By the Time I Get to Phoenix

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"By the Time I Get to Phoenix" is an American pop song written by Jimmy Webb and made famous by Glen Campbell, whose version reached #3 on the U.S. Pop charts in 1967. It was originally recorded by Johnny Rivers in 1965. It has become a pop standard, and is reportedly one of the most covered songs in history, with thousands of different versions recorded. Covers include those by Isaac Hayes, Marty Wilde, and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.

The song consists of a man describing his decision to leave his woman, by writing her a note telling her, and his descriptions of what he expects she will be experiencing as he arrives at certain locations.

By the time I get to Phoenix, she'll be rising...

By the time I make Albuquerque she'll be working...

and

By the time I make Oklahoma she'll be sleepin'...

Webb, a Los Angeles resident when he wrote the song, was raised in Oklahoma.

[edit] How "true" is the journey?

There have been some who have pointed out that the type of trip described in the song, based on the conditions of roads in the U.S. in 1965, would be unlikely. Presumably the singer is leaving Los Angeles (or the west coast), and would expect to get to Phoenix, a distance of over 370 miles, in only a few hours. However, this timeline has many problems:

• Los Angeles to Phoenix: Although Interstate 10, which now connects Los Angeles to Phoenix, was largely complete in California by that time, very little of the highway in Arizona had been completed in 1965. The run from the California border to Phoenix would have been mainly on the two-lane US 60, making the song's time frame unfeasible.
• Los Angeles to Albuquerque: It is also a distance of over 500 miles from Los Angeles to Albuquerque, and in the song he indicates that his ex-lover might telephone him during lunch while he's already at or past that point. Adding to the problems with the timeline, the most direct route between the two cities at that time would have been Route 66, which not only was a two-lane road, but also does not pass within 100 miles of Phoenix, instead traveling through northern Arizona.
• Oklahoma: As for the last point mentioned, Oklahoma, the nearest point in Oklahoma, the town of Felt, would be more than 1150 miles and even at Interstate speeds would take more than 17 hours. To reach a major city such as Oklahoma City (straight through on Interstate 40 from Albuquerque) would exceed 1375 miles and take almost 20 hours. Thus the scenario as described in the song is probably unlikely to occur. However, after saying all this, it is highly unlikely that anyone would think that it was important whether the 'trip' would fit into a time frame.