Photo: Seattle Municipal Archives from Seattle, WA, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Our Top 10 Rita Coolidge Songs list looks back at the songs of a brilliant female vocalist who specialized in her own interpretations of classic songs across all musical genres. Covering songs written by artists such as Neil Young, Carole King, Boz Scaggs and so many others, Rita Coolidge has enjoyed a very successful musical career starting in the early 1970s. Rita Coolidge is a Grammy Award winning artist and one of a a few select who have had the privilege of singing a James Bond theme song. An honor usually reserved for the hot artist at the time of release.
Before she enjoyed solo success, Rita Coolidge had worked with some of the most legendary artists in classic rock history as a back up singer. She worked with Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Leon Russell, Joe Cocker, Harry Chapin, Graham Nash, Stephen Stills and Dave Mason. It has been claimed that she wrote the piano ending to the classic song “Layla,” without receiving any songwriting credit for it.
# 10 -From The Bottle To The Bottom
We open up our Top Rita Coolidge Songs with the classic song “From The Bottle To The Bottom.” The song is the first of two songs from the Rita Coolidge album she recorded with her husband Kris Kristofferson entitled Full Moon. The song “From The Bottle To The Bottom,” earned the two a Grammy Award in 1974.
# 9 – One Fine Day
Continuing with our top 10 Rita Coolidge Songs list we turn to her great recording of the Gerry Goffin Carole King penned song “One Fine Day.” Rita Coolidge recorded the song in 1979 and released it on her Satisfied album. The song was released as the album’s first single. The song “One Fine Day,” has been covered over time by a wide variety of artists including The Mindbenders, Carole King herself, Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods, and of course the great original version by the Chiffons.
# 8 – I’d Rather Leave While I’m in Love
This beautiful Rita Coolidge Song “I’d Rather Leave While I’m in Love” was released in 1979 on the Rita Coolidge album entitled Satisfied. The song was written by Peter Allen and Carole Bayer Sager. The song was a top forty hit for Rita Coolidge on the Billboard Hot 100. The song peaked at number three on the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts.
# 7 – I Believe in You
Rita Coolidge defined her ability to cover songs from so many great rock and roll artists while making them her own early on in her career. This great version of Neil Young’s “I Believe In You,” was released on Rita Coolidge’s debut album entitled Rita Coolidge. The album was released in 1971.
# 6 – The Way You Do the Things You Do
“The Way You Do the Things You Do,” stands as one of the most popular songs released in classic rock history. Everyone knows the great Temptations version released in 1964. It became the Temptations first big hit of their career Rita Coolidge recorded the song in 1978 putting her own fabulous mark on the classic Smokey Robinson penned tune. It was released as the third single from her great album Anytime…Anywhere.
# 5 – You
As we enter the second half of our top Rita Coolidge Songs we present this great Rita Coolidge recording entitled “You.” Released in 1978, the song has a slight disco feel to it it mixed with a great r&b groove. The song was released on the Rita Coolidge album entitled Love Me Again. The song was a big hit in the U.S. hitting number three on the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts.
# 4 – All Time High
Rita Coolidge recorded one of the great James Bond Theme songs of all time in 1983 when she was asked to sing the lead vocals to the song “All Time High.” The song was released as the theme song to the 1983 James Bond Motion Picture Octopussy which starred Roger Moore as James Bond. Rita Coolidge had great success with this one. The song “All Time High,” hit number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts. It was also a top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was written by John Barry and Time Rice.
# 3 – “Loving Arms“
At number three on our Rita Coolidge Songs list is this great duet between Rita Coolidge and Kris Kristofferson. It was the second single released from their great album they recorded together entitled Full Moon. The song “Loving Arms,” was written by Tom Jans. The Full Moon album was released in 1973.
# 2 – We’re All Alone
As we come close to the end of our top 10 Rita Coolidge Songs list, we present one of her most loved recordings. Music fans first fell in love with this great song “We’re All Alone,” when Boz Scaggs released his stirring version on his classic album Silk Degrees. Since Boz Scaggs had not released the song as a single, A&M records suggested that Rita Coolidge record the song. It was a smart move. The Rita Coolidge version became a top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 peaking at number seven. However, Rita Coolidge soon would have a number one hit on her hands as the song hit number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts in 1977. Frankie Valli also recorded the song in 1976. He released it as a single to moderate chart success. The song “We’re All Alone,” was also written by Boz Scaggs.
# 1 – (Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher
We close out our Top 10 Rita Coolidge Songs list with her most successful single entitled “(Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher.” The song was released in 1977 on the Rita Coolidge album entitled Anytime…Anywhere. “(Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher.” just missed hitting number one on the Billboard Hot 100 as it peaked at number two. However, the song did hit number one on the U.S. Cash Box charts. It also hit number one in Canada.
The song “(Your Love Has Lifted Me) Higher and Higher,” has a long history in classic rock history. The was song written by Gary Jackson, Raynard Miner, and Carl Smith. It was originally recorded by Jackie Wilson who had a huge hit with the tune as it would become one of his signature songs. Bruce Springsteen played a rousing version of the song at The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame’s 25th Anniversary Show. It was also a song that he had played previously on some of his late 1970s shows
Top 10 Rita Coolidge Songs article published on Classic RockHistory.com© 2021
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