“Honey” (Bobby Goldsboro)

Today’s classic song of the day is considered maudlin and emotionally manipulative by some, honestly heartbreaking by others. The song is “Honey” and it was a huge hit for Bobby Goldsboro in 1968.

“Honey” was written by Bobby Russell, who you may or may not have heard of, even though he wrote tunes for O.C. Smith (“Little Green Apples“), Brian Hyland (“The Joker Went Wild”), and his then-wife Vicki Lawrence (“The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia“). Russell got his initial inspiration for “Honey” by noticing how big a tree in his front yard had gotten since he planted it. That led to a tale of a husband mourning the loss of his wife, with the lyrics:

And honey, I miss you and I’m bein’ good
And I’d love to be with you if only I could

The songwriter first offered “Honey” to Bob Shane, a former member of the Kingston Trio. Shane’s single didn’t break into the top 100, so Bobby Goldsboro took a crack at recording it next. Goldsboro’s single, released in February of 1968, was a global success. It hit #1 in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand; in the U.S., it hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, Adult Contemporary, and Hot Country Songs charts.

The song is a bit sappy, to be honest. It’s also a trifle on the sexist side, with the narrator recounting how the little lady would cry over some “sad and silly late, late show,” how she wrecked the car and thought her hubby would be mad, and so forth. The song ends with the angels coming and taking her away, “while she was there and all alone.” Now the narrator only has his memories of Honey, which circles back to the song’s opening lyrics:

See the tree how big it’s grown
But friend it hasn’t been too long
It wasn’t big
And I laughed at her and she got mad
The first day that she planted it
Was just a twig

“Honey” may have been sappy but listeners loved it. The single sold more than a million copies in its first three weeks on the market, becoming the best-selling record in the history of United Artists. It was the best-selling single for all of 1968, outselling even the Beatles’ “Hey Jude.” It was nominated for two Grammy Awards (Record of the Year and Best Contemporary-Pop Vocal Performance, Male), losing to Simon & Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson” and Jose Feliciano’s “Light My Fire,” respectively. It was named Song of the Year by the Country Music Association. Billboard ranked it the number-three song for all of 1968.

So here’s your daily bonus video of the day, the official promotional film for “Honey.” It features Mr. Goldsboro acting real sad and contemplative, as it should.