Any Day Now

"Any Day Now" is the title of a popular song written by songwriters Burt Bacharach and Bob Hilliard in 1962. The song has been recorded by numerous artists over the years, including notable versions by Chuck Jackson in 1962, Elvis Presley in 1969, and Ronnie Milsap in 1982.

Chuck Jackson

Jackson, an R&B singer born in South Carolina in 1937, recorded the first version of the song to hit the Billboard Hot 100 chart; it reached number twenty-three in 1962 with the title "Any Day Now (My Wild Beautiful Bird)" and spent six weeks in the Top 40. Jackson's version appeared on his album, which was also titled Any Day Now. The song was Jackson's highest charting hit on the US pop chart, and also peaked at number two for three weeks on the Hot Black Sides chart. ^[1].

Elvis Presley

Presley, the "King of Rock & Roll", recorded a cover version of "Any Day Now" on 21 February 1969 at American Sound studios, Memphis, Tennessee. This version appeared on his acclaimed album of that year, From Elvis in Memphis. Although not released as a single in its own right, the song appeared as the B-side to Presley's #3 US pop hit, "In the Ghetto", which appeared on the same album.

Ronnie Milsap

Milsap, a popular country / pop singer who is also blind, recorded the most widely known version of the song. It was the lead single from his 1982 album, Inside, and it peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, spending nine weeks in the Top 40. In addition, this version went to #1 on both the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart (for one week) as well as the Hot Adult Contemporary Singles chart (for five weeks).

Music video

A music video was also produced for the song and has aired on CMT, The Nashville Network and GAC. It has also been seen on CMT Pure Country.

Chart performance

Other versions

• The song became the theme to the American television drama of the same name that aired on the cable channel Lifetime, starring Annie Potts and Lorraine Toussaint. The verse of the song that appears in this theme was sung by Lori Perry.

• Country singer Don Gibson also released a version of "Any Day Now," which reached the Top 40 of the Billboard country music chart in 1979.

• Singer Percy Sledge recorded "Any Day Now" in 1969, and this version reached thirty-five on the Billboard R&B chart and eighty-six on the Hot 100. ^[2].

• Luther Vandross recorded "Any Day Now" for his 2001 album Luther Vandross. Vandross' version was nominated for a 2003 Grammy award in the category of Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance.

References

• Roland, Tom, The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits (Billboard Books, Watson-Guptill Publications, New York, 1991 (ISBN 0-82-307553-2).
• Whitburn, Joel (1996). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition (Billboard Publications)
• Whitburn, Joel, Top Country Songs: 1944-2005, 2006.
• Whitburn, Joel, Top Pop Songs: 1955-2006, 2007.