Of all the unlikely songs to top the pop charts, right up through Oliver Anthony’s “Rich Men North of Richmond,” Harry Chapin ’s 1974 hit “Cat’s in the Cradle” remains singular, and singularly unexpected. Even during an era overrun with story-songs, of which Chapin was a master, “Cat’s in the Cradle” stood apart. Here was a chamber-folk ballad that started with a squiggly sitar-guitar effect, then launched into a tale of a man lamenting all the times he was too busy to interact with his son — only to see family history repeat itself when the grownup child has no time for him .

There was also a nursery-rhyme chorus, intro orchestration straight out of a period movie western, and lyrics aimed at boomers suddenly nearing 30, none of which screamed “America’s Top 40.” Yet, somehow, the so

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