You might not know the title of this song, but you’ll recognize it when you hear it. In America, “Feels So Good” is one of the most popular instrumental songs of all time, and certainly the biggest flugelhorn hit.
Chuck Mangione first recorded with his brother Gap in a band called The Jazz Brothers, which formed in 1960. He signed with Mercury Records as a solo artist and released his first album in 1970, charting for the first time with “Hill Where The Lord Hides” in 1971 (#76). He grew a following in jazz circles and scored a surprise mainstream hit with “Feels So Good,” which reached #4 in June 1978 and also hit #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. These were the last days of disco, and his smooth jazz number provided welcome relief from the typical dance music that had saturated the airwaves. It sold over two million copies.
The recording was nominated for a Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the ceremony held in 1979, losing out to Billy Joel’s “Just the Way You Are”.
“Feels So Good” is far and away Mangione’s most popular song, but it’s not the only one to make an impact: His song “Give It All You Got” was chosen as the theme to the 1980 Winter Olympics and also went to #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
This song has been used in episodes of these TV series:
Friends (“The One with All the Haste” – 1998) – Joey’s singing neighbor (Michal Connor) annoys Rachel with his vocal rendition, “Morning’s Here.”
The Simpsons (“Ice Cream of Margie: With the Light Blue Hair” – 2006)
Family Guy (“Stew-roids” – 2009)
The Big Bang Theory (“The Graduation Transmission” – 2015)
South Park (“Where My Country Gone?” – 2015)
And these movies:
Hard to Kill (1990)
Fargo (1996)
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)
Musicians:
Chuck Mangione: Flugelhorn & electric piano
Chris Vadala: Saxes
Grant Geissman: Guitar
Charles Meeks: Electric Bass
James Bradley, Jr.: Drums
“Feels So Good” – Single by Chuck Mangione from the album Feels So Good
Released February 1978
Songwriter Chuck Mangione
Producer Chuck Mangione
Charted No.4 U.S. Billboard Hot 100; U.S. Billboard Easy Listening; No.5 Canada; No.49 Australia
