(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please CLICK HERE)
Harry Chapin - "Cat's in the Cradle"
Hit Number 1: December 21, 1974
Stay at Number 1: 1 Week
It's a common thing for some parents to worry about. Keep in mind I'm not speaking from experience here, but I'm sure that parents are constantly worrying about if they're "there" for their kids or not. Harry Chapin, a singer-songwriter, was one of these people. His song "Cat's in the Cradle" was something powerful to him, and it's about a guy who becomes a father, however he can't be there for his son very often because of his job. The kid isn't discouraged, and believes he'll grow up to be just like him. As time goes on, the kid gets older, and the dad is wanting to be around his son more often, but now the kid is doing his own thing, and he can't spend time with his dad. Even after the dad retires, the kid is now working, and he tells the dad that he'd love to see him, but he now just doesn't have the time. The dad hangs up, and reflects on everything. He now knows that his kid really did grow up just like him.
Now what a lot of people probably don't know is that "Cat's in the Cradle" was also co-written by Chapin's wife, Sandy. Sandy's first husband was a lawyer, and his father was the borough president of New York. The two were hardly able to communicate, and it made Sandy think to write down a poem about what she was seeing. Yep, "Cat's in the Cradle" started as a poem. As time went on, Sandy and her first husband divorced, and she eventually married Chapin, who was already a singer-songwriter. He'd often be interested in the work Sandy had been putting together over the years, and one day he asked her what she had been doing, and she gave him the poem that would become "Cat's in the Cradle". Chapin's initial response wasn't pure amazement like anyone might expect. Apparently his response was just "Well, that's interesting."
It wasn't until Chapin's son, Josh, was born that the song began to take on a whole new meaning to him. Chapin was obviously a very busy guy, and he would find himself being on the road and away from his family while touring. Needless to say, he was starting to feel like he was missing some valuable time that he could have been spending with Josh. It was then that he turned "Cat's in the Cradle" into a song. He of course added his own lyrics to the song (I'm not sure what exactly his contributions to the song are), and turned it into something he could play at his live shows. Chapin was signed to the Elektra label, and he decided that he would record a version for that label in single release form. As they say, the rest is history.
"Cat's in the Cradle" is the kind of song that can really knock you around if it catches you at the right place. Especially if you're a parent, which I'm not. So with that, "Cat's in the Cradle" isn't a song that's meaning resonates with me a ton. Not yet anyway. But the song's meaning can still make me think, or make me wonder about what kind of a parent I want to be when that time comes. The song is structured in a folksy rhyme, with subtle guitar picks and strings that help it glide along. Chapin sings the song with a generic tone that's very Jim Croce like. All considered, it's not an outstanding song. That is, if you don't allow the words to pierce into your heart. Chapin's telling you this story, and it's a fascinating one to follow along with. The dad is obviously a very busy guy who apparently just can't set time aside for his son, but at the end of the song you start to feel for him. He now wants to spend time with his son, but his son is now the one that's too busy to see him. That lyric "As I hung up the phone it occurred to me, he'd grown up just like me. My boy was just like me" is so emotionally charged that it sticks in your mind. It can damn near bring you to tears.
The song's chorus is also this friendly, nonsensical chant. "The cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon. Little boy blue and the man on the moon." I'm really not sure what the hell that's supposed to mean, but I'll be damned, it works with the song. Chapin's song doesn't have some rocking guitars, wailing vocals, a Spector "Wall of Sound" or anything that makes it dominate your ear drums. Instead, it's a folksy piece of easy-listening music that can really mess you up if you're the kind of parent that wants to cling onto their kid as long as you can. It's a song where it's power isn't in the music, it's in the words.
Chapin, unfortunately, wasn't able to see his son for that long after "Cat's in the Cradle". He died in a car accident in 1981 when he was just 38 years old. However, he left with one hell of a legacy, and most of it is because of this song. Parents everywhere will continue to "get in their feels" with this song. And that'll likely be me one day.
GRADE: 8/10
IN POP CULTURE:
Ugly Kid Joe had a successful cover of "Cat's in the Cradle", which they did in 1992. Their version peaked at #6 in 1993. They were actually able to do pretty good justice with the song, but it's still not the Chapin original of course. It's a 7. Here's their music video for the song:
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