"Chevy Van" is a song by American singer and songwriter

Sammy Johns Sammy Reginald Johns (February 7, 1946 – January 4, 2013) was an American singer and songwriter, best known for his million-selling 1975 hit single, " Chevy Van". Career Johns was born in Charlotte, North Carolina. Johns' father gave him ...

, written and sung by Johns. The song was originally released in 1973 by GRC Records on Johns debut album, which was also released in 1973. The instrumental backing was played by

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

-based

session musicians Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

from the Wrecking Crew. In 1975, the song experienced success across the United States and Canada reaching #5 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, eventually achieving one million sells. It was played primarily on

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...

radio stations during the 1970s; later re-recordings were done in a country vein. It was later re-released in 1975. The song details how an unnamed male driver picks up an unnamed female, who then eventually seduces him into a

one-night stand A one-night stand or one-night sex is a single sexual encounter in which there is an expectation that there shall be no further relations between the sexual participants. It draws its name from the common practice of a one-night stand, a single ...

in the back of a Chevrolet Van. At the end he drops her off "in a town that was so small, you could throw a rock from end to end. A dirt road main street, she walked off in bare feet", and laments "It's a shame I won't be passing through again". The song struck a chord with listeners in the sexually liberated 1970s when Johns released it. The popularity of the song is also reflective of the

vansploitation Vansploitation is a term used for a genre of American independent films from the 1970s in which vans are a "key element to the plot", and that often feature comedic stories about college-age people. History The short-lived genre emerged in the U ...

films of the period. The original 1973 version is featured in the 1977 film '' The Van''. On May 5, 1975, the song was certified gold by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

.Sammy Johns
entries on the RIAA official website. The song is Johns only hit.

Legacy

In recent years, country artists

Eric Church Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's ''Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billboar ...

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

, and Sammy Kershaw and rock artists Joe Pernice and

Fu Manchu Dr. Fu Manchu () is a supervillain who was introduced in a series of novels by the English author Sax Rohmer beginning shortly before World War I and continuing for another forty years. The character featured in cinema, television, radio, comi ...

have each released covers of the song. Unlike Sammy Johns's original chorus that opens "Cause like a princess she was laying there...", the aforementioned artists sing "Cause like a picture she was laying there..."

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

External links