The Grass Roots were pretty big back in the late ’60s and early ’70s. Case in point is today’s classic song of the day, “The River is Wide.” Released as a single in April of 1969, this tune went all the way to #31 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“The River is Wide” was written by Billy Admire and Gary Knight, but the Grass Roots were not the first to record it. That honor went to a group called the Forum, who released their version, on the Penthouse label, in 1966 then re-released it 1967, on the Mira label. Then, later that year, Decca Records got hold of the master and released the song a third time. This release actually charted, peaking at #45 on the Billboard charts.
Next up was former teen idol Bobby Rydell. He released his version of “The River is Wide” in May of 1968, on the Reprise label. It didn’t chart.
The song finally made its way to the Grass Roots. Coming off the moderate success of “Lovin’ Things,” they released their version of “The River is Wide” in April of 1969. Their single was the biggest hit of all the recordings and the one we remember today.
