On November 23, 1963, the day after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Bobby Hebb’s brother, Harold, was killed in a knife fight. Deeply overwhelmed with grief at both deaths, Bobby found solace in his songwriting. According to Wikipedia, Bobby said this about the song:
“All my intentions were just to think of happier times – basically looking for a brighter day – because times were at a low tide. After I wrote it, I thought “Sunny” just might be a different approach to what Johnny Bragg was talking about in “Just Walkin’ in the Rain“.
The song was released in 1966 and rose to #3 on the R&B chart, #2 on the Hot 100, and #12 in the UK. Bobby went on tour with The Beatles in 1966 and at the time "Sunny" was higher on the charts than any concurrent song by the Fab Four. BMI ranked it #25 on their list of "Top 100 Songs of the Century."
“Sunny” was all over the Knoxville radio in the summer of 1966 when my family first moved to East Tennessee. A lot of good memories come with that song for me and many can say the same I know.
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out
LikeLike
The memories that the song brings out might be the best thing about it.
LikeLike
A beautiful song. The story behind it makes it richer in depth.
LikeLike
It is a great song.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Many moons ago this was number one for a long time if I remember correctly, but it was everyone’s number one. Nice tune.
LikeLike
It was hard not to like it: Great lyrics combined with a pleasant melody sung by the guy who wrote it.
LikeLike
I didn’t know the background of the song but I have always liked it.
LikeLike
It’s even better when you know the story behind it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Such a beautiful song inspired by tragic events.
LikeLike
It’s kind of like “Abraham, Martin, and John” or “If I Can Dream” in that regard.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, such a good song and one I had forgotten about.
LikeLike
That’s what I like about YouTube: It suggests other songs you might want to hear. That’s how the Song of the Day works: I look and see what else YouTube suggests and pick one of those.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like the message in the song and the beat! Hearing the background was also cool – nice song John
LikeLike
Thanks! It’s an uplifting song…
LikeLiked by 1 person
😊
LikeLike
That’s being used in an advert in the UK at the moment. Not a clue what the advert is for, but it is a decent song.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I liked it, and I figured so would everyone else…
LikeLiked by 1 person