Songs I Like

On this date in 1978, GERRY RAFFERTY released the single BAKER STREET in the U.S. (Apr 10, 1978)

Arguably the most sentimental of all the late Scottish musician's songs, BAKER STREET is about a man who dreams of owning a house and living away from his neighborhood, but he is a drunk, and cannot achieve that goal. He drinks to forget what he doesn't have, and never realizes he's a rolling stone with no direction.

The song was a hit when it was released in 1978. It reached No. 1 on the Cash Box chart and No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for six weeks. The song was popular in several other countries as well, including Canada, Australia, and South Africa. Rafferty was awarded the 1978 Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically for his work on "Baker Street." The song is well-known for its saxophone riff.

The song was named after Baker Street in London and was included on Rafferty's second solo album, City to City. Rafferty wrote the song during a period when he was dealing with legal problems surrounding the break-up of his old band, Stealers Wheel. Rafferty spent a lot of time traveling between his home in Paisley and London for meetings with lawyers, and he often stayed at a friend's flat on Baker Street. The resolution of Rafferty's legal problems inspired the lyrics in the last verse of the song:

"When you wake up it's a new morning
The sun is shining, it's a new morning
You're going, you're going home."

"Baker Street" was recorded at Chipping Norton Studios in Oxfordshire during the sessions for City to City. The album was co-produced by Rafferty and Hugh Murphy. In addition to a guitar solo played by Hugh Burns, the song featured a saxophone riff played by Raphael Ravenscroft between the verses. There is some disagreement about who wrote the saxophone part, but Rafferty claimed that he wrote it with the intention that it be sung. However, the demo of "Baker Street" included on the 2011 reissue of City to City features the saxophone part played on electric guitar by Rafferty.

The saxophone part of the song led to a resurgence in the popularity of saxophones in mainstream pop music and advertising. There are several urban legends surrounding the song and the saxophone riff. One story claims that Ravenscroft received no payment for the song, while another claims that British radio and television presenter Bob Holness played the saxophone on the recording. Both of these stories have been debunked.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo6aKnRnBxM&pp=ygUbZ2VycnkgcmFmZmVydHkgYmFrZXIgc3RyZWV0 Official video