I'm Easy (Keith Carradine song)

"I'm Easy" is an Academy Award-winning song written and performed by Keith Carradine for the 1975 movie Nashville.[1] Carradine recorded a slightly faster version that became a popular music hit in 1976 in the United States.

"I'm Easy"
Single by Keith Carradine
B-side"200 Years (Henry Gibson)"
ReleasedMay 1976
GenreFolk pop
Length2:59
LabelABC
Songwriter(s)Keith Carradine
Producer(s)Richard Baskin

Story

The song is a ballad about a lover who is guileless and in awe of the object of his love. The film juxtaposes these lyrics by presenting the song in the context of Tom, a character played by Carradine, who is a manipulative womanizer. In the film, when Tom performs the song at the Exit/In (a real-life Nashville music club where the scene was shot), he dedicates it to "a special someone". Several women in the audience, past, recent and future conquests, believe the song has been written for them.

Production

"I'm Easy" was initially released as an acoustic guitar ballad, with a cello accompaniment. It was re-recorded by Carradine at a slightly higher tempo with the addition of percussion, keyboards and synthesizer accompaniment on Asylum Records. The album was issued late fall 1976.

The song is often mistakenly associated with Jim Croce due to the similarity of Carradine's voice, vocal style and guitar playing, all of which bear strong similarity to Croce, who had died in a plane crash two years before Nashville was released.

Awards and recognition

"I'm Easy" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song and the Golden Globe for Best Original Song (Motion Picture). The song peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 10 on the Cash Box Top 100, and spent one week atop the adult contemporary chart.[2] "I'm Easy" was Carradine's only recording to reach the Top 40, and took the #71 slot on the year-end countdown. In 2004 it finished at #81 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of the top tunes in American cinema.

Chart performance

Weekly charts
Ron Nigrini
Chart (1975) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary[3] 40

Cover versions

The song was covered by Canadian singer Ron Nigrini and released by Attic Records (Canada) in 1975, and by American singer Dane Donohue, produced by Elliot Mazer and released by Columbia Records. It became a hit on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart in the fall of 1975.[8]

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See also
  • List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1976 (U.S.)
  • List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States

References
  1. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 136. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 48.
  3. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1975-10-18. Retrieved 2019-02-17.
  5. "Top 100 Hits of 1976/Top 100 Songs of 1976". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
  6. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1976". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
  7. Top 50 Adult Contemporary Hits of 1976
  8. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1975-10-18. Retrieved 2019-02-17.

Bibliography
  • The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, Billboard; 9th edition, 2010, ISBN 978-0823085545, 6th Edition
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