A 1967 folk-rock song written in about 20 minutes inside an apartment at David Crosby’s house remains a beloved hit 59 years later.
“Windy” by The Association reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of July 1, 1967, and held the top spot for four straight weeks. The single was released on May 1, 1967.
It was the sound of that summer, full of breezy melodies and group vocals. The track finally gave way to The Doors’ “Light My Fire” on July 28, 1967.
According to Rhino, songwriter Ruthann Friedman created the song while living in the apartment on the first floor of David Crosby’s house in Beverly Glen. She was 25 years old at the time.
The Association posed for a portrait in 1967.Photo by Chris Walter/WireImage
Friedman had already written at least 100 songs but had not yet placed one with a major act. A friend, Beach Boys collaborator Van Dyke Parks, introduced her to The Association, per Songfacts.
The group recorded the song and turned it into their second No. 1 hit after “Cherish.”
Friedman has stated the facts plainly. “I have heard so many different permutations of what the song was about. Here is the TRUTH. I was sitting on my bed – the apartment on the first floor of David Crosby’s house in Beverly Glen – and there was a fellow who came to visit and was sitting there staring at me as if he was going to suck the life out of me. So I started to fantasize about what kind of a guy I would like to be with, and that was Windy – a guy (fantasy). The song took about 20 minutes to write.”
In a 2014 interview with Songfacts, she reflected further on the meaning. “These days, looking back at myself in my mid to late 20s, I finally realized I was talking about me in that song, and how I wanted to be.”
Friedman has also said she was more of a beatnik than a hippie and that the hit gave her both rent money and validation after her family had expected her to become a secretary.
The Association and producer Bones Howe made several key changes to Friedman’s original. She had written the song in waltz time about a male character. Howe switched it to a standard 4/4 beat, opened the track with a bassline, added a recorder solo played by band member Terry Kirkman, and introduced the “ba-ba-ba-ba-ba” backing vocals. Guitarists Larry Ramos and Russ Giguere shared the lead vocals.
The recording session stretched from early afternoon until 6:30 the next morning. The band members had an 8:30 a.m. flight to catch for a show in Virginia. Their voices were worn out by the end.
To capture the swirl of vocals that close the song, Howe brought everyone present in the studio into the vocal booth. That group included Friedman, vocal arranger Cliff Burroughs, his wife Marylin, band member Jim Yester’s wife Jo-Ellen and others.
“Windy” became Howe’s first No. 1 as a producer. He later reached the top again with The 5th Dimension’s “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” and “Wedding Bell Blues.”
“Windy” was one of the first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 songs written entirely by a female songwriter. Earlier examples included Ricky Nelson’s “Poor Little Fool” (Sharon Sheeley) and The Singing Nun’s “Dominique.”
Bobbie Gentry’s “Ode to Billie Joe” followed about a month after “Windy.” The Association’s version turned Friedman’s more personal folk-leaning original into an upbeat sunshine-pop track.
The lyrics describe a free-spirited figure “tripping down the streets of the city / Smilin’ at everybody she sees” and “reachin’ out to capture a moment.”
The song also notes that Windy has “stormy eyes that flash at the sound of lies” and “wings to fly above the clouds.”
The Association’s third album, Insight Out, contained the hit. After an earlier self-written album had underperformed, the group returned to outside writers and brought in studio musicians.
“Windy” was followed later in 1967 by “Never My Love,” which reached No. 2 on the Hot 100. The song has appeared in later media, including an episode of The Drew Carey Show and a 2010 Breaking Bad montage.
Fifty-nine years after its release, “Windy” still draws listeners with its bright harmonies, recorder solo and simple story of a joyful figure moving through the city.
Related: 1979 Country Song, Inspired by ‘The Mountain Whippoorwill,’ Is Still a Powerful Hit 47 Years Later
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