Dr. John – Right Place, Wrong Time

My sister’s car in the 70s plus AM radio gave me my own soundtrack. This is one of the songs along with Leon Russell’s Tight Rope that was on the most played list on our AM station WMAK in Nashville.

Right Place, Wrong Time was Dr. John’s only trip to the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. It peaked at #9 in 1973 and #6 in Canada. For the longest time, I thought the name was “Brain Salad Surgery”. Emerson, Lake, and Palmer later used that name for their fourth album.

The song was on the album In The Right Place released in 1973. It peaked at #24 on the Billboard Album Charts. Before this album he was a musician’s musician but after he became a pop star.

Dr. John (Malcolm John Rebennack) put a little New Orleans in everything he did. Gregg Allman liked Dr. John when he first met him in Boston before the Allmans made it. Gregg took drugs but after seeing what John took…he thought that the Allmans were tame. Gregg was not a fan of the New Orleans gris-gris that John brought around…and he had a good reason not to be.

Gregg Allman: Dr. John also had a gris-gris situation going on too. Basically they were these bags that he had hanging around each shoulder which were leather or goatskin and smelled kinda funky. Inside the bags was this New Orleans voodoo stuff called gris-gris. He threw that gris-gris shit all in my brand-new Hammond—he was throwing whole handfuls of that shit. Gris-gris, my ass. It was gold glitter, and it went down through the keys, down into the stops, gumming the oil up. They had to take the organ apart and scrape down each piece. They said, “What is this crap?” and they charged me $190, which meant I could eat, but I couldn’t drink a cold beer for two weeks.

Dr. John: “That was my life for a long time. At the same time I was in the wrong place at the right time, and the right place in the wrong time, too. That was the problem. We’re always shifting those gears.”

Dr. John: “Originally, I felt to go commercial would prostitute myself and bastardize the music, on reflecting, I thought that if without messin’ up the music and keeping the roots and elements of what I want to do musically, I could still make a commercial record I would not feel ashamed from, I’m proud of, and still have a feel for – then it’s not a bad thing but it even serve a good purpose.”

Right Place, Wrong Time

I been in the right place but it must have been the wrong time
I’d have said the right thing but I must have used the wrong line
I been in the right trip but I must have used the wrong car
My head was in a bad place and I’m wondering what it’s good for
I been in the right place but it must have been the wrong time
My head was in a bad place but I’m having such a good time

I been running trying to get hung up in my mind
Got to give myself a good talking-to this time
Just need a little brain salad surgery
Got to cure my insecurity

I been in the wrong place but it must have been the right time
I been in the right place but it must have been the wrong song
I been in the right vein but it seems like the wrong arm
I been in the right world but it seems wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong

Slipping dodging sneaking creeping hiding out down the street
See me life shaking with every ho’ I meet
Refried confusion is making itself clear
Wonder which way do I go to get on out of here

I been in the right place but it must have been the wrong time
I’d have said the right thing but I must have used the wrong line
I’d have took the right road but I must have took a wrong turn
Would’ve made the right move but I made it at the wrong time
I been on the right road but I must have used the wrong car
My head was in a good place and I wonder what it’s bad for

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.

38 thoughts on “Dr. John – Right Place, Wrong Time”

  2. To me another excellent ’70s one Hit Wonder, though I know there was a lot more to his career than this. We just never heard it on radio. I always liked this song though. Rumor has it he was the inspiration for the Muppets ‘Dr Teeth’.

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    1. Oh that would make sense with the muppet lol. Him and Leon Russell both played on everyone’s albums for a while there. Leon was more successful on the charts but both were in the Wrecking Crew I believe.

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    1. HIm and Leon Russell always reminded me of each other a little…both had some great music and played on a lot of other artists albums. Everyone wanted them…and that says a lot.
      I need to check out more of John’s albums.

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    1. Gris Gris my ass…that was funny… he sure helped the Allmans when they started. He took to them right away before they even had an album out.

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  14. Dr. John has funk plus in his singing. The organ in here really does it for me. I cannot imagine throwing that stuff on somebody else’s gear. No telling what was in it besides glitter. I’d be p*ssed if I had to have my keyboard taken apart to get rid of it. Isn’t Dr. John on The Last Waltz with a really good song? Can you tell it’s been awhile since watching it. It’s time to give it a watch. I know you watch it every year don’t you.

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    1. Yea I think he is on there….I was telling some people and that him and Leon Russell remind me of each other in one way….every artist wanted them on their album and both were great musicians. They played together some also.

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      2. As soon as I clicked on it I knew it! Oh…Bailey wants me to go…but in Clarksville I think…they are playing The Last Waltz on November 4th I believe…I may go.

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      3. I thought you watched it at home! More fun with a group. Not sure if you saw they are going to be showing a 40th anniversary of Stop Making Sense at theaters with Talking Heads back together (if I got that straight.)

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      4. I do watch it at home…but yea the big screen and that big sound is very tempting though. Same theater we watched The Exorcist in.
        I think that is right with the Talking Heads.

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