Song #231: "I Say a Little Prayer"--Dionne Warwick (1967)

I was just a baby when Dionne Warwick found this song she recorded over a year earlier to be released, originally as the B-Side for a single for the theme from the motion picture "Valley Of The Dolls". It was written by the legendary team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David.

Bacharach, the story goes, didn't like the final product, even after many studio retakes, and the song sat in obscurity until 18 months later when the head of Specter Records insist the song be on the "The Windows Of The World" LP he was releasing. Once the 45 RPM single went public, the listeners chose "Prayer" over "Valley of The Dolls", and today's song went on to peak at #4.

Now, "Dolls" ended up doing wonderfully on the charts, too, but not nearly as many people remember that song a generation later. Millions, however, equate Dionne Warwick with several signature songs, this being her first since 1964's "Walk On By".

This is Warwick's final countdown appearance, and thus, my favorite song from her.  :)