Time To Be Great

Album: The Day The Earth Stood Still (2021)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Like the rest of the world, Willie Nile was trying to make sense of life and personal responsibility during the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to many of the songs on his album The Day The Earth Stood Still, including this funk-edged track. The singer-songwriter told Songfacts in 2021 of the tune: "Watching TV, dealing with this whole past year of madness and nightmare, I thought, What do we do as people? What do you do in a situation like this? And I thought, You know what, we pick ourselves up and try to do the best we can. We try to be great. You be great, I'll be great, and let's just try to help each other, pick each other up. Something upbeat, you know: Shed a little light in this darkness."
  • The Day The Earth Stood Still, named after a 1951 sci-fi movie, is the 14th studio album from the Buffalo-born rocker, who debuted with a self-titled release in 1980. His music legacy is greatly appreciated on his home turf. After the release of his previous album, 2020's New York At Night, Elmore Magazine boasted, "Jersey has Bruce Springsteen, but New York has Willie Nile."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Graham Nash

Graham NashSongwriter Interviews

Graham Nash tells the stories behind some of his famous songs and photos, and is asked about "yacht rock" for the first time.

Ralph Casale  - Session Pro

Ralph Casale - Session ProSongwriter Interviews

A top New York studio musician, Ralph played guitar on many '60s hits, including "Lightnin' Strikes," "A Lover's Concerto" and "I Am A Rock."

Rob Halford of Judas Priest

Rob Halford of Judas PriestSongwriter Interviews

Rob Halford dives into some of his Judas Priest lyrics, talking about his most personal songs and the message behind "You've Got Another Thing Comin'."

Corey Hart

Corey HartSongwriter Interviews

The Canadian superstar talks about his sudden rise to fame, and tells the stories behind his hits "Sunglasses At Night," "Boy In The Box" and "Never Surrender."

Incongruent Opening Acts

Incongruent Opening ActsSong Writing

Here's what happens when an opening act is really out of place with the headliner, like when Beastie Boys opened for Madonna.

Edwin McCain

Edwin McCainSongwriter Interviews

"I'll Be" was what Edwin called his "Hail Mary" song. He says it proves "intention of the songwriter is 180 degrees from potential interpretation by an audience."