THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

828-Eddie Floyd-Knock on Wood.

1966-Number 19 single.

Best Bit-At 0.46. In the UK, the expression is ‘touch wood,’ but this American expression, meaning the same, fits in better with the song.

Eddie Lee Floyd was born on June 25, 1937, in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. He first tasted success, as a founding member of the American ‘R&B’ vocal group ‘The Falcons’ in 1955, who are considered forerunners to the big Detroit groups of the 1960’s, such as ‘The Temptations,’ and ‘The Four Tops.’ With ‘The Falcons’ Eddie Floyd charted on the Billboard Hot 100 in America with the million selling ‘You’re So Fine,’ (1959-Number 17) and also on the Billboard R&B Chart at Number 2. Floyd remained a member of ‘The Falcons’ through until 1963, leaving in order to pursue a solo singing, and songwriting career, which came to fruition when he signed a contract with ‘Stax Records’ in 1965. As a songwriter, many of his songs have been covered by the top recording artists on ‘Stax,’ and from 1967, he also became a recording artist himself on ‘Stax,’ having previously issued six unsuccessful solo singles on other labels between 1962-1965. The discography of Eddie Floyd as a solo artist includes 17 Albums released between 1967-2013, and 37 singles issued between 1962-1978. In America on the Billboard Hot 100, three of those singles have made the top 40, with his version of the original Sam Cooke (1931-1964) song ‘Bring It On Home to Me,’ charting the highest at Number 17 in 1968, while on Billboard ‘Knock on Wood’ peaked at Number 28. On the Billboard R&B chart, Eddie Floyd has charted within the top 40 on 11 occasions, while in the UK, three of his songs have reached the top 40, with ‘Knock on Wood’ peaking the highest.

‘Knock on Wood’ was co-written by Eddie Floyd, and Steve Cropper, (see also best songs 906-712 and 530) who were both songwriters for the ‘Stax Records’ label, with the production being by Jim Stewart, (1930-2022) who in 1957 had been the co-founder of ‘Stax’ with his sister Estelle Axton (1918-2004.) ‘Knock on Wood’ was the first of two singles issued from Eddie Floyd’s debut studio Album of the same name, from January 1967. ‘Knock on Wood’ which had originally been written with Otis Redding (1941-1967) in mind, came about late at night in the ‘Lorraine Motel,’ in Memphis, Tennessee, where in 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968) would be assassinated. Steve Cropper has spoken about how the song came to fruition,’We were trying to write a song about superstitions, and after we’d exhausted about every superstition known to man at that time, from cats to umbrellas, you name it, we said, what do people do for good luck? And Ed tapped on the chair and said, ‘knock on wood, there it is.’ So basically the whole theme of the song changed, and we started to sing about, I’d better knock on wood for good luck, that I can keep this girl that I got, because she’s the greatest, and that’s what it was about.”

‘Knock on Wood’ is memorable for it’s pauses. After Eddie Floyd sings ‘I better knock,’ there is a pause before the drummer Al Jackson (1935-1975) (see also best songs 906 and 307) comes in with the drumbeats, and Floyd completes the line with ‘on wood.’ It was Jackson who came up with the idea, in order to simulate the sound of someone knocking on a door. The song has been recorded by dozens of other artists down the years, with the most successful recording being the 1979 ‘Disco’ version by the American singer Ami Stewart, who reached Number 1 on Billboard, and Number 6 in the UK, where a remix version of the song also reached Number 7 in 1985. In 1967, Otis Redding recorded the song as a duet with Carla Thomas, and charted on Billboard at Number 30, and Number 35 in the UK. The other significant version to chart was by David Bowie, (1947-2016) who released a live version from his 1974 Album ‘David Live,’ his recording made Number 10 in 1974.

‘I don’t want to lose you, this good thing that I got ’cause if I do I will surely, surely lose a lot, ’cause your love is better than any love I know. It’s like thunder and lightning, the way you love me is frightening, you better knock, knock on wood, baby.’