"I Was Only Joking"
Single by Rod Stewart
from the album Foot Loose & Fancy Free
B-side"Born Loose"
ReleasedApril 1978
Recorded1977
GenreSoft rock
Length4:50 (single version)
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Gary Grainger, Rod Stewart
Producer(s)Tom Dowd
Rod Stewart singles chronology
"Hot Legs"
(1978) 		"I Was Only Joking"
(1978) 		"Ole Ola (Mulher Brasileira)"
(1978)
Music video
"I Was Only Joking" on YouTube

"I Was Only Joking" is a song written by Gary Grainger and Rod Stewart released by Stewart in 1978 as the third single on his 1977 album, Foot Loose & Fancy Free.[1] The song performed well, reaching the Top 40 in various countries, including the United Kingdom (No. 5) and the United States (No. 22). In the UK, "I Was Only Joking" charted as part of a double A-side with "Hot Legs".[2]


Reception

Billboard said that Stewart is in "top form interpreting insightful lyrics over a rhythmic, semi-acoustic rock foundation," and Billboard also praised the string and mandolin playing.[3] Cash Box called the song "a gentle ballad about growing and learning" and called the guitar playing "clean."[4] Record World called it "perhaps the most thoughtful song" from "Foot Loose and Fancy Free."[5]

Chart performance

References

  1. ^ "I Was Only Joking". allmusic. Rovi. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  2. ^ "Top 100 1978 - UK Music Charts".
  3. ^ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. 29 April 1978. p. 80. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  4. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 22 April 1978. p. 52. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  5. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 29 April 1978. p. 1. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  6. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 4638b." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  7. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 4596." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  8. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – I Was Only Joking". Irish Singles Chart.
  9. ^ "Rod Stewart – I Was Only Joking". Top 40 Singles.
  10. ^ "Rod Stewart: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  11. ^ "Rod Stewart Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  12. ^ "Rod Stewart Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  13. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 7/01/78". Archived from the original on 20 March 2016. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  14. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.


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