"I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (or "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today") is a song by American singer-songwriter Randy Newman. It appears on Judy Collins' 1966 album In My Life, Julius La Rosa's 1966 album You're Gonna Hear from Me, Eric Burdon's 1967 album Eric Is Here, Dusty Springfield's 1968 album Dusty... Definitely, on Newman's 1968 debut album Randy Newman, in The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 (2003), and in Newman's official and bootleg live albums. It is one of his most covered songs, and cover versions charted in the UK for UB40 and in Canada for Tom Northcott.
Background Newman told Rolling Stone that he wrote the song around 1963 or 1964. He went on to say that the "music is emotional – even beautiful – and the lyrics are not." Newman also said that the song bothered him due to the darkness and that the song felt "sophomoric" and "too maudlin".
Newman stated in 2017 that he had signed away the publishing rights on his first album and as a result, does not see any money from people doing covers of those songs.Episode 831, WTF with Marc Maron, July 24, 2017
Tom Northcott version
The song was covered by Canadian folk-rock artist Tom Northcott in 1970. It was released in 1971 as the second single from his debut album, Upside Downside. The song reached number 46 in Canada and number 17 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart.
Northcott's "I think It's Going to Rain Today" came first in the Maple Leaf System competition at 6.3, with the results published in Billboard, January 2, 1971.Billboard, January 2, 1971 - International News Reports, Maple Leaf System Winner As reported in the Jan, 23 edition of RPM Weekly, RCA had faith in the single's potential and their promotion team were taking advantage of the current chart action with the intention of bolstering it. The team that was pushing it consisted of Ed Preston, Scott Richards and Johnny Murphy.RPM Weekly, Volume 14 No 23 January 23, 1971 - Page 2 RCA makes big push for Leigh Ashford
Charts Chart (1971)PeakpositionCanada Adult Contemporary (RPM)17Canada Top Singles (RPM)46
UB40 version
The song was covered by British reggae band UB40 in 1980. It was released in June 1980 as the second and final single from their debut album, Signing Off. The song reached number 6 in the UK. The UB40 single was a double A-side with "My Way of Thinking", which was the first-named track and received most of the radio airplay. However, the German single (which appeared later) had "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" as the A-side. The group covered the song for bandmembers Robin and Ali Campbell's father, folksinger Ian Campbell, who was a fan of Newman and who had recorded his own version of the song in the 1960s.
Charts Chart (1980–1981)PeakpositionAustralia (Kent Music Report) N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988.90
Other cover versions The song was covered numerous times by a variety of artists, especially during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Artist Album Year Judy Collins In My Life 1966 Bobby Darin Inside Out 1967 Dusty Springfield Dusty... Definitely 1968 (UK) Claudine Longet Colours 1968 (US)Rick NelsonPerspective1969 Peggy Lee A Natural Woman 1969 Nina Simone Nina Simone and Piano 1969 Leonard Nimoy The Touch of Leonard Nimoy 1969Rick McClellanFrozen Sunshine1969 Neil Diamond Stones 1971 Françoise Hardy If You Listen 1971 Dave Van Ronk Van Ronk 1971 Barbra Streisand Release Me (2012 release of 'Stoney End' session; Newman on piano) 1971 Brian Short Anything for a Laugh 1971 Cass Elliot Cass Elliot 1972 Bobby Doyle Nine Songs 1973 Melanie Madrugada 1974 Joe Cocker Jamaica Say You Will 1975Cleo LaineBorn on a Friday1976 Tony Rice Cold on the Shoulder 1984 Katie Melua Call Off the Search 2003 Norah Jones Higher Ground 2005 Curtis StigersI Think It's Going to Rain Today 2005 Audra McDonald Build a Bridge 2006 Madeleine Peyroux Half The Perfect World 2006 Peter Gabriel Scratch My Back 2010 Paul Carrack A Different Hat (with Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) 2010 Tom Odell Long Way Down 2013Blackmore's NightDancer and the Moon2013
In popular culture Bette Midler included the song in her film Beaches (1988) and it appears in the soundtrack recording. A portion of Claudine Longet's version of the song is played in the Episode 22, Season Five of the Gilmore Girls, "A House is Not a Home." The song is also featured in the TV series Designated Survivor in the episode, "Two Ships". Nina Simone's version of the song's first verse was the opening theme for the BBC One series Broken. Simone's version also appears in the "Spies Like Us" episode from season two and “The Decision” from season six of the TV series Scandal. A short excerpt of the song is played in the final episode of the Childhood's End miniseries. The song is also played in the movie "Mr. Monk's Last Case: The Monk Movie" released in 2023 sung by Randy Newman. The version performed by Lauren O'Connell was played in Season 6, Episode 20 of The Good Wife.
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