99 Miles From L.A. by Johnny Mathis

Album: Feelings (1975)

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Songfacts®:

In this song, a man is desperate to meet this woman and while driving to their date, he imagines and perhaps hallucinates of what they could have together. >>
Suggestion credit:
Mike - Santa Barbara, CA
This was written by two top songwriters: Albert Hammond and Hal David. Hammond's hits include "The Air That I Breathe" and "It Never Rains In Southern California." David is known for his work with Burt Bacharach, with whom he wrote many of Dionne Warwick's hits.
Albert Hammond also recorded this song in 1975. Other artists to record the song include Art Garfunkel, Julio Iglesias and Nancy Sinatra.

Comments: 8

Nancy F. from TucsonI admit I'm used to, and dig JOHNNIE MATHIS version, although all are great!
Nancy F. from Tucson,azOh Erwin, come on, get serious. JOHNNY MATHIS is one of those terrific, crooning geniuses, who don't NEED to be able to write a song at all. Elvis, Frank Sinatra,
Whitney, Jennifer Hudson, Nat King Cole, etc. NOBODY would expect any of them to pen anything they did.
I think the dawn of the SINGER/SONGWRITER, in which DON MCLEAN, THE BEATLES, JOHN DENVER, CARLY SIMON, JONIE MICHELL, etc,. do songs they wrote, makes us think if we hear a song by them, they probably wrote it. NO, NOT USUALLY.
Did everyone think AL JOLSON and JUDY GARLAND, or KATE SMITH, scripted the ditties the delivered? Hardly?!

P.S. the songs some artists come up with now, you wish they'd just waited for the professionals to finish some! ; 0
Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn April 20th 1975, "99 Miles to L.A." by Albert Hammond entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #100; four weeks later on May 18th*, 1975 it peaked at #91, the following week it was still at #91 and that was also its final week on the Top 100...
And on the day it peaked at #91 on the Top 100 it would reached #1* {for 1 week} on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Tracks chart, it was the twentieth of twenty-three straight #1 records on the Adult Contemporary that stayed in the top spot for just one week each...
Albert Louis Hammond will celebrate his 71st birthday in four weeks on May 18th {2015}...
* Peaked at #1 on the Adult chart and at #91 on the Top 100 on his 31st birthday.
Keely from Fort Lauderdale, FlThe original recording by Albert Hammond is also a masterpiece. I could have sworn I heard Johnny Mathis say, at a live performance in Atlantic City around 1992, that Jimmy Webb wrote this song. Perhaps I misheard, or he actually said it. It does have a bit of a Jimmy Webb feel to it, though. Mathis' live performance that night, with just a guitar accompanying him, was electrifying.
Erwin Deleon from North Hollywood, CaI was so sure that this song was written by Johnny Mathis. but thanks to Song Facts now I Know where to find the information related to a particular Song.. thanks a million Song Facts..
Carin from Towaco, NjThis song is difficult to sing, but you can tell that Johnny Mathis sure "gets" the meaning of the lyrics. It's packed with emotion and has a haunting quality. I think it's about a guy who is returning to his lover after being separated from her. The ordinary things he sees while driving to see her bring back fabulous, exciting memories of what they've shared together in the past. This song brings back similar memories for me, too.
Guy from Woodinville, WaTruly great lyrics! These guys really outdid themselves with this one. Love Art Garfunkel's version. A great song from a great album!
Reg from Kemptville, On, -Art Garfunkel does a great cover of this on his album "Breakaway".

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