‘The second single from Holiday was a Dan Peek composition, "Lonely People." Co-written with Dan's wife, Catherine, "Lonely People" was a very simple song with a potent message, a radical departure from America's lyrically vague efforts of the past, including Dewey's impressionistic "Tin Man." Lasting just under two and a half minutes, it was a short song even for a group noted for its brief compositions, but then a powerful message need not take long to articulate. "Lonely People" featured a strikingly positive and upbeat feel for a song which basically had a melancholy underpinning -- that of loneliness and emptiness. The song also featured both a harmonica and a piano solo toward the middle of the song for the just the right hook. The honesty of both the flavor and the message that the song offered struck a chord with the public, and it rode all the way to Number Five on the Billboard singles chart in March 1975. Ten years later, Dan reflected back on the song's legacy:
I've had a lot of letters from people, a lot of people coming up to me personally, and... some have even said it literally changed their life. When you have that kind of response, that's what you're looking for really as an artist. Every artist is trying to convey some kind of a message. It may be as simple as, "Let's all let our hair down and have a good time"... So I'm happy that "Lonely People'" has a good message and one that people have received, and one that has touched a lot of people.’
‘The second single from Holiday was a Dan Peek composition, "Lonely People." Co-written with Dan's wife, Catherine, "Lonely People" was a very simple song with a potent message, a radical departure from America's lyrically vague efforts of the past, including Dewey's impressionistic "Tin Man." Lasting just under two and a half minutes, it was a short song even for a group noted for its brief compositions, but then a powerful message need not take long to articulate. "Lonely People" featured a strikingly positive and upbeat feel for a song which basically had a melancholy underpinning -- that of loneliness and emptiness. The song also featured both a harmonica and a piano solo toward the middle of the song for the just the right hook. The honesty of both the flavor and the message that the song offered struck a chord with the public, and it rode all the way to Number Five on the Billboard singles chart in March 1975. Ten years later, Dan reflected back on the song's legacy: I've had a lot of letters from people, a lot of people coming up to me personally, and... some have even said it literally changed their life. When you have that kind of response, that's what you're looking for really as an artist. Every artist is trying to convey some kind of a message. It may be as simple as, "Let's all let our hair down and have a good time"... So I'm happy that "Lonely People'" has a good message and one that people have received, and one that has touched a lot of people.’
Source: Comprehensive History: America Revisited http://www.accessbackstage.com/america/hist01.htm