The Way It Is (Bruce Hornsby song)
"The Way It Is" | ||||
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Sausalito, California) | ||||
Genre | ||||
Length | 4:58 | |||
Label | RCA | |||
Songwriter(s) | Bruce Hornsby | |||
Producer(s) | Bruce Hornsby, Elliot Scheiner | |||
Bruce Hornsby and the Range singles chronology | ||||
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"The Way It Is" is a song by American rock group Bruce Hornsby and the Range. It was released in the United States in September 1986 as the second single from their debut album, The Way It Is. The song topped the charts in the US, Canada and the Netherlands in 1986,[3] and peaked inside the top twenty in such countries as Australia, Ireland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Written by
Content
The opening verse recounts a story taking place at a line for welfare that illustrates a
Hornsby's brother John said, "The song is mainly about compassion, about understanding racial and social types, and beliefs and practices that are different from your own. It's about a status quo that's so complacent in its narrow-mindedness and bigotry that it seems it'll never change. That's why the line 'Ah, but don’t you believe them' is so important." "The Way It Is" evokes people to give to the poor and to protest against racial segregation, white supremacy and economic value.[5]
Charts
Weekly charts
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Year end charts
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Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[29] | Gold | 400,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
In popular culture
- An adapted version of "The Way It Is" was used as the theme tune for BBC One's City Hospital, a medical documentary television series which ran from 1998 to 2007.[30][31]
- In the Community episode "Advanced Criminal Law", Pierce Hawthorne (played by Chevy Chase) writes a school song entitled "The Way It Goes", an unwitting rip-off of "The Way It Is".[32]
- The song was used for many years on Grandstand in the league tables segment.
- An instrumental version of the song was used in one of the trailers for the 1995 teen adventure drama Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain.
- The final piano solo is often used as fade-out music on many talk radio stations.
See also
References
- ^ Breihan, Tom (January 22, 2021). "The Number Ones: Bruce Hornsby & The Range's "The Way It Is". Stereogum. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
Bruce Hornsby & The Range's "The Way It Is," the gentle and florid soft-rock jam, is unambiguously a song about racism...
- Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
- ^ Metzger, John (November 2000). "Against the Grain: An Interview with Bruce Hornsby". The Music Box. 7 (11). Retrieved May 4, 2007.
- ^ E-40 - Things'll Never Change (Official Video) ft. Bo-Rock, retrieved December 20, 2021
- ^ "The Way It Is wiki entry". Bruuuce.com.
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Bruce Hornsby and the Range – The Way It Is" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
- ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0759." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
- ^ "European Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media. Vol. 3, no. 38. September 27, 1986. p. 12.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Bruce Hornsby and the Range". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 38, 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
- ^ "Bruce Hornsby And The Range – The Way It Is" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
- ^ "Bruce Hornsby And The Range – The Way It Is". Top 40 Singles.
- ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
- ^ "SA Charts 1965 – 1989 Acts H". rock.co.za. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
- ^ "Bruce Hornsby And The Range – The Way It Is". Swiss Singles Chart.
- ^ "Bruce Hornsby And The Range: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Billboard Hot 10". Billboard. December 13, 1986. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
- ^ "Adult Contemporary". Billboard. December 6, 1986. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
- ^ "Mainstream Rock Airplay". Billboard. November 8, 1986. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Bruce Hornsby and the Range – The Way It Is" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
- ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1986" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
- ^ "Top 100 Singles of '86". RPM. Retrieved October 20, 2022 – via Library and Archives Canada.
- ^ "Hot 100 of the Year 1986". Music & Media. Vol. 3, no. 51/52. December 27, 1986. p. 29.
- ^ "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
- MegaCharts. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
- ^ "Top 100 Singles of '87". RPM. Retrieved October 20, 2022 – via Library and Archives Canada.
- ^ "1987 The Year in Music & Video: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 99, no. 52. December 26, 1987. p. Y-22.
- ^ "British single certifications – Bruce Hornsby – The Way It Is". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
- ^ "City Hospital Credits BBC1 29/10/1999". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ "City Hospital Opening Sequence 2nd September 2004". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ Evans, Bradford (May 15, 2014). "29 Community Jokes You May Have Missed". Vulture. Retrieved April 11, 2021.