Nelson Pigford. Released in 1976 with Rocky, the song became part of 1970s American popular culture after the film's main character and namesake Rocky Balboa as part of his daily training regimen runs up the 72 stone steps leading to the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia and raises his arms in a victory pose, while the song plays. [2] The song was written in Philadelphia. The song is often played at sporting events, especially in Philadelphia. Most notably, the Philadelphia Eagles play the song before the opening kickoff of every home game at Lincoln Financial Field.
Gonna Fly Now (whose lyrics are only 30 words long) was nominated for Best Original Song at the 49th Academy Awards. The version of the song from the movie, performed by Conti with an orchestra, hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1977, while a version by jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson hit the top 30. Disco versions by Rhythm Heritage [3] and Current were on the chart at the same time (Conti's own version reveals some early disco influence in the orchestration). Billboard ranked Conti's version as the No. 21 song of 1977. [4] Conti's single was certified Gold by the RIAA, for shipments exceeding one million in the United States. The American Film Institute placed it 58th on its AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs list.
New York Times critic John Rockwell called it "a classic bit of movie-music pomposity" but said it had a "cheesy inspirational appeal." [5]
In Rocky II , an alternative version of the song was used, with a children's choir singing the chorus. Rocky III included an updated disco influenced arrangement during the training montage on the beach. This recording is however missing from the soundtrack album, the sleeve notes of which say "All music on this album selected by Sylvester Stallone", who instead opted to reprise the original versions of "Reflections" from the first film, and "Gonna Fly Now" and "Conquest" from the second installment.
Rocky IV was scored by Vince DiCola who mainly introduced new themes of his own but "Gonna Fly Now" returned with its composer for later installments. In Rocky V , two different versions of the song are played: an instrumental horn version and a different orchestral version. In Rocky Balboa , a slightly different version of the song used more trumpets and different vocal tones. The soundtrack for that film also includes a vocal remix performed by Natalie Wilde. Creed samples the first few notes of the track during the film's last fight, as does its sequel, Creed II .
Bill Conti's iconic dual introductory trumpet piece for the Rocky character (and the opening of Gonna Fly Now) was directly transferred from an anonymous 17th century sonatina written for use in the Italian royal dinner court. Conti's Rocky trumpet pieces are easily identifiable from the 17th century Three Sonatinas for 2 Clarini released by Warner Records' Nonesuch label, on the 1966 album The Art of the Baroque Trumpet (see track 1). [6]
Rhythm Heritage
Chart (1977) | Peak position |
---|---|
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [8] | 92 |
US Hot 100 ( Billboard ) [9] | 94 |
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard) | 49 |
Bill Conti
| Year-end charts
|
Chart (1977) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian (Kent Music Report) [23] | 57 |
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [24] | 55 |
US Hot 100 ( Billboard ) [9] | 28 |
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard) | 46 |
US Top 100 (Cash Box) [25] | 31 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [26] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [27] | Gold | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
The daily French radio program Les Grosses Têtes , on the RTL French radio network, uses an arrangement by Gaya Bécaud from "Gonna Fly Now". [28]
American businessman Donald Trump used "Gonna Fly Now" at his 2016 presidential campaign rallies. When composer Bill Conti was asked what he thought of Trump's use of the song, Conti stated: “I think it’s great. I’m an equal opportunity kind of guy. The song is my creation. And anytime something I create is used, I am happy about that. Music has no politics attached to it." [29]
William Conti is an American composer and conductor, best known for his film scores, including Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), Rocky V (1990), Rocky Balboa (2006), The Karate Kid I (1984), The Karate Kid, Part II (1986), The Karate Kid Part III (1989), The Next Karate Kid (1994), For Your Eyes Only (1981), Dynasty, and The Right Stuff (1983), which earned him an Academy Award for Best Original Score. He also received nominations in the Best Original Song category for "Gonna Fly Now" from Rocky and for the title song of For Your Eyes Only. He was the musical director at the Academy Awards a record nineteen times.
"Emma" is a 1974 song by the British soul band Hot Chocolate. Written by band members Errol Brown (vocals) and Tony Wilson (music), the song address themes of suicide, early death and lost childhood. Brown's lyrics celebrate his recently deceased mother. Their rawness was developed after the producer Mickie Most asked him for further "depth and darkness".
"Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band" is a song recorded by Meco, taken from the album Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk. It hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on October 1, 1977, holding on to the spot for two weeks and peaked at no. 7 on the UK Singles Chart, remaining in the charts for nine weeks. The single was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, having sold a million units.
"Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)" is a song written by Rod Stewart, and recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Sheffield, Alabama for his 1976 album A Night on the Town. The song, controversial at the time of release, proved to be a massive commercial success and became his second US chart topper on the Billboard Hot 100. It made its debut at number 81 on 2 October 1976 and rose quickly, climbing from number eight to the top of the chart on 13 November 1976, and remained on top for eight consecutive weeks until 8 January 1977. It was the longest stay of any song during 1976, the longest run at the top for a single in the US in over eight years (since the Beatles’ "Hey Jude" in November 1968), and the longest stay at number one for Rod Stewart in his entire recording career, and the final number one of the US Bicentennial year. The song also peaked at No. 5 in the UK, No. 1 for six weeks in Canada, No. 3 in Australia and charted well in other parts of the world. It was the number 1 song on both Billboard's 1977 year-end chart and the year-end Canadian singles chart. It became the best-selling single of 1977 in the United States. As of 2018, it is the 19th-most popular song in the history of the chart.
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Horace Ott and Sol Marcus for American singer-songwriter and pianist Nina Simone, who recorded the first version in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been covered by many artists. Two of the covers were transatlantic hits, the first in 1965 by the Animals, which was a blues rock version; and in 1977 by the disco group Santa Esmeralda, which was a four-on-the-floor rearrangement. A 1986 cover by new wave musician Elvis Costello found success in Britain and Ireland.
"Makin' It" is a 1979 disco song performed by David Naughton, his only musical release. It was the theme song for the television series Makin' It, in which Naughton starred. It was written by the successful songwriting team Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris. It was released as both a 7-inch single and a 12-inch single, with an instrumental version of the song titled "Still Makin' It" as the B-side.
"Baby, What a Big Surprise" is a ballad written by Chicago's then bassist/singer Peter Cetera, which appeared on their album Chicago XI (1977), with Cetera singing lead vocals. The first single released from the album reached number 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
"Turn Your Love Around" is a pop/R&B single by George Benson.
"Another Saturday Night" is a 1963 hit single by Sam Cooke from the album Ain't That Good News. The song was written by Cooke while touring in England when staying in a hotel where no female guests were allowed. It reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was No. 1 on the R&B chart for a single week. In the UK, the song peaked at No. 23 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Sunshine" is a country folk song from 1971 by Jonathan Edwards, released as the first single from his debut album Jonathan Edwards. The single reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on January 15, 1972, and earned a gold record.
"Cupid" is a song by American singer Sam Cooke, released on May 16, 1961. It charted at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 20 on the Hot R&B Sides chart; the track performed best in the United Kingdom, peaking at number seven on the UK Singles Chart. The song is featured on Cooke's greatest hits album, The Best of Sam Cooke (1962). Cooke's producers had asked him to write a song for a girl they had seen on a Perry Como TV show—but once they heard her sing, they kept "Cupid" for Cooke himself.
"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" is a jazz song written by Joe Zawinul in 1966 for Cannonball Adderley and which appears on his album Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at "The Club". The song is the title track of the album and became a surprise hit in February 1967. "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" went to #2 on the Soul chart and #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
"Never Gonna Fall in Love Again" is a song co-written and recorded by American pop rock artist Eric Carmen. It was released as the second single from Carmen's self-titled debut solo album and peaked at No.11 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in June 1976, remaining in the Top 40 for ten weeks. The song reached No.1 on the Billboard Easy Listening chart. In Canada, it was a hit at No. 1 on both charts.
"That's Rock 'n' Roll" is a song written and originally recorded by Eric Carmen in 1976. It became a popular Billboard top 10 hit in 1977 for teen idol Shaun Cassidy.
"Somethin' 'Bout You Baby I Like" is a popular song written by guitarist Richard Supa in the early 1970s. The version by Tom Jones reached No. 36 in the UK in 1974. Glen Campbell and Rita Coolidge reached No. 42 in the US with their recording of the song in 1980.
"Theme from The Greatest American Hero" is a song composed by Mike Post with lyrics by Stephen Geyer, and sung by American singer Joey Scarbury. It serves as the theme song for the 1980s television series The Greatest American Hero. The track was later included on Scarbury's 1981 debut album America's Greatest Hero.
"How You Gonna See Me Now" is a song written by Alice Cooper, Bernie Taupin, and Dick Wagner, performed by Cooper and produced by David Foster. It was released on Cooper’s album, From the Inside.
"Only Sixteen" is a song by American singer-songwriter Sam Cooke, released in May 1959. It was a top 15 hit on Billboard's Hot R&B Sides chart and also charted within the top 30 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart. In the UK it was covered, and taken to No. 1, by Craig Douglas.
Conquistador is the ninth album by Canadian jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson on Columbia Records. The album is notable for its inclusion of the hit single "Gonna Fly Now ".
Rocky: Original Motion Picture Score is a soundtrack album for the 1976 American film Rocky, composed by Bill Conti. It was released on vinyl in the United States on November 12, 1976, by United Artists Records, followed by a CD release by EMI Records on November 7, 1988. The soundtrack is notable for its inclusion of "Gonna Fly Now", the theme song from Rocky.