This song is me ... driving taxi at night in S. F. in the 70s, and again in S. F. (now) driving Uber almost 50 years later. It never gets old . I only wish that Harry Chapin was still here to enjoy his life also. His songs are timeless. Thank you, Sir. May you rest in peace, love, and comfort forever
You'll be happy to know that the Chapin name carries on. His neices, "The Chapin Sisters" are making critically-acclaimed music. Doing their family legacy proud, while carving out their own sound as well!
I was working a bad factory job at when this song was around. I would sing the song to myself I my head while I waited for the plastic mold to open up… it helped me to keep My Sanity 👍🏼
I remember hearing this for the first time. It was the early 70's andI was in the upper west side on the top floor of a brownstone well past midnight. I had the radio on and one candle lit. Then this song came on. It blew my f-in mind.
Fifty years ago, I was stationed at the Sub base at Groton, CT. A couple of buddies and I rented an apartment in Norwich. A young lady living nextdoor introduced me to a friend of hers. We hit it off right away. She introduced me to so much music. Gordon Lightfoot, John Denver and a guy who had come out with a song called Taxi. Harry Chapin's music blew me away! I love all of his music is great, but Taxi, has to be the best. I listen to it and I'm 50 years younger, sitting a darkened apartment, listening to music with wonderful, young lady. Thanks for the memories Harry Chapin.
The storyline is as timeless as the haunting melody. None of us makes it through the years unscathed by disappoinment, loss, and the irony of what we once imagined our lives would be.
You are so right about that. I think back on loss, etc. And I guess you could say who doesn't look back with a bit of sadness about certain things? Love listening to all the great music from that period like Harry, Carly Simon, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce, Don Mclean, etc. The list goes on and on.
This is one of those songs that late at night you pour your best bourbon, sit outside by yourself, and get a small smile listening to it...love how it’s so haunting and deep...
You got that right. 😢 I can feel it, and see it. You don't get to 74 without having an experience similar to this song. Just substitute the names. Rest in peace Harry Chapin.
The first time I heard this song was soon after it's release. I was working night shift in a factory, my last year of college, like most of the others working there. When this song played over the intercom/radio, the plant slowly came to a stand-still. An entire electronics factory stopped working to hear this song. When it ended everyone seemed to take a deep breath and resume their lives. That was the intensity of these lyrics in 1972. It was the end we all feared.
I too am a 61 yr old manly man, and if this song doesn't choke you up, there's something wrong with you. Amazing storytelling, so relatable, and such tender reminiscing.
I always cry listening to it. I think of the boy I lived in high school, I moved to CA he stayed in PA, but to this day I remember him and a love lost.
Yes, until Sequel finally came out though that ending wasn't exactly what I was hoping for. I always want to know what actually happens at the end of the story. Also Roses Are Red is an important one for teachers to know about.
Harry died two weeks before I was going to see him in concert at the Holiday Star Theatre in Merrillville, Indiana. I still have the concert ticket today. Harry was an outstanding talent.
Just Plain Jimmy I liked the way he despised the control money had over people. He never lived a king although he could have. His songs reflect caring about people, not money.
The Star was a great venue. I saw Whitesnake there in 2015, and I guess they tore it down just recently. Damn shame, they had consistently great bands there
What a classic song by Harry Chapin. Very weird, you hardly hear this song on either the radio or satellite. Two nights ago, I was pulling into my driveway and Taxi came on, I could not get out of my car until the song was over. What chills were running up and down my spine!!!!!! GR8 Tune......R.I.P.
Great song, just don't make them like this anymore. I get chills everytime I her this song. Takes me back to so many memories. Thanx Harry, keep the change....Peace and Love...
Just add your life story, you have mine and we have Harry's life story in common. Somehow everyone has the same story but a little different. My life is not what I thought it would be, but its not bad!!!
That has happened to me too MARK It makes me remember HER ... why can'r we ever shake off those horrible regretful memories ? I can never shut t his song off .. I guess it's how I still punish myself for what I did
I thought that falsetto interlude was a woman for years. The internet live recording from way back revealed the truth. A heavily bearded musician singing at his highest falsetto ranges. And doing a knock up job. Incredible song. My rule is if i can feel I'm almost part of the story, its a great song.
this, The Boxer, Homeward Bound by S&G, then Waterloo Sunset, the Kinks' acoustic version would all be in my top 10 acoustic songs in my life. I am 68. Great visuals and such sad songs the same.
Had the honor of meeting Mister Chapin in 1977 when I was working at a rock station, he came in for an interview. Unfortunately they were very busy times and I just got to shake his hand and say hello. RIP Sir.
This song came out when I was 16 and hearing the song can take me back to that time. I am 68 now and magically can take me back to a love lost. Thanks Harry.
A work of art. It reminds me so much of 'Same Old Lang Syne' by the late Dan Fogelberg. The same scenario, two ex-lovers meeting years later, both awkward encounters, both incredibly sad, but yet so different in how they were told. Great poetry.
Music transcends human years, it seems. At 30, from a country which was never exposed, influenced, by this type of music, I too had a tear to shead while listening.
It is weird that it doesn't play that often. You know, this was one of the songs that broke down the 21/2 to 31/2 minutes rule in commercial radio. Even Light my Fire had a commercial edit. There was no place in the song to cut.
AMOS, Jeffrey is right on. I was born in 1954... Lost loves still haunt me. Especially a memory anchored by a song. Most recently "Sometimes in Winter" from Blood Sweat and Tears brought back an early heartbreak for me. Bittersweet is a fact of life, now it leaves less sad than wistful.
This is one of the very greatest tunes of the 70s. And I can NAIL it karaoke. I remember as a teen the final words "..takin' tips, and gettin' stoned. I go flyin' so high...when I'm stoned." It was a little rebellious given the times. Loved it then, love it now. Chapin was a MASTER storyteller.
In the hollows of the Appalachians southwest Virginia and northeast Tennessee in '71 am radio this came across like a broadcast from another world... still has the same spell in 2024
An amazing musician and even better man. I remember the day he died on the Long Island Expressway about fifteen minutes from my house. Any oxygen I had was immediately sucked out. He was humble beyond belief; a performer the equivalent of Dylan and Gordon Lightfoot.
I listen to this song almost daily for many years now as it is on my playlist. Time after time it brings back memories that on some level those who are willing to admit it were life-changing. I still morn his loss for the compassionate man talented performer that he was. I'm certain that I am amongst thousands that feel the same. RIP HARRY, we miss you as a man musician and one of societies finest.
I don't know why I thought of this song today. But I had to listen. Met Harry & his band backstage at the great southeast music hall in Atlanta, early 70s. Such a nice person, with a big heart. Sad he's no longer here.
Beautiful. "Another man might've been angry, and another man might've been hurt. But another man never would've let her go. I stashed the bill in my shirt." Pure poetry.
And life choices in general, here I am in my 50's lost many loved ones because of cheating, can't stand my job, relationship sucks, but I stay positive, I'm the product of my own demise.
There was nobody like Harry Chapin before him and most likely will never be another singer like him again. Trying to put a finger on what's so likeable about him and his music is not easy. But, genuine, unquie and engaging definitely come to mind!
He burst upon the scene when I was in high school. Greatest Stories Live was the first album of his I bought while in Grad school. He became one of the first socially active rock musicians. He died in a car accident seven months after John Lennon, with little fan fare. But Harry Chapin's activism to combat world hunger eventfully lead to the Foundation in his name and the Harry Chapin Food banks. Today, they are feeding so many Americans during the Covid Pandemic, and that makes him much more relevant.
49 years ago I was working a Bad Factory job when this song was around. I would sing it to myself in my head while I waited for the plastic mold to open up. It Helped Me to Keep My Sanity…. Thank You Harry ❤️🧠
I'm a metalhead, but this song is so awesome! I actually heard this as a Lost Classic on WOUR in Utica, NY one afternoon, and I was shocked at how nice this song is. Harry Chapin certainly knew how to tell a story in his songs.
IM CONFUSED ... you like this song .. but ... your a metalhead .... as a metalhead ... have YOU ANY IDEA HOW MANY MORe SONGS ThERE ARE LIKE THIS ... that you passed up for metal "stuff" ////
Taxi at 6:49 vs. CITC at 3:49. "Editing for time. Radio edits often shorten a long song in order to make it more commercially viable for radio stations. The normal length for songs played on the radio is between 3 to 4 minutes. " Radio edit - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Radio_edi
One of my favorite songs of all time! I'm 45 now and have a 20 month old son... I have sang this song to him even when he was still in his mommies tummy.. probably the first song he ever knew lol love it!
I sang this for my son when I put him to bed as a child. He called it 'Hard', as in, 'sing "Hard" for me Papa '. I always did. I texted him just now, he's 34 we shared the days events...I had to link this to him, yes I still tear up. RIP Harry
I recently bought a Midnight Special DVD. This 2014 release has Harry Chapin performing Taxi on August 19, 1972. Since then I have been listening to his music regularly and rediscovering his immense talent. Often Harry's voice has been regarded as nondescript. I say his voice was the doorway to his soul. Fly on... Willie J.
In 1978 I hitchhiked to San Francisco, chasing my first love. I got a job driving for Veteran Cab Co. Smoked pot. The whole bit. I lived this song. Perversely, this is my favorite song for karaoke!!! Howard, keep the change! .
Every time I hear this song . Makes me think of my first love. Even though it’s been 50years, still can remember how he made me feel. A love tucked into my heart forever. ❤️❤️
The falsetto lines in the middle ("Baby's so high that she's skying ... aren't we all?") are just breathtakingly beautiful. I heard this song when I was 13, when it came out, and had never heard it on anything but a car radio. I couldn't tell if voice, or some kind of instrument. For some reason, just now, about 50 years later, it occurred to me to listen to it on headphones. I was amazed at how beautifully it's arranged and produced. But that vocal passage gave me chills. And for a song that's straight-up narrative, those lines are way, way out there.
The falsetto was performed by his brother, Tom Chapin. I was lucky to see Harry in concert before he passed. A true story teller and a wonderful human being.
Just heard this song for the first time thirty minutes ago and had to look it up. I am 26 years old. It is funny how great music transcends time. Perhaps music transcends all things.
As a San Francisco native, when I first heard this song, I could picture Harry pulling the cab into "16 Parkside Lane". Perhaps somewhere in Presidion Heights, I thought. This song is a classic, and introduced an entire generation to a great soul. His death was too tragic, and too soon.
Harry Chapin died too young. A fantastic songwriter and artist. Taken away too early through a tragedy. Jim Croce, Otis Redding, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Holly... All lost by accident. A loss to all of us.
J. Darr I was reading what you wrote about the great songwriters and singers that were taken way too early most definitely in my opinion Otis Redding had the greatest hit. If not the greatest it would be the second greatest hit that was ever recorded when you listen to them lyrics and listen to what he sings this it is just unbelievably great just excellent
It may not have been the accident that took Harry's life. It could have been a heart attack that caused him to swerve. The accident should not have killed him. It was a surprise that he was unresponsive when pulled from the car. His death was caused by Cardiac Arrest, which could have been why he swerved through two lanes ultimately in front of the truck that hit him. The doctors could not determine if the heart attack occured before, during, or after the accident. When you know all these facts, that it was midday two, put it all together, and it seems our dear Harry had a heart attack on the road, got hit in the rear of his car, the front area was not crushed, the fire did not get him, yet they pulled an unresponsive man from the car, who was later determined to have had a heart attack. Put it all together, and you have a very young heart attack victim. I have not heard any mention of cocaine so I assume it was a "your time has come" natural heart attack. After all, he was extraordinarily busy as a person...very much on the go. Whatever it was we lost one of the greatest musician, singer, songwriters, activists of all time that day.
Kirk Matheson Remember going to OC,Maryland with friends smoking some kick ads hash. Leaving with a broken heart from my 1st love became my song of life's little paybacks for not making the right choices.But as Harry so ettiquiettly puts it "we both got what we asked for" such is life.Its been great and I really miss that Hash.
one of the greatest storytellers. I loved him, still do. I saw him in concert in Nashville years ago. he invited all in the audience to join him onstage for Taxi. I stood beside him, all of us singing...what a memory. I have an autographed book of his poems too.
Harry. I hope, after all these years, that you are having one hell of a wonderful journey. Thank you for your wonderful musical gifts. You were a part of my youth.
Like Dan Fogelbergs Auld Lang Syne The beer was empty, and our tongues were tired And running out of things to say She gave a kiss to me as I got out And I watched her drive away.
ohhhhhhhhhhh god ....... it's 55 years for me ! and it still affects me ... this is song is about 20 times repeated . .... and I bet she never thinks of me but as in Love and war ... the winner never remembers ............. and the loser never forgets .... c'est La vie isn't it ?
Jeez... 1972, Vietnam, I was 18, in the military and heard this song during a thunderstorm in my barracks. His words were lost on me back then, I was too young and dumb. But it has a universal bittersweet truth. "Harry -- Keep the change..." As the song faded out every guy there just sat silent.
@@instantkarma1511 Then for him to die in a freeway collision in 1981 was just pure hell. His wife won a settlement against the trucking company, oh well. He was one of the few people back then who was trying to make the world a better place, read his bio on Wikipedia.
GOD REST YOUR SOUL HARRY !!! July 16, 1981. YOUR GREATNESS, KINDNESS, CARING, GIVING HEART, IS STILL A BLESSING TO US ALL !!! We had tickets too your next two night concerts at The Hampton Beach Ballroom. We still LOVE AND MISS YOU !!! YOU WERE THE BEST !!!!
I've been a taxi driver for 18 years, and I love this song. Beware, sometimes there is no "Sequel". We burn through woulda beens and shoulda beens in our lives. That doesn't just apply to taxi drivers, by the way...
Lenny Fortes Well Lenny, you can at least count yourself a thoughtful person to even ask "What if?" I suspect you are rich with friends and family who appreciate who you are, whether you know it or not. Denying that we have regrets is denying our humanity. Peace to you...buzz...
+buzzguy72 It applies to us all who's SOUL tells us we have not achieved what WE came to this planet to achieve -I wait on tables man He got stoned and I got whiskey
+Montgomery Denzer You are quite right. Obviously I'm happy driving a taxi or I would have changed that long ago. At my noblest, I'm not on Earth to make a ton of money. I'm here to leave a positive difference in the lives of those who know me. As far as why we're really each here, it beats me. I'm still figuring this out after 40. "Taxi" gets me thinking about these things, so the song did its job. I bet you're a damn good waitress, by the way.
+ted norton If you're referring to energy sources, you are totally and "hopelessly" confused. If you are referring to the 'we're all victims' society - you are correct.
+sdushdiu I was referring to energy sources and history of the automobile equating to awful US Foreign policy as well as awful ideals of "success" within our own shores.
***** Yawn. babble babble babble. I was referring to tired fkwads who stupidly attempt to take a song about emotional pathos and pathetically attempt to turn it into some amorphous mangled non sequitur socio-political statement.
Diane Guimond this song hits home it actually takes your entire being and it reminds me of someone who I was deeply deeply in love with but she didn't really care about me but that's okay but everytime I hear this song it just makes me think of what could have been
And she walked away in silence, it's strange how you never know. But we'd both gotten what we asked for, such a long....long time ago. Some days I feel like every man who's ever felt that way. RIP Harry, you were truly one of a kind.
This epic song is so nostalgic for me, spanning over several decades...most recently & importantly, that late night when we were finishing up your driving lesson Vinny, & this came on...so bittersweet, now that you are gone, my dear son, but I can't not love it for always...Just another thread that connects you to me...So thankful for music & the memories they can conjure up...
I was walking thru Roosevelt Mall on Long Island many years ago and I heard a man singing and playing guitar - I went over and there was Harry Chapin just sitting and playing and asking people for any food or donations they could give for the poor - a good man with great talent
He played at our high school in CT in the '70's.... he gave a free concert during the day for all the kids. He didn't sing "Cat's in the Cradle" - which was his big hit at the time - and said "Come back tonight and bring a couple of cans of food for the poor and I will sing it"..... Good guy. Lived his beliefs and wrote poetry.
I think a lot of people have a story like this....that is why this song was such a incredible hit....we could relate.....Harry Chapin had a gift of reminding us of the loneliness of the Human condition......love the guy
When my husband and I were dating in 1972, a musician friend turned us on to Harry. We attended several of his concerts. Our musician friend wrote and performed a Harry style song for our wedding. 50 years later when my husband was in hospice dying from cancer we played Harry for him even though he was in a non responsive state. Our priest talked about how much Steve liked Harry and about Steve’s favorite Harry’s songs during the eulogy. Today, 2 1/2 years later, I’m sitting next to my husband’s grave playing - and singing - Harry tunes. ❤️ you Harry!! ❤️❤️you Steve!!!
