‘Time of the Season’ is a song by the British rock band the Zombies, featured on their 1968 album Odessey and Oracle. It was written by keyboard player Rod Argent and recorded at Abbey Road Studios (then known as EMI Studios) in September 1967. Over a year after its original release, the track became a surprise hit in the United States, rising to number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Cashbox chart. It has become one of the Zombies' most popular and recognizable songs, and an iconic hit of 1960s psychedelia.
The famous lyrics, "What's your name, who's your daddy, is he rich like me?" are a nod to the Gershwin standard "Summertime," which The Zombies released on their first album. That song contains the lyrics, "Your daddy's rich and your mama's good looking."
The band broke up in late 1967, shortly after recording the album. When the album was released in April 1968, it sold poorly, stalling on the US charts at #95 and making no impact in their native UK. The ‘Time Of The Season’ single, however, became a huge hit in America even though the group had disbanded and couldn't support it. It sold over a million copies, peaking at #3 on March 29, 1969. With their newfound American success, band members Rod Argent, Paul Atkinson and Hugh Grundy got the band back together, minus lead singer Colin Blunstone. This reunion was short lived, and by the end of 1969 The Zombies were once again dead.
Surprisingly, this song never charted in the UK, although it is widely known there. In a 2015 interview, Rod Argent, he said: "'Time of the Season' was the #1 in most countries in the world, but it wasn't in the UK. It's been released three times in the UK, and it's never been a hit. But the extraordinary thing is that everybody knows it in the UK. We played Glastonbury this year, and we had a big audience of the young kids who went completely mad when we played 'Time of the Season.' So, it has become, strangely enough, a classic in the UK, but it's never been a hit."
In 2012, NME named the track the 35th-best song of the 1960s. In 2021, it was ranked at No. 349 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
Label – CBS
Songwriter – Rod Argent
Producers – The Zombies
SONG LYRICS
[Instrumental Intro][Verse 1]
It's the time of the season
When the love runs high
In this time, give it to me easy
And let me try with pleasured hands
[Chorus]
To take you in the sun to (Promised lands)
To show you every one
It's the time of the season for loving
[Verse 2]
What's your name? (What's your name?)
Who's your daddy? (Who's your daddy?)
(He rich?) Is he rich like me?
Has he taken (Has he taken)
Any time (Any time)
(To show) To show you what you need to live?
[Chorus]
Tell it to me slowly (Tell you what?)
I really want to know
It's the time of the season for loving
[Instrumental Bridge]
[Verse 2]
What's your name? (What's your name?)
Who's your daddy? (Who's your daddy?)
(He rich?) Is he rich like me?
Has he taken (Has he taken)
Any time (Any time)
(To show) To show you what you need to live?
[Chorus]
Tell it to me slowly (Tell you what?)
I really want to know
It's the time of the season for loving