The Story Behind the Song Bob Dylan Once Called the ‘Greatest Ever Written’ originally appeared on Parade.
Bob Dylan has called “Wichita Lineman,” the 1968 song written by Jimmy Webb and recorded by his frequent collaborator Glen Campbell, the “greatest song ever written.”
The song is enjoying renewed interest after music publisher Primary Wave posted a clip of Campbell performing the classic on TikTok.
In an interview for The Billboard Book of Number One Albums, Campbell told me about the origins of the song. The singer-songwriter and former session guitarist had previously scored his first top 30 hit with his recording of another Webb-penned classic, “By the Time I Get to Phoenix.”
It was during a visit from Webb to Campbell’s Hollywood hills home that he first heard the song about a telephone company worker, not a football player. “He played it for me on this big organ that looked like the organ at the Crystal Cathedral, and it just blew me away,” Campbell said.
However, when Campbell first attempted to record the song at Capitol Records Studio A in Hollywood, it didn’t sound quite right. “We couldn’t get the sound we wanted for the record, so we ended up carting that organ down to the studio and we had Jimmy play on it,” he recalled.
“Wichita Lineman” ended up being the title track on Campbell’s 11th studio album. And even before Dylan started praising the song, Campbell’s label was raving about the album on the hype sticker on its cover with the words “Probably one of the best albums you’ve ever heard… Probably the best album he’s ever made…”
Although the single of “Wichita Lineman” stalled at No. 3 on the Hot 100, it topped the Country Songs and Adult Contemporary Songs charts. More importantly, it propelled the album of the same name to the top of the album chart in its sixth week, becoming Campbell’s first and only number one album.
The Story Behind the Song Bob Dylan Once Called the ‘Greatest Ever Written’ first appeared on Parade on Aug 5, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 5, 2025, where it first appeared.
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