PICKIN' UP STRANGERS

PICKIN' UP STRANGERS

(Byron Hill)

Recorded by Johnny Lee, Warner Brothers Records, 1981

I had been given an assignment to write a song for the movie 'Coast To Coast', which starred Robert Blake and Dyan Cannon. I took a copy of the script home. I had only 24 hours to read the script, write the song, do a work tape, and get the song on the plane to Los Angeles. I wrote an entire song by midnight that I thought may work, but I had some doubts about it. I went to bed and set my alarm for 4:00am. I decided to trash the first song, then "Pickin' Up Strangers", fell out of my head in about 15 minutes. I hurriedly left my apartment on West End for the office. I got there about 6:00am and went into the little studio there to do a work tape. We had the song on the plane that afternoon and the producers in L.A. loved it. It was recorded very soon thereafter, and eventually was released on the soundtrack LP, as a single (twice), and oddly caused a recall on Johnny Lee's 'Lookin' For Love' LP, which was yanked from distribution after 100,000 units or so were released. They re-mastered the LP to include my song. I now have two 'Lookin' For Love' albums on my shelf, one with "Pickin' Up Strangers" on the LP, the other without. The song that they deleted from the LP, later became the B-Side of my single. I remember at one time dreading the day that I would ever meet Donny Lowery, the writer of the deleted song.

[LISTEN TO A SAMPLE OF JOHNNY LEE'S VERSION]

PICKIN' UP STRANGERS (Hill)

PICKIN' UP STRANGERS

LET ME TELL YOU BOUT THE DANGERS

YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT THEY'RE

OUT TO GET FROM YOU

YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT THEY'RE

GONNA TRY TO DO

PICKIN' UP STRANGERS

LET ME TELL YOU BOUT THE DANGERS

SOME ARE JUST COMMON THIEVES THEY SAY

THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW

ONE WILL STEAL YOUR HEART AWAY

SOMETIMES THIS OLD LIFE

FEELS LIKE A HIGHWAY

IT KEEPS A-ROLLIN' ON AND ON

AND ON THAT HIGHWAY

YOU MEET A LOT OF STRANGERS

YOU PASS A LOT OF DANGERS

ON YOUR WAY HOME

PICKIN' UP STRANGERS

LET ME TELL YOU BOUT THE DANGERS

IF YOU DON'T LIKE

TAKIN' CHANCES THEN

YOU'D BETTER KEEP

MOVIN' ON MY FRIEND

PICKIN' UP STRANGERS

LET ME TELL YOU BOUT THE DANGERS

SOME ARE JUST COMMON THIEVES THEY SAY

THE NEXT THING YOU KNOW

ONE WILL STEAL YOUR HEART AWAY