Today’s classic song of the day comes from the spring of 1977. The song is “Angel in Your Arms” and it was recorded by a group called Hot.
Hot released “Angel in Your Arms” on Big Tree Records in February of 1977. The song went all the way to #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #9 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart.
Surprisingly, “Angel in Your Arms” started life as a country song, written by Herbert Clayton Ivey, Terrence Woodford, and Tom Brasfield. Hot, an R&B vocal trio (Gwen Owens, Cathy Carson, and Juanita Curiel) from Los Angeles, specifically requested a country song to record, and they got this one. They recorded it in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, with a definite R&B vibe.
“Angel in Your Arms” quite obviously has country-song lyrics. It’s all about a woman who finds out her husband is cheating on her, and her admonition:
The angel in your arms this morning
Is gonna be the devil in someone else’s arms tonight
True to its country roots, “Angel in Your Arms” has been recorded by several country singers over the years, including Vivian Bell in 1977, Lynn Anderson in 1977, Reba McIntire in 1977, Robin Lee in 1982, and, most notably, Barbara Mandrell in 1985. Ms. Mandrell’s version of the song went all the way to #1 on Billboard’s Country chart.
