Gonna Fly Now


"Gonna Fly Now", also known as "Theme from Rocky", is the theme song from the movie Rocky, composed by Bill Conti with lyrics by Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, and performed by DeEtta West and Nelson Pigford. Released in February 1977 with the movie Rocky, the song became part of American popular culture after main character Rocky Balboa as part of his daily training regimen runs up the 72 stone steps leading to the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia and raises his arms in a victory pose, while the song plays. The song was written in Philadelphia. The song is often played at sporting events, especially in Philadelphia.

Reception

The song was nominated for Best Original Song at the 49th Academy Awards. The version of the song from the movie, performed by Conti with an orchestra, hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1977, while a version by jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson hit the top 30. Disco versions by Rhythm Heritage and Current were on the chart at the same time. Billboard ranked Conti's version as the No. 21 song of 1977. Conti's single was certified Gold by the RIAA, for shipments exceeding one million in the United States. The American Film Institute placed it 58th on its AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs list.

Variations

In Rocky II, an alternative version of the song was used, with a children's choir singing the chorus. Rocky III included an updated disco influenced arrangement during the training montage on the beach. This recording is however missing from the soundtrack album, the sleeve notes of which say "All music on this album selected by Sylvester Stallone", who instead opted to reprise the original versions of "Gonna Fly Now" and "Reflections" from the first film and "Conquest" from the second installment.
Rocky IV was scored by Vince DiCola who mainly introduced new themes of his own but "Gonna Fly Now" returned with its composer for later installments. In Rocky V, two different versions of the song are played: an instrumental horn version and a different orchestral version. In Rocky Balboa, a slightly different version of the song used more trumpets and different vocal tones. also includes a vocal remix performed by Natalie Wilde. Creed samples the first few notes of the track during the film's last fight, as does its sequel, Creed II.

Personnel

Weekly charts

;Rhythm Heritage
Chart Peak
position
Canada RPM Top Singles92
US Billboard Hot 10094
US Billboard Adult Contemporary49

;Bill Conti
YearChart Peak
position
1977--
1977Australia 13
1977Canadian RPM Top Singles8
1977--
1977--
1977--
1977--

Year-end charts

;Maynard Ferguson
Chart Peak
position
Canada RPM Top Singles55
US Billboard Hot 10028
US Billboard Adult Contemporary46
US Cash Box Top 10031

In popular culture

Due to its original use, the song is used frequently in various forms of popular media where a main character is forced to train hard in order to defeat an opponent, often during a montage sequence.
American politician and former Vice President Walter Mondale used "Gonna Fly Now" as his presidential campaign song in 1984.
Renditions of the song without lyrics were used by the groundbreaking Toronto newscast CityPulse beginning in 1976, with an arrangement by Maynard Ferguson. The theme was subsequently remixed and rearranged every few years, until sometime in the 2000s.

French radio

The daily French radio program Les Grosses Têtes, on the RTL French radio network, uses an arrangement by Gaya Bécaud from “Gonna Fly Now”.