Sooner or Later (The Grass Roots song)

"Sooner or Later" is a 1971 hit song by The Grass Roots. It was released as a single and put on their third compilation album, Their 16 Greatest Hits. It reached number 9 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming their third and last top ten hit.

"Sooner or Later"
Single by The Grass Roots
from the album Their 16 Greatest Hits
B-side	"I Can Turn Off the Rain"
Released	May 1971 (1971-05)
Genre	Soft rock[1]
Length	2:37
Label	ABC/Dunhill
Songwriter(s)	Mitchell Bottler, Edward McNamara, Adeniyi Paris, Ekundayo Paris, Gary Zekley
Producer(s)	Steve Barri
The Grass Roots singles chronology
"Temptation Eyes" (1970) "Sooner or Later" (1971) "Two Divided by Love" (1971)

The single tells about a girl the narrator is in love with, but it's not mutual, because of her past experiences with love. He says that "sooner or later" she will succumb to love and give in to him.^[2]

Bassist and usual lead singer Rob Grill shared lead vocals with keyboardist Dennis Provisor. Excluding Provisor's organ,^[2] most of the instrumental backing were made by the Wrecking Crew.

Chart performance

Weekly charts Chart (1971) Peak position Australia KMR 95 Canada RPM Top Singles[3] 13 US Billboard Hot 100 9 US Billboard Adult Contemporary[4] 37 US Cash Box Top 100 12

Year-end charts Chart (1971) Rank US (Joel Whitburn's Pop Annual)[5] 88 US Cash Box Top 100[6] 85

GF4 version

"Sooner or Later"
Single by GF4
Released	17 October 1994[7]
Recorded	1994
Genre	Electronic, Euro-house
Label	BMG Australia
Songwriter(s)	Gary Zekley Mitchell Bottler Ted McNamara E. Paris A. Paris
GF4 singles chronology
"Wishing on the Same Star" (1993) "Sooner or Later" (1994) "Need Love (To Make the Sex Right)" (1995)

Australian group GF4, formerly known as Girlfriend, released a cover version as a single in October 1994. The single peaked at number 11 on the ARIA Charts.

Track listing

BMG (768964 00032)

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Sooner or Later"
2.	"Sooner or Later" (Earth mix)
3.	"Sooner or Later" (Sugar mix)
4.	"Sooner or Later" (Cement mix)
5.	"Sooner or Later" (Mental mix)
6.	"Sooner or Later" (Percappella)

Charts

Chart (1994–95)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[8]	11

References

1. Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (15 October 1996). "Born To Be Mild: Soft Rock". Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 32. ISBN 031214704X.
2. Songfacts. "Sooner or Later by The Grass Roots - Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
3. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
4. Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 101.
5. Whitburn, Joel (1999). Pop Annual. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 380. ISBN 0-89820-142-X.
6. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1971". Archived from the original on 6 October 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
7. The ARIA Report. Vol. 244. ARIA. 16 October 1994. p. 21.
8. "GF4 – Sooner or Later". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 5 June 2018.

External links

• The Grass Roots - Sooner or Later on YouTube