Songfacts®:

• "Brand New Day" was written by Al Kooper (The Blues Project, Blood Sweat & Tears) as part of the original score written for the 1970 film Hal Ashby The Landlord. Kooper wrote it while staying at the famous Chateau Marmont Hotel at 8221 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California. In fact, the bungalow he rented was the same one where John Belushi would later spend his last night on Earth!
• As given in Al Kooper's memoir Backstage Passes and Backstabbing Bastards, this song is about the sociological changes going on in America at the time. It seemed appropriate for the film.
  In order to make the song work within the film, normally the film would be screening in the studio while the musicians record. Except they decided that was too distracting, so they timed the cues with a stopwatch so they could focus on the music.
• Hal Ashby would go on to direct such legendary cult hit films as Harold and Maude, Shampoo, and Being There. Also in Al Kooper's memoir, he tells an anecdote of what it was like to work with Ashby. During film production, Kooper offered to treat him to a concert in Long Beach, providing Ashby drove. Ashby arrived parking his Ferrari illegally in the backstage parking area. After the concert, no sooner did they step outside than Ashby lit a joint. Kooper, a bit nervous, asked, "Hal, there are cops all over the place and we're illegally parked. You think it's a wise decision to walk around getting high?" Ashby's lofty response: "Well, what's the worst that can happen? They'll beat the s--t out of us and throw us in jail."