"The Way It Is" is a song by American rock group Bruce Hornsby and the Range. It was released in July 1986 as the second single from their debut album, The Way It Is. The song topped the charts of Canada, the Netherlands, and the United States while entering the top 20 in at least eight other countries, including Australia, Ireland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Written by Bruce Hornsby, it made explicit reference to the Economic Opportunity Act, also known as the 1964 Poverty Act, as well as the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Hornsby referred to it as a "song about racism."
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Background
In 1985, working by himself in his garage in Van Nuys, California, Hornsby wrote the lyrics for "The Way It Is" first, after which he developed the song's music and created the song's piano lick. The song later appeared on a demo recording made by Hornsby that included "Mandolin Rain" and "The Red Plains". This tape led to him being signed by RCA in 1985.
Song lyrics and music
The song documents racism that Hornsby encountered in the American South growing up in Williamsburg, Virginia. He said that the song was "about growing up in the sixties in a small town with narrow-minded, provincial attitudes." He specifically cited memories of individuals in the town disparaging Martin Luther King Jr., saying "not everyone in Williamsburg felt like that, of course – certainly my parents didn't - but it was the prevailing attitude."
The song features a 50 second intro, lyrics referencing the Equal Employment Opportunity Act and two piano solos. [[Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2020, Hornsby provided his perspective on the song.
"The Way It is" was a wonderful accident, a great fluke. A song about racism with two improvised solos is hardly the formula for pop success then or at any time. Everyone thought it should have been a B side, but then BBC Radio 1 played it and, boom, there it went. The last place it hit was in the United States."
When discussing the song with Steve Pond in a different interview published in Rolling Stone, Hornsby expressed his belief that "The Way It Is" was not conventionally commercial, adding that it was "a very even-running song" that "doesn't reach the highs and lows that I think of as desirable."
The song's music video, which was filmed on a London rehearsal stage, was directed by Gerard de Thame and produced by Helen Langridge.
Reception
Andy Gill wrote in New Musical Express that the song was "one of those rare cases where melancholia and euphoria shift subtly back and forth in constant elision, complementing the blend of hope and resignation in the lyrics." Billboard said that the song combined roots rock with "articulate commentary". Cashbox called the song "sensitive and wonderfully produced" and thought that it "should bring attention to Hornsby’s overlooked but worthy debut LP of the same name." The Chicago Tribune labeled it as "a moody pop/rock song with a social message as powerful as its melodic line."
A few years after its release, Coretta Scott King asked permission from Hornsby to use the song for the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change.
Sampling usage
The song has been sampled by various rappers such as E-40 for his song "Things'll Never Change", by Tupac for "Changes", by DJ Don Diablo for his song "Never Change", and Polo G for "Wishing for a Hero" in 2020. According to Hornsby, Polo G had planned on booking an airplane to meet with him and ask for permission to sample "The Way it Is". After hearing the sampled track from Polo G's management, Hornsby reached out to the artist and authorized him to use the song in "Wishing for a Hero".