Spirit in the Sky” is a song written and originally recorded by Norman Greenbaum and released in late 1969. The single became a gold record, selling two million copies from 1969 to 1970, and reached number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart (April 18, 1970), where it lasted for 15 weeks in the Top 100, and #1 on WCFL…. (link)
I was age-13, and remember hearing this song played over and over on AM radio, which they did way too much. I was so glad when I found KQRS FM, a progressive rock station that would never repeat the same song in 24 hours, and would sometimes play entire sides of albums (real vinyl record LPs that real DJs played on a turntable in real time).
I now wonder what this did to America’s psyche, who heard it hundreds of times ad nauseam. I wasn’t mature enough spiritually at the time to think through the implications, being so young and not becoming a Christian until five years later.
A funeral home in Anchorage now uses it in their ad, playing the part that assures people they’re going to heaven when they die; though, this song wasn’t even written by a Christian, and may be mocking Christianity, as this writer theorizes.
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