"There Was a Time" is a song written and performed by James Brown.

Release history

"There Was a Time" was recorded in June 1967 during a live performance at the

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater is a music hall at 253 West 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (Seventh Avenue) and Frederick Douglass Boulevard (Eighth Avenue) in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is a n ...

in a

medley Medley or Medleys may refer to: Sports *Medley swimming, races requiring multiple swimming styles * Medley relay races at track meets Music *Medley (music), multiple pieces strung together People *Medley (surname), list of people with this nam ...

with " Let Yourself Go" and "I Feel All Right", and was first released November 1967 in edited form as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

of the single " I Can't Stand Myself (When You Touch Me)". The song charted #3 R&B — higher than the A-side — and #36

Pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

. This edit of the song also appeared on the 1968 album ''I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me''. A 14-minute-long edit of the Apollo medley was issued on Brown's 1968 album '' Live at the Apollo, Volume II''. Though it was nominally only one song in the medley, "There Was a Time" became the colloquial name for the entire sequence. The complete medley was finally issued on the Deluxe Edition of ''Live at the Apollo, Volume II'', released in 2001. The medley was also edited into two tracks which began the B-side of the 1969 King album ''It's a Mother'' retitled "The Little Groove Maker Me."

Chart performance

Other recordings

Brown made additional recordings of "There Was a Time" with the acoustic

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

combo the Dee Felice Trio for his 1969 album ''Gettin' Down to It'', and with the

Louie Bellson Louie Bellson (born Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, July 6, 1924 – February 14, 2009), often seen in sources as Louis Bellson, although he himself preferred the spelling Louie, was an American jazz drummer. He was a composer, ...

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...

for 1970's '' Soul on Top'', in a performance cut from the original LP release but restored for its 2004 CD

reissue In the music industry, a reissue (also re-release, repackage or re-edition) is the release of an album or single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions. Reasons for reissue New audio formats Reco ...

. A live performance from 1969 appears on the 1970 album '' Sex Machine''. Another live recording of "There Was a Time", from an August 1968 concert in

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County wi ...

, was first issued on the 1991 '' Star Time''

box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...

, then remastered for the 1998 release '' Say It Live and Loud: Live in Dallas 08.26.68''. Brown also performs the song in the concert films '' James Brown: Man to Man'' and '' Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968''. An

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to instr ...

version of "There Was a Time" with saxophonist

Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis Alfred James Ellis (April 21, 1941 – September 23, 2021), known as Pee Wee Ellis due to his diminutive stature, was an American saxophonist, composer, and arranger. With a background in jazz, he was a member of James Brown's band in the 1 ...

was released in 1968. It was an overdubbed version of the tune credited to The Dapps.

Cover versions

"There Was a Time" was part of

The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most ...

's repertoire beginning early in their career. They perform it in concert on the album '' Live at the Forum''. In a famous incident,

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

and

Prince A prince is a Monarch, male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary title, hereditary, in s ...

performed the song while sharing the stage with Brown and his band at

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 ...

' Beverly Theater in 1983.Brown, James, and Bruce Tucker (1986). ''James Brown: The Godfather of Soul'', 263-264. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press. Other artists who have recorded the song include

Gene Chandler Gene Chandler (born Eugene Drake Dixon; July 6, 1937) is an American singer, songwriter, music producer, and record-label executive. Chandler is nicknamed "the Duke of Earl" or, simply, "the Duke." He is best known for his most successful son ...

Eddie Harris Eddie Harris (October 20, 1934 – November 5, 1996) was an American jazz musician, best known for playing tenor saxophone and for introducing the electrically amplified saxophone. He was also fluent on the electric piano and organ. His best-k ...

, and The Blue Sky Boys.

References

External links

AllMusic review
{{Authority control James Brown songs Songs written by James Brown 1967 songs