Lee Emmerson, leader of the Five Man Electrical Band who wrote a hit song, “Signs,” that he said was inspired by a journey on Route 66, died in a hospital Dec. 10 of COVID-19 complications. He was 77.
According to CVT News in Canada, Emmerson’s wife said he was double vaccinated but had underlying conditions that made him more vulnerable to the virus.
Here’s Emmerson and his band’s big hit song about “long-haired freaky people”:
Emmerson told the Ottawa Sun how the song came about, during a drive in 1970 from Ottawa to Los Angeles:
“We were on Route 66 somewhere in Nevada, the early evening, the sun setting. […] This stretch of the road, there were huge rocks covered in graffiti, you know, Jesus Loves Maria, stuff like that, and endless advertising signs, go here, do this, and I thought what a shame, all these signs obscuring the beautiful scenery and telling us what to do. It cheesed me off.”
Emmerson’s memory is a bit off. Route 66 never went through Nevada. But the recollections of billboards cluttering the landscape are true. I recall similar things during my first trip out West in the 1970s, and photos of old 66 during the 1950s and ’60s also document the proliferation of billboards.
“Signs” in 1971 went to No. 3 on the U.S. singles chart and became a million-seller.
Nearly 20 years later, Telsa covered the song, and it went to No. 8 on the U.S. singles chart. Mailbox money for Emmerson from the royalties of that song never stopped coming.
(Hat tip to Brian Gregory)