One Toke Over the Line

"One Toke Over the Line" is a song written and performed by American folk rock duo Brewer & Shipley. It is a track from their 1970 LP Tarkio, and was released as their debut single in early 1971.

"One Toke Over the Line"
Single by Brewer & Shipley
from the album Tarkio
B-side"Oh Mommy"
ReleasedMarch 1971 (U.S.)
GenreCountry rock, folk rock
Length3:16
LabelKama Sutra Records
Songwriter(s)Mike Brewer, Tom Shipley
Producer(s)Nick Gravenites
Brewer & Shipley singles chronology
"One Toke Over the Line"
(1971)		 "Tarkio Road"
(1971)

Background

Mike Brewer gives this account of the origin of the song, "One day we were pretty much stoned and all and Tom says, “Man, I’m one toke over the line tonight.” I liked the way that sounded and so I wrote a song around it."[1]

The song gained popular acclaim while the band was touring as an opening act for Melanie, after they received an encore but had run out of other songs to play.[2]

This song was banned in several areas, especially in the Deep South, the Bible Belt, and the rural areas in the Midwest, due to the biblical references to Jesus and Mary.

The song is also noted for its overlapping pre-recorded vocals in the final refrains.

The line "Sitting downtown in a railway station, one toke over the line" became the main catchphrase of the song, including its final hook line "One toke, one toke over the line".

Chart history

The song peaked at #10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and #8 Cash Box[3] during the spring of 1971, and was the duo's only Top 40 hit. It also reached #5 in Canada[4] and #7 in New Zealand.[5]

Cover versions

A cover version was performed in early 1971 by Gail Farrell and Dick Dale on The Lawrence Welk Show, which Welk billed as a "modern spiritual."[14][15]

Later uses

The song is notably mentioned in the opening of Hunter S. Thompson's 1971 novel, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and was "sung" by Dr. Gonzo (Benicio Del Toro) in the 1998 film of the same name.

See also

References
  1. Fong-Torres, Ben (April 15, 1971). "Radio: One Toke Behind the Line". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 25, 2018 – via BrewerAndShipley.com.
  2. Mastropolo, Frank (December 3, 2012). ""One Toke Over the Line" – More Than a "One Hit" Wonder". Rock Cellar. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  3. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, April 24, 1971
  4. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1971-05-01. Retrieved 2019-02-15.
  5. Flavour of New Zealand, 28 June 1971
  6. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 46. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  7. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1971-05-01. Retrieved 2019-02-15.
  8. Flavour of New Zealand, 28 June 1971
  9. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  10. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, April 24, 1971
  11. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca.
  12. Musicoutfitters.com
  13. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1971". Archived from the original on October 6, 2016. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  14. "One Toke On Lawrence Welk". BrewerAndShipley.com. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  15. "Toking" with Lawrence Welk on YouTube
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