Today’s classic song of the day is “Expressway to Your Heart” by the Soul Survivors. It was released in July of 1967 and hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #3 on Billboard’s R&B chart.
“Expressway to Your Heart” was an early piece of what we later came to know as Philly Soul. It was written and produced by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, two of the main guys behind the whole Philadelphia sound. It was Gamble and Huff’s first hit record, but many more would follow, including “Only the Strong Survive” for Jerry Butler, “Drowning in the Sea of Love” for Joe Simon, “Cowboys to Girls” and “Together” for the Intruders, “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” and “The Love I Lost” for Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, “Me and Mrs. Jones” for Billy Paul, “Love Train” and “For the Love of Money” for the O’Jays, “When Will I See You Again” for the Three Degrees, “You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine” for Lou Rawls, and “TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)” for MFSB. Most of these tracks were on the Philadelphia International Records label that the duo founded. (But not “Expressway to Your Heart,” which was on the independent Crimson Records label—and was that label’s only bona fide hit.)
Here’s how Kenny Gamble remembers coming up with the lyrics:
“I was on my way over to see a young lady, and the expressway was backed up. This is when they just started the expressway in 1967. I was sitting there for what seemed like hours, so I started beating on the dashboard and singing, ‘Expressway to your heart, trying to get to you.’ Songs come from your imagination. You have to be quick to capture the moment.”
The Soul Survivors were a Philadelphia-based band led by singers Kenny Jeremiah and brothers Richie and Charlie Ingui, three white guys originally from New York City. They weren’t technically a one-hit wonder, as they had another top forty hit with 1968’s similar-sounding “Explosion In Your Soul,” another Gamble/Huff tune, which hit #33 on the Billboard Hot 100. They broke up in 1969, came back together in 1972, then called it quits again a few years later.
