I Think, Therefore I Count Down: Sittin' and Thinkin' (#1)

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I think this is all of the think songs! It's time to put an end to the countdown of songs that have "think" or some variation in the title. I've had rock and country, but today's song is a genre-crossing masterpiece. Here's my favorite "think" song. #1: Sittin' and Thinkin' - Charlie Rich Charlie Rich was, and remains, one of the unsung heroes of early rock and roll. He was on Sun Records at the same time as Presley, Cash, and Lewis; yet his "big" success didn't come until the "countrypolitan" era of the early 70s with songs like "Behind Closed Doors" and "The Most Beautiful Girl." That's sad. He was quite a songwriter. Johnny Cash recorded Charlie Rich songs (the biggest being "The Ways of a Woman in Love"), and even this song was recorded some two years before Rich got around to recording it (on Smash Records). As for piano playing, there's a legendary story that Sam Phillips (head of Sun Records) told Charlie Rich he couldn't make Rich a star because Rich was too good. Phillips allegedly gave Rich some Jerry Lee Lewis albums and told him to listen to them and learn to play that way, then maybe Phillips could market him. Still, Rich's mark on rockabilly and early rock and roll is there. His hit "Lonely Weekends" was a major hit in the early 60s, and in 1965 he had another hit with "Mohair Sam." They were just too few and far between to give him Elvis-like status. Others took notice, though. As I said, Ray Price recorded this on his legendary Night Life album in 1963, two years before Rich's own version of the song appeared. Since then, acts as diverse as Lefty Frizzell and Elvis Costello have covered it. Why not? It's a killer song, and it's open to interpretation. The chorus is an alcoholic begging his love, "Please, baby, wait for me until they let me out again." Who's "they" and where does he need to be let "out" of? The obvious guess is jail, but he could also be in a hospital. Charlie Rich died of a pulmonary embolism in 1995 at the age of 62. His wife, Margaret Ann Rich (who wrote his song "Life Has Its Little Ups and Downs") died in 2010 from Alzheimer's. They were married for 40 years and gave the world some great music. Thanks for reading. Sittin' and Thinkin' Written by Charlie Rich Recorded by Charlie Rich Released as a single, 1965 (Also recorded by Ray Price on Night Life, 1963) I won't promise the same think won't happen again: