In The Midnight Hour – Wilson Pickett | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning

Chart Performance: Pop (#21) and R&B (#1); 1965

Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne

In 1962, I Found A Love by “The Falcons & Band” reached #6 on the R&B chart. Hidden behind that simple artist billing were future soul stars Eddie “Knock On Wood” Floyd, the Love Rollercoaster Ohio Untouchables/Players, and (on lead) Wilson “Wicked” Pickett.

After the Falcons disbanded, Pickett showed up solo in the R&B Top 10 in 1963 with It’s Too Late on Double-L (a label formed by singer Lloyd Price). Following three single releases on Double-L, Pickett joined the Atlantic roster. One year and two stiff singles later, the heat was on for a hit.

On May 11, 1965 Pickett flew to Memphis, where he and guitarist Steve Cropper holed up in a hotel room and wrote In The Midnight Hour and Don’t Fight It in two hours.

The next day Wilson cut the songs at Stax studios, backed by Cropper and the other two members of the MG’s – as in, Booker T. – and the Memphis Horns. Midnight Hour and Don’t Fight It became the first of 31 R&B Top 20 hits for Pickett.

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 Stewart
  • Steve Cropper

Lyrics Written by:

Awards:

  • Grammy nomination for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording at the 8th Annual Grammy Awards (1966)
  • Gold disc for selling more than one million copies (1965)

Check Out all the Song Meanings of the 60s
Top 100 Songs Of The 1960s

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).