Your classic instrumental of the day that also had a hit version with lyrics is “Grazing in the Grass.” The original instrumental version was by Hugh Masekela and the subsequent version with lyrics was by the Friends of Distinction, and they were both top ten hits.
Unlike the classic instrumentals of the day for the the past few days, which started out as vocal versions but then had the vocals wiped to create instrumentals, Hugh Masekela’s instrumental version of “Grazing in the Grass” came first. Masekela was a jazz trumpeter from South Africa and in early 1968 he was recording his first album. The Promise of a Future. They were finishing up the session when they realized that the running time was coming up a few minutes short of the required 30 minutes. In between takes, Masekela had been listening to a single by Zambian musician Freddie Gumbi, called “Mr. Bull #5,” that prominently featured a cowbell. Masekela’s producer, Stewart Levine, suggested Masekela do something like that as the needed extra song. They started out with the cowbell, of course, then fellow musician Philemon Hou, who happened to be in the studio that day, came up with the melody. In less than an hour they had written and recorded their new song, which turned out to be much more than filler. (The new song’s title referred to the fact that “Mr. Bull #5” took place in a pasture where cows were grazing.)
Hugh Masekela’s version of “Grazing in the Grass,” released in May of 1968, took the world by storm, hitting #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also inspired a Los Angeles-based singing group called the Friends of Distinction to turn it into a vocal tune.
The Friends of Distinction rearranged the song (they didn’t use Masekela’s existing tracks) and group member Harry Elston wrote some lyrics. Their version is famous for the rapid-fire stacking of they lyrics:
I can dig it
He can dig it
She can dig it
We can dig it
They can dig it
You can dig itOh, let’s dig it
Can you dig it, baby?
The Friends of Distinction released their version of “Grazing in the Grass” almost a year after Masekela’s version, in March of 1969. It did almost as well as the original, hitting #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on Billboard’s R&B charts. The backing musicians on this track were all members of the Wrecking Crew, including Al Casey on guitar, Jim Horn on tenor sax, Larry Knechtel on piano, and Jim Gordon on drums.
The Friends of Distinction were a 5th Dimension-like vocal group comprised of members Harry Elston, Floyd Butler, Jessica Cleaves, and Barbara Jean Love. Butler and Elston had previously been members of a vocal group called the Hi-Fi’s, which included founding 5th Dimensioners Marilyn McCoo and Lamont McLemore, so there’s your connection. After “Grazing in the Grass,” the Friends had several other big hits on the orange RCA Victor label, including “Going in Circles” (#15 in 1969) and “Love or Let Me Be Lonely” (#6 in 1970). They broke up in 1976.
Hugh Masekela had a long career and became known as the father of South African jazz. He also wrote several popular anti-apartheid anthems, including “Soweto Blues” and “Bring Him Back Home.” He passed away in 2018 from prostate cancer, aged 78.
