Elusive Butterfly was written after an all-nighter in 1964 while living in Denver while watching the sun coming up. Inspired by W.B Yeats’ poem ‘The Song of the Wandering Aengus’ –
“I wanted to write something that had the sense we feel of being most alive when we’re searching or looking or chasing after something. That expectation is more life affirming than getting the thing you’re after.” – Bob Lind.
Bob Lind (Robert Neale Lind b25/11/42 Baltimore, Maryland) became interested in music while in college and formed his own band ‘The Moonlighters’ and later while in university formed a rock covers band as ‘Bob Lind and the misfits.’
He started to write his own material when new writers started to emerge at the beginning of the 60’s. Many artist have covered Lind, who is considered a key artist in the folk rock movement in the 60’s in both the US and UK.
The break came at the age of 23 with a recording deal, originally working with Sonny Bono until commitments took him on another path, and Lind was given one of Phil Spector’s team – Jack Nitzsche.
Playing Elusive Butterfly live, sometimes it would last 10 minutes and years later it transpired a version was recorded but fans have yet to find it, becoming quite elusive, like the butterfly. Lind would play to Nitzsche, offering songs for consideration –
“I thought the whole idea was stupid. What was a brilliant, classically trained arranger with his melodic scope going to hear in my twangy-folky little songs?… [Nitzsche] sat there listening to me plunk my way through four of five tunes and stunned me by telling Lenny (A&R MAN) ‘You finally got an honest writer here.’ From the beginning Jack heard something in my music that I did not” – Bob Lind.
Nitzsche added the strings, he barricaded himself in his office “and wrote those breathtakingly beautiful charts, those tear-jerking string lines, all of it… he amazed me with what he found in my songs.” – Bob Lind.
The track was released in the US as a B-side to ‘Cheryl’s Goin’ Home’ but the single failed to receive any airplay until radio station WQAM started to play Elusive Butterfly. It caught on and Butterfly was switched to the A-side in January 66, pushing it to number 5 on the charts.
Here in the UK, a cover version by Val Doonican entered the charts at the same time, both peaking at number 5, who knows if the single would have reached the top if only one version had been available.
Bob recorded just 4 albums between 1966-1971 and had only 1 top 40 single. The success of butterfly led to a period of drug and alcohol problems and after a couple of unsuccessful singles his label dropped him and Lind quit the music business.
After moving to Florida he gave up his demons and has been clean since 77. Concentrating on writing he wrote for a couple of newspapers and wrote novels and screenplays. He still plays today.
A notable although not unique fact, is that none of the lines rhyme
You might wake up some mornin’
To the sound of something moving past your window in the wind
And if you’re quick enough to rise
You’ll catch a fleeting glimpse of someone’s fading shadow
Out on the new horizon
You may see the floating motion of a distant pair of wings
And if the sleep has left your ears
You might hear footsteps running through an open meadow Don’t be concerned, it will not harm you
It’s only me pursuing somethin’ I’m not sure of
Across my dreams with nets of wonder
I chase the bright elusive butterfly of love You might have heard my footsteps
Echo softly in the distance through the canyons of your mind
I might have even called your name
As I ran searching after something to believe in
You might have seen me runnin’
Through the long-abandoned ruins of the dreams you left behind
If you remember something there
That glided past you followed close by heavy breathin’Don’t be concerned, it will not harm you
It’s only me pursuing somethin’ I’m not sure of
Across my dreams with nets of wonder
I chase the bright elusive butterfly of love Across my dreams with nets of wonder
I chase the bright elusive butterfly of love