"Early Morning Rain," sometimes styled as "Early Mornin' Rain," is a song written, composed, and recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot. The song appears on his 1966 debut album Lightfoot! and, in a re-recorded version, on the 1975 compilation Gord's Gold.

Background

Lightfoot wrote and composed the song in 1964, but its genesis took root during his 1960 sojourn in Westlake, Los Angeles. Throughout this time, Lightfoot sometimes became homesick and would go out to the Los Angeles International Airport on rainy days to watch the approaching aircraft. ^[1] The imagery of the flights taking off into the overcast sky was still with him when, in 1964, he was caring for his 5-month-old baby son and he thought, "I’ll put him over here in his crib, and I’ll write myself a tune." ^[2] "Early Morning Rain" was the result.

Notable recordings and performances

The version by Ian & Sylvia reached #1 on the Canadian AC charts, August 2, 1965. ^[3] Peter Paul and Mary's version of the song was recorded in August 1965, reaching No. 39 in Canada, ^[4] and No. 91 on the Billboard Hot 100. The next year, George Hamilton IV's version hit No. 9 on the US country chart ^[5] In April 1971, Oliver's version hit No. 38 on the US adult contemporary chart. ^[6] Paul Weller took the song to No. 40 in the United Kingdom in 2005. ^[7] Notably, Elvis Presley recorded and played the song live dozens of times.

References