Run-Around (song)

1995 single by Blues Traveler

"Run Around" is a song by American rock band Blues Traveler, featured on their fourth studio album, Four (1994). The song was the band's breakthrough hit, peaking at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 13 on Canada's RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart. It gave the band their first Grammy Award in 1996, for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group.

"Run Around" debuted on June 24, 1993, during a solo show featuring Blues Traveler frontman John Popper. The first full band performance of the song took place the next time it was played, February 21, 1994. The 1994 show was significant because it took place at the famous CBGB and the show introduced a number of songs that were to be on their next album, Four. The song tells of the relationship Popper had with original bass player Felicia. Popper had a crush on her, but was worried because they also shared a close friendship. According to guitarist Chan Kinchila the two still remained close friends after the events of the songs.

The video for the song has a Wizard of Oz motif, with Blues Traveler playing behind a curtain in a nightclub while a young, "hip" and more "photogenic" group appears to be playing the song. Dorothy Gale (Diana Marquis), the main character of the story, tries to get into the club. She is turned away by the doorman, as are three other people whose appearances resemble the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, and Tin Woodman characters. They rush to the locked back door, where they catch a glimpse of the show. Finding a club goer passed out nearby, Dorothy transfers the stamp on his hand to her own and to the hands of her three companions, and they are able to get inside. By this time, several brief shots of the actual band have been seen; they are playing the song in a darkened back area, with several bouncers guarding the entrance, and the onstage group is only lip synching and miming in time. As Dorothy begins to realize something is amiss, her dog Toto slips past the bouncers and pulls open a curtain to expose the real band. She and the other three are quickly whisked away and the curtain is yanked shut by the club owner (Ken Ober) as the song ends. Although the video for this song shows a Kansas driver's license, the license shown was not the current design but instead the design the state used in the mid to late 1980s. The name appearing on the license was misspelled as "Dorthy". The song was ranked number 76 in VH1'S 100 Greatest Songs of the '90s.

In Blues Traveler's live shows, "Run Around" has been played 997 times (as of February 2016) which is roughly 54% of the shows since its debut. The last half of the song is sung as the normal version. While Blues Traveler recorded part of the third verse as "I shall drink in and always be full / yeah I will drink in and always be full", Popper originally wrote the second line as "My cup shall always be full." When they perform the song live, the band uses the original lyrics.

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref. (Reference)United StatesFebruary 28, 1995CD, cassetteA&MUnited KingdomOctober 2, 1995A&M, Polydor Records, Polydor

Alvin and the Chipmunks covered this song for their 2007 video game Alvin and the Chipmunks. The song achieved a brief resurgence in popularity in 2014, at its 20 year anniversary, and even briefly made the charts again.