This week’s feature song was the title track of a Berwyn, Illinois group’s debut studio album in 1970. When the song was released that year, it became the fastest selling single in Warner Brothers’ history. The group was named by the group’s bass player, as homage to a memorable line he’d read in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar when he was a high school student.
The song peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #1 on the corresponding Cash Box chart. The single sold more than a million copies and was awarded the gold disc in November, 1972. The album itself reached #55 nationally.
The band toured with many headline acts during the early 1970s, opening for the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Led Zeppelin. The group also participated in the train tour featured in the 2003 documentary “Festival Express”, but their work was not included in the film.