"Day by Day" is a song from the 1971 Stephen Schwartz

Stephen Schwartz (composer)

Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over four decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell , Pippin and Wicked...

 and John-Michael Tebelak

John-Michael Tebelak

John-Michael Tebelak was an American playwright and director. He was most famous for creating the musical Godspell based on the Gospel of Saint Matthew. The music was by Stephen Schwartz...

 musical Godspell

Godspell

Godspell is a musical by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. It opened off Broadway on May 17, 1971, and has played in various touring companies and revivals many times since, including a 2011 revival now playing on Broadway...

.

Day by Day is the third song in the show’s score and it is also reprised as the closing number for the 1973 film version

Godspell (film)

Godspell, released in 1973, is the film adaptation of the Off-Broadway musical Godspell created by John-Michael Tebelak.Set in modern New York City, the film stars Victor Garber as Jesus and David Haskell as John the Baptist/Judas...

. Its refrain follows a prayer ascribed to the 13th century English bishop Saint Richard of Chichester:

May I know Thee more clearly,

Love Thee more dearly,

Follow Thee more nearly.

In 1972, the song was released as a single attributed to the original cast album, with Robin Lamont as the lead singer. It spent 14 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

, peaking at the #13 position on July 29, 1972.