New doc ‘Cat’s in the Cradle: The Song That Changed Our Lives’ explores lasting impact of iconic Harry Chapin song

It’s a tune that everyone has heard before, perhaps on the radio or maybe on an old record around the house. The late Harry Chapin’s “Cat’s in the Cradle” has been the anthem for fathers and sons (and family in general) since it was first released in 1974.

Emmy and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Rick Korn chose to explore the iconic Chapin song in his new documentary, “Cat’s in the Cradle: The Song That Changed Our Lives.” This is the second documentary that Korn has made about Chapin, the first being “Harry Chapin: When in Doubt, Do Something,” which was released in 2020.

“A feature film of ‘Cats in the Cradle’, two things that really struck me about it. One was the power of the song, the fact that this song means so much to so many people in so many different generations,” said Korn. “You know a 20-year-old [that] knows ‘Cats in the Cradle’ because their grandfather knows it or their grandmother knows it. It resonates with people, not just of many different generations, but many cultures. And there’s so many pop culture references to the song and so many covers that are great. There’s something really powerful here about this song.”

The documentary covers the origins of the song, which was written by Chapin’s wife, Sandy, and includes reflections from the Chapin family. The doc also explores the decades-long impact that the song has had, with interviews from celebrities such as Billy Joel, Mandy Patinkin, Darryl McDaniels, Dee Snyder and Pat Benatar, to name a few.

The late Harry Chapin and his wife, Sandy.

“The one that really blew my mind was Dee Snyder. When we interviewed him, the first thing that came out of his mouth is ‘I hate acoustic music.’ And I said to myself, ‘Oh man, this is gonna be a long one, it’s gonna be a difficult one.’ He went on to say that, but there was something about this song that just resonated with him in a whole different way,” recalled Korn.

When asked if there’s any song that has a similar lasting impact on the world like “Cat’s in the Cradle,” Korn told amNewYork that there likely isn’t one. Not because there aren’t songs that could measure up lyrically or generationally, but because “Cat’s in the Cradle” did more for Chapin than give his music career a huge boost; it allowed him

Prior to his death in 1981, Chapin leveraged his fame to establish WhyHunger in 1975, aiming to combat hunger worldwide. He would later found Long Island Cares (1980) to help feed Long Island residents who were struggling with food insecurity. Korn says that without that song, Chapin’s philanthropy might not have happened at all.

“It gave Harry the platform to start his charities, in particular, WhyHunger, which to this day saves lives. It affects the lives of millions of people a month in 24 countries around the world,” said Korn. “To me, you can have a song that on its own is incredible, but what this song enabled Harry to do, I don’t think there’s even a duplicate of that in American music history.”

Harry Chapin and his son.Photo courtesy of Cat’s in the Cradle

“Cat’s in the Cardle: The Song That Changed Our Lives” premiered in New York City on Oct. 30. As the film becomes more available for viewing, Korn hopes that the song will be able to help viewers on a human level.

“It’s a song really about humanity. The dynamic of the household has changed since 1974, or when Sandy wrote the song. The dynamic back then was Dad went out and worked and Mom was a stay-at-home mom, therefore [Dad] didn’t have as close of a relationship or had to make more of an effort,” said Korn. “The reality is in today’s world, it’s both parents out working, or at least Mom’s out there building a career for herself and she’s facing the same thing that dads faced 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s.”

“My hope is that [the film] has the same effect on moms as it does on dads, and that we realize that we’re all human and that we make mistakes. This song helps teach us some lessons that is important to a much broader demographic,” said Korn.

“Cat’s in the Cradle: The Song That Changed Our Lives” will be available on DVD and Amazon Prime on Nov. 4.