Betty Everett, There’ll Come A Time | Throwback Vibez

In the 60th edition of Throwback Vibez (2025), we recollect and reflect on “There’ll Come A Time” by Betty Everett.   

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez ! Throwback Vibez is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past.  The records that grace this column are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re ancient – no fossils ! All genres of music are welcome. In the 60^th edition of Throwback Vibez ️ (2025), we recollect and reflect on “There’ll Come A Time” performed by Betty Everett.

“There’ll come a time in every girl’s life / She’ll have to cry.” Sad but true, Betty Everett (1939 – 2001). Everett earned two top 10 hits on the pop charts with “Let It Be Me” with Jerry Butler and “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s in His Kiss)”, famously covered by Cher. Everett earned her third-highest charting hit with her only other top 40 showing “There’ll Come A Time”, which peaked respectably at number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100, and reached number two on the R&B charts. “Time” is the ninth track from her 1969 album, fittingly titled, There’ll Come A Time. Floyd Smith (1917 – 1982) and Eugene Record of Chi-Lites notoriety (1940 – 2004) wrote “There’ll Come A Time.” Hillery Johnson, Leo Austell, and Archie Russell produced it. “There’ll come a time when the heart won’t take no more / She’ll have to cry, cry, cry, cry baby,” she continues singing in the first verse.

Matters of the heart drive the narrative of “There’ll Come A Time.” The lament continues in the second verse with Everett asking, “Why you want to go away and leave me,” and pleading, “But oh baby, if you’d please / …Please come back to me.” The chorus is the centerpiece, filled with tears:

“You see the rich has to cry

The poor has to cry

You’ll have to cry

And I gotta cry sometimes.”

Everett delivers dynamic lead vocals over a stunning musical backdrop. The ear-catching excellence commences with a dramatic, tone-setting intro.  The intro showcases an elite orchestration featuring lush strings, articulated horns, a tight rhythm section, and vibe-laden vibraphone. Specifically, the horn and drum riffs are epic. Besides the underrated Everett’s top-rate vocals, she gets awesome support from background vocals, upping the ante. Ultimately, “There’ll Come A Time” is the sugar honey iced-tea – another memorable moment from Everett’s fabulous music catalog.

Betty Everett // There’ll Come A Time // Geffen // 1969

Betty Everett, There’ll Come A Time: Throwback Vibez ️ No. 60 (2025) [: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Geffen; AcatXlo, OpenClipart-Vectors, Clker-Free-Vector-Images, Speedy McVroom from Pixabay]