Yesterday’s classic song of the day, Bobby Goldsboro’s “Honey,” was written by a guy named Bobby Russell. Well, Mr. Russell was also a performer and he had his own solo hit with another song he penned, “Saturday Morning Confusion.”
Released in the early fall of 1971, “Saturday Morning Confusion” rose to #28 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was a humorous slice-of-life account of a typical Saturday morning for a young father, filled with corn flakes, cartoons, Harry the dog, and a slight hangover from the night before. It was an interesting topic for a pop hit in the early ’70s; it’s hard to imagine teen record buyers identifying with any of it. But a hit it was, for whatever reason.
Bobby Russell was a successful songwriter, penning such hits as “Honey” for Bobby Goldsboro, “Little Green Apples” for O.C. Smith, “The Joker Went Wild” for Brian Hyland, and “The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia” for his then-wife, Vicki Lawrence. (He was married to Ms. Lawrence from 1972 to 1974, when she was a featured performer on The Carol Burnett Show.) “Saturday Morning Confusion” was Bobby Russell’s biggest hit as a solo artist, although he also had several other songs that scored on the country charts, including “1432 Franklin Pike Circle Hero,” “Carlie,” “Better Homes and Gardens,” and “Mid American Manufacturing Tycoon.” (I’m sensing a domestic theme here…)
Bobby Russell passed away in 1992 of coronary heart disease. He was just 52 years old.
And now it’s time for your daily bonus video of the day. It’s Carol Burnett comically performing “Saturday Morning Confusion” on the October 27, 1971, episode of her variety show, obviously as a favor for castmate Vicki Lawrence and her husband, the songwriter. Yeah, it’s that kind of song.
