“San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)” – Single by Scott McKenzie from the album The Voice of Scott McKenzie
B-side: “What’s the Difference”
Released: May 13, 1967
Label: Ode 103 (US), Columbia 2757 (UK & Canada)
Songwriter: John Phillips
Producers: Lou Adler, John Phillips.
Charted No.4 in US, No.1 in UK
John Phillips played guitar on the recording and session musician Gary L. Coleman played orchestra bells and chimes. Bass guitar was supplied by session musician Joe Osborn. Hal Blaine played drums. The song reached the fourth position on the US charts and the number one spot on the UK charts. In Ireland, it was number one for one week, in New Zealand the song spent five weeks at number one, and in Germany it was six weeks at number one.
McKenzie’s version has been called “the unofficial anthem of the counterculture movement of the 1960s, including the Hippie, Anti-Vietnam War and Flower power movements.” The song has also been widely regarded as a defining song of the Summer of Love along with the Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love”.
This song was the publicity showcase of the 1967 Monterrey Pop Festival, being catapulted in a very short time to the top of the United States charts that reached number four, in the United Kingdom and in the rest of Europe got to be number one. It is one of the best known hymns of the hippie movement.
