Flashback Friday: "Stuck in the Middle with You" - Stealers Wheel (1973)

Well guys, if you don't know why you came here tonight, and you've got the feeling that somethin' ain't right, have I got a song for you!

Man, do I love this song.

"Stuck in the Middle with You" was written by Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty of Stealers Wheel. They're the groovy-haired dudes you see in the video performing the song. Rafferty in particular was inspired by the music of Bob Dylan, and you can definitely hear Dylan's influence in his voice... and lyrics. Actually, that's the funny thing about this song; it's actually meant to be a parody of Dylan's performance and songwriting.

I mean, you listen to some of their other songs like "Star" or "Benediction", and you can tell that they're definitely amping up the Dylan for this song in particular. And hey, maybe that's partly why it became a hit! But give the song credit, it does have more going for it than that. Not only does it mimic Dylan's vocal style, but it's also got some pretty catchy and interesting instrumentation in its own right. It's a really good song to just bob your head to.

So, as a parody it works. As a song it works. It just works.