The Way It Is

Beautiful, timeless, an old high school reminder.

It is a reminder not to use the excuse "That's the way things are done" but try to change things.

I wonder if "liberal" Hornsby was aware of these facts about the '64 vote on the CRA:

The original House version:
Democratic Party: 152-96 (61%-39%)
Republican Party: 138-34 (80%-20%)

The Senate version:
Democratic Party: 46-21 (69%–31%)
Republican Party: 27-6 (82%–18%)

The Senate version, voted on by the House:
Democratic Party: 153-91 (63%–37%)
Republican Party: 136-35 (80%–20%)

This song makes me so sad. I remember hearing it years ago in the ghetto around the airport. Seeing planes come and go made it worse. They even had to make a sequel, The End of The Innocence!

I believe this song may actually have been produced by Flyte Time Records... coincidence? They produced Janet Jackson at the same time. Also note "Human" by The Human League! That was their "comeback" single.

I think what he's referring to is called the Circle of Life. Twenty some years later and the Circle has come around already!

Mark (from Tremonton, UT) is clueless. The "law passed in '64" is, indeed, referring to the landmark civil rights legislation passed in 1964. Mark's biases against people of color are quite evident, as he goes to great lengths to make this beautiful song into a screed about how lazy, shiftless, undeserving people collect and abuse the welfare system. Want to guess what race Mark thinks these "undeserving" people are? The "color bar" is certainly a reference to race, not an establishment whose main purpose is to sell alcohol, beer, and spirits. The line that ends, "...and still can't find a job" is clear proof that this song is about the struggles certain people face in this country. That these disparities and inequalities exist in this great nation is unfortunate, and it's not right. But, at the present time and until things change, that's just "The Way It Is."

Hornsby said himself, in an interview, that the song is about the civil rights era. The interview can be read at musicfordemocracy.org. Google "Bruce Hornsby" and "interview;" that's how I found it.

I believe Bruce Hornsby also briefly played with Bob Dylan, Don Henley, the Grateful Dead, Bob Seger, Crosby Stills and Nash, Stevie Nicks, Cowboy Junkies, Squeeze, Liquid Jesus, Bonnie Raitt (piano on the classic "I Can't Make You Love Me"), Shawn Colvin, Bela Fleck, Clint Black, Ricky Skaggs, Randy Scruggs, Willie Nelson, and produced end-title songs for two Spike Lee movies, Clockers (with Chaka Khan), and Bamboozled. Whew!

At one time, Sean Hannity used an excerpt from "The Way It Is" on the intro to his radio show. For all I know, he still does (I'm not a regular listener to his show). I had read that Hornsby was displeased and made it clear that his preference would be that Hannity NOT use it.

Being listening to this album now since it's release in '86 for some 21 going on 22 years, what an incredible piece of work, an amazing album to chill out to, make love to, dance to, in parts, go to a sound sleep listening to. Awesome

The color bar is defined as follows: barrier preventing blacks from participating in various activities with whites

He ticked a lot of the older conservative southern whites with this song

And keep in mind that Elton John first inspired Bruce to play the piano.

Sorry to rock the boat here, but the "law passed in '64" does NOT refer to the Civil Rights Act. It actually refers to the Economic Opportunities Act of 1964, which greatly expanded services and entitlements for those on federal Welfare and other programs. "To give those who ain't got a little more." In this light, the subsequent line concerning people dodging employment by frequenting a bar makes much more sense.

I heard this song a lot through my childhood and adolescence. I hardly knew what the lyrics meant until I read about this song somewhere else. I do have a minor attraction towards Bruce Hornsby, yet I do feel jealous of him right now, but eventually I'll forget about that.

Bruce will always be recalled for his natural songs but most certainly his creative right hand playing the melody on the piano as his left kept the tempo, great musician wish he came with more material/lasted longer.

Bruce Hornsby started his musical career as a pianist for Ted Turner's production copmany "20th Century Fox" in the late 1970s, before going on tp perform with his band Bruce Hornsby and the Range. Early hits included 1985's "Every Little Kiss" (later covered by Sara Evans) and "On The Western Skyline", before "The Way It Is" broke him worldwide. His other hits to date include the fantastic "Mandolin Rain" (1986), "The Valley Road" (1987), "Look Out Any Window" (1987) and his 1990 collaboration with Shawn Colvin ("Lost Soul"). He also wrote Huey Lewis and the News' 1987 #1 "Jacob's Ladder"

I much prefer this version to 2Pac's, the piano sound is more organic than the hook used by 2Pac. "The Way It Is" only made No.15 in the UK on release in 1986, however it's use as the theme to the British documentary series "City Hospital" between 1996 and 2004 helped to consolidate the popularity of Bruce Hornsby's version, as did the reworking by 2Pac which came out in 1999

Yes it is. Love the piano part, very creative.

I'm a real big fan of this, it's a really great song. Tupac Shakur also did a real good job of blending this song with his song "Changes"