Hummingbird – Seals & Crofts | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#20) and Adult Contemporary (#12); 1973
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
After a decade in bands, Seals and Crofts struck out as a duo: Jim on guitar, sax, and violin; Dash on guitar and mandolin. Their debut self-titled indie album appeared in 1969, and a second, Down Home, in 1970.
Although they were fine efforts, neither sold well, nor did the five singles released from them. Even so, Warner Brothers was impressed enough by the duo to sign them, and released Year Of Sunday in 1971, which spent 20 weeks on the album chart. Radio airplay of the two single tracks and the duo’s live performances helped spread the word.
That exposure, plus the release of the perfect song at the perfect time – Summer Breeze in August – propelled Seals & Crofts into the limelight.
When Hummingbird hit the airwaves in early 1973, its chant-inspired intro and lyrics taken from Baha’i scripture – the faith to which S&C converted in 1969 – struck a chord with the soul-searching 1960’s generation, making it two in a row for Seals & Crofts.
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:
- Jim Seals
- Dash Crofts
Lyrics Written by:
- Warner Bros.
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).