Back in 1976, a little movie called Rocky was a surprise hit. The movie told the story of a small-time fighter named Rocky Balboa, played by Sylvester Stallone, who gets a one-time shot at the world heavyweight championship. While Rocky loses the big fight with Apollo Creed, he proves himself a real winner by getting as far as he did.
The soundtrack to the movie also proved extremely popular with audiences. Bill Conti scored the entire film and, with lyricists Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, wrote the movie’s theme song, “Gonna Fly Now.” Conti released a slightly discofied version of the song as a single in February of 1977, and that single made it all the way to #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100.
Conti recorded “Gonna Fly Now” and the rest of the Rocky soundtrack at a single-three hour session at United Artists Studio in Hollywood. In addition to the orchestral players, the rhythm section included studio stalwarts Mike Melvoin on keyboards, Dennis Budimir on guitar, Max Bennett on bass, and John Guerin on drums. Vocals were provided by DeEtta Little West, Nelson Pigford, and Shelby Conti, Bill’s wife. Conti’s recording was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Song (losing to “Evergreen” from A Star is Born) and two Grammys, Best Instrumental Composition and Best Pop Instrumental Performance.
Jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson released his own version of “Gonna Fly Now” at about the same time as Conti’s. While Maynard was fronting his own very popular big band at the time, his recording was made by a bunch of New York studio cats, under the direction of Bob James. Maynard was brought in to play the trumpet solos and high trumpet parts, his specialty. The Maynard Ferguson single hit #28 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #31 on the Cash Box Top 100, a pretty good showing for a jazz artist.
Whomever plays it, “Gonna Fly Now” is an extremely inspirational piece of music. From the opening brass salvo to the motivational lyrics, the song is a true anthem for anybody who views themselves as an underdog.
And here’s today’s daily bonus video of the day, the training montage from Rocky, driven by Bill Conti’s theme, “Gonna Fly Now.” Nobody knew the movie was going to be as big as it was.
