1977 Soft Rock Ballad Hit No. 2 on the Charts -But Left Fans Confused
In May 1977, fresh on the heels of his massive hit 1976 album Frampton Comes Alive, Peter Frampton released I'm in You. The title track, a soft rock ballad, hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 on July 30, 1977. Drastically different from Frampton's talk box-driven live rock hits from his previous album, the keyboard-heavy "I'm in You" confused fans-and the singer himself.
"That was probably the least favorite period of my life," Frampton once said, per Ultimate Classic Rock. "The pressure was so great. There was absolutely no need to do I'm in You then and there. The biggest mistake was just not shutting down at that point."
The new album also came with a new look. The cover of the I'm in You album and single featured the singer wearing a colorful, unbuttoned, wide-sleeved shirt while posing hearthrob style.
A confusing time
In an interview with Relix, Frampton noted that the live album's massive success put him in a weird position with his follow-up. "The success of Comes Alive definitely distracted from the musicianship and put me into that sort of celebrity-teeny-bopper area as opposed to a musician, which sort of happened overnight," he said.
"Up until that point, it was the reverse," he continued. "It was on my musical reputation more than anything else. We were building quite nicely in that area. So that confused the audience, and especially the cover of I'm in You really confused the audience; it confused me too. It was just too poppy. I really wasn't that. Yes, I've written pop songs, but as you know, I span a whole different selection of music as well."
Frampton also admitted he didn't want to release I'm in You at first and told his record company as much. But management wanted to capitalize on Frampton Comes Alive-quickly.
"I was just very disappointed that I couldn't have the time to spend another couple of years writing," the singer said, per Guitar.com. He also further condemned his outfit for the cover shoot.
"I should have been in jeans and a T-shirt on the cover with a leather jacket or something, but I was still in the Lord Fauntleroy outfit with the satin pants, the white nurse's shoes, and some god-awful woman's top," he said. "[The outfit would have] looked fine the year before, but now, Sex Pistols are happening. Things have changed drastically overnight. And I'm behind the times already and out of sync."
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Frampton thought the song deserved to be a hit
Despite his annoyance with the timing of the record and the photoshoot, Frampton believed "I'm in You" was shorted on the Billboard charts.
In an interview with Guitar Player, he said, "Everybody thought ‘I'm in You' would hit number one because the live album was enormous. It was the lead single from I'm in You, which certainly isn't my favorite album or anywhere near my best, but it's a great song and I thought it deserved to be a hit."
"The truth is, I never thought about chart positions and things like that," he added of his pre- Comes Alive success. "I was more concerned with being inspired, and writing good songs and making sure they were recorded right. My attitude was, ‘Do I like the song?' It always came down to that."
In May 2025, Frampton seemed at peace with it all as he marked the 48th anniversary of the I'm in You album and single with a Facebook post. "This album came after a whirlwind in my life - the title track especially was one of my most personal," the rock legend shared. "I'm still so thankful it found its way to so many hearts. Thank you for keeping it alive all these years."
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This story was originally published April 26, 2026 at 7:04 AM.