Circular-Breathing Bill.


By holding the long note at the end of ‘Lovely Day’, Bill Withers created a rod for his own back. 


(Jump to the 3:02 mark)

When he made the record back in 1977, he was 39-year-old man at the peak of his abilities. Holding a top E for eighteen seconds would have presented a challenge, but one he could both accept and fulfill. Spin forward to 2015 and he’s seventy-eight. Sustaining it now would be a near-impossibility; it’s no wonder he bowed out of the music industry in the 1980s, as he did.

If he was still touring, his audience would bay for blood if he couldn’t hold it. If anything, they’d expect a note twice as long as the one in the studio recording. On taking an in-breath, he’d spot a punter holding up a sign with ‘DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY’ written on it, and bottle out. It would be too much pressure. The only way out would be to present his mic to audience and let them attempt it instead.

Holding the title of 'Second Longest Note in UK Chart History' must be a poisoned chalice. If Bill had kept on for another three seconds he’d have beaten his nearest contender, Morten Harket, and had all the plaudits to himself. Still, I imagine the Tetley Tea money must be a small source of comfort. It’s like Blur vs. Oasis: Withers may have lost the battle, but he definitely won the war.

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