Do You Believe In Magic – The Lovin’ Spoonful | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#9); 1965
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
On February 9, 1964, the very night the Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan TV show, John Sebastian met Zal Yanovsky for the first time at Cass Elliott’s house. Shortly, John and Zal joined Cass and Denny Doherty (who would later sing together in The Mamas & The Papas) in the Mugwumps.
When the Mugwumps dissolved, John and Zal recruited Steve Boone and Joe Butler into a new Beatles inspired band John called The Lovin’ Spoonful. The name was courtesy of Fritz Richmond, of the Jim Kweskin Jug Band, who remembered the line from a Mississippi John Hurt song, Coffee Blues.
All the four needed now was a song. John Sebastian’s Do You Believe In Magic fit the bill, and they laid it down on a demo tape. Soon, new label in town Kama Sutra signed the Spoonful, and tagged Magic as its first release. Magic, indeed. In October of 1965 it joined the Fab Four’s Yesterday in the Top 10.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Erik Jacobsen
Lyrics Written by:
- John Sebastian
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).