Hitchin' a Ride (Vanity Fare song)

"Hitchin' a Ride"
Single by Vanity Fare
from the album Early in the Morning
B-side"Man Child"
Released7 November 1969 (UK)[1]
March 1970 (US)
Recorded1969
GenreRock[2]
Length2:44 (Single Version)
3:08 (Album Version)
LabelPage One
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Vanity Fare singles chronology
"Early in the Morning"
(1969) 		"Hitchin' a Ride"
(1969) 		"Come Tomorrow"
(1970)

"Hitchin' a Ride" is a song written by Mitch Murray and Peter Callander issued as a single by the English pop/rock band Vanity Fare in late 1969. It reached number 16 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1970 but was a bigger hit in the United States, reaching number 5 on the Hot 100 on June 27, 1970. Billboard ranked the record as the number 14 song of 1970.[3] In Chicago, the record achieved even greater heights, topping the WCFL Big 10 Countdown on 18–25 May 1970,[4] ranking #4 for all of 1970[5] and ranking #12 on rival WLS Radio 89 Hit Parade on 1-8 June 1970,[6] ranking #10 for all of 1970.[7] "Hitchin' a Ride" sold a million copies in the United States alone, and it became a gold record.[8]

  1. ^ https://www.45cat.com/record/pof158 [bare URL]
  2. ^ Eddy, Chuck (22 March 1997). "Automotive Rock". The Accidental Evolution of Rock 'n' Roll: A Misguided Tour Through Popular Music. Da Capo Press. p. 272. ISBN 0-306-80741-6.
  3. ^ Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1970
  4. ^ "WCFL Big 10 Countdown". WCFL. 1970-05-25. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  5. ^ "Big 10 Countdown (Top 40 - 1970)". WCFL. 1970-12-28. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  6. ^ "Radio89 Hit Parade". WLS. 1970-06-01. Retrieved 2024-11-16.
  7. ^ "Top 89 of 1970". WLS. 1970-12-28. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  8. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 582. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.