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Lots of country songs, including basically every bluegrass song, use the same chord progression as Amazing Grace. There is nothing about its use in this song that makes it unique.
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{{Short description|1972 song written by Collins & Harvey}}
{{Short description|1972 song written by Larry Collins and Alex Harvey}}{{About|2=the formerly unidentified decedent|3=Murder of Alisha Heinrich|4=the fictional animated character|5=Trolls World Tour}}{{More citations needed|date=January 2009}}
{{Infobox song
{{for|the formerly unidentified decedent|Murder of Alisha Heinrich}}
| name = Delta Dawn
{{More citations needed|date=January 2009}}
| image = Alex Harvey Delta Dawn.jpg
| alt =
| caption = 1971 promotional single
| type = promotional single
| artist = [[Alex Harvey (country musician)|Alex Harvey]]
| album = Alex Harvey
| B-side = Same song
| released = 1971
| recorded =
| studio =
| genre = [[Country music|Country]], [[folk rock]]
| length = 4:02
| label = [[Capitol Records|Capitol]]
| writer = {{hlist|[[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]]|Alex Harvey}}
| producer = Michael Sunday
| prev_title = To Make My Life Beautiful
| prev_year = 1971
| next_title = Old Fashioned Feeling
| next_year = 1972
}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Delta Dawn
| cover = Boogie_Woogie_Bugle_Boy_-_Bette_Midler.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = [[Bette Midler]]
| album = [[The Divine Miss M]]
| A-side = [[Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy#Bette Midler version|Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy]]
| released = May 1973
| recorded = 1972
| studio = Atlantic Recording Studios
(New York, New York)
| venue =
| genre = [[Pop rock]]
| length = 5:18
| label = [[Atlantic Records|Atlantic]]
| writer = {{hlist|[[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]]|[[Alex Harvey (country musician)|Alex Harvey]]}}
| producer =
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
| next_year =
}}
{{Infobox song
{{Infobox song
| name = Delta Dawn
| name = Delta Dawn
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| released = April 10, 1972
| released = April 10, 1972
| recorded = March 17, 1972
| recorded = March 17, 1972
| studio = Columbia Recording Studio ([[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]])
| studio = [[Bradley Studios#Columbia Studios|Columbia]] (Nashville, Tennessee)
| genre = [[Country music|Country]]
| genre = [[Country music|Country]]
| length = 2:59
| length = 2:59
Line 24: Line 67:
| next_year = 1972
| next_year = 1972
}}
}}
"'''Delta Dawn'''" is a song written by musician [[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]] and country songwriter [[Alex Harvey (country musician)|Alex Harvey]].{{efn|Harvey more often went by the name ''Alexander Harvey'' in later years, to avoid being confused with [[Glasgow|Glaswegian]] rocker [[Alex Harvey (musician)|Alex Harvey]].}} The first notable recording of the song was in 1971 by American singer and actress [[Bette Midler]] for her debut album. However it is best known as a 1972 top ten [[Hot Country Songs|country hit]] for [[Tanya Tucker]]<ref>{{cite book |title= The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |publisher=Record Research |year=2004 |page=357}}</ref> and a 1973 [[Billboard Hot 100|US number one hit]] for [[Helen Reddy]].<!--any assertion of similarity to other song(s) needs to be reliably sourced-->
"'''Delta Dawn'''" is a song written by musician [[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]] and country songwriter [[Alex Harvey (country musician)|Alex Harvey]].{{efn|Harvey more often went by the name ''Alexander Harvey'' in later years, to avoid being confused with [[Glasgow|Glaswegian]] rocker [[Alex Harvey (musician)|Alex Harvey]].}} The first notable recording of the song was in 1971 by American singer and actress [[Bette Midler]] for her debut album ''[[The Divine Miss M]]''. However it is best known as a 1972 top ten [[Hot Country Songs|country hit]] for [[Tanya Tucker]]<ref>{{cite book |title= The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |publisher=Record Research |year=2004 |page=357}}</ref> and a 1973 [[Billboard Hot 100|US number one hit]] for [[Helen Reddy]].<!--any assertion of similarity to other song(s) needs to be reliably sourced-->

Though the song is attributed exclusively to Collins and Harvey, the melody of the chorus is virtually identical to the Christian hymn [[Amazing Grace]].


==Content==
==Content==
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===Tanya Tucker===
===Tanya Tucker===
Before Bette Midler's recording, [[Nashville]]-based producer [[Billy Sherrill]] heard her sing "Delta Dawn" on ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson|The Tonight Show]]'' and wanted to sign Midler to [[Epic Records]] and have her record it. Upon finding that Midler already signed with [[Atlantic Records]], Sherrill cut the song with Tanya Tucker, who was newly signed to Epic, and Tucker's version was released in April 1972; it reached number six [[Hot Country Singles|Country]] that spring.<ref name="Nickel Dreams p132">{{cite book |first=Tanya |last=Tucker |year=1997 |title=Nickel Dreams: My life |edition=Large print |publisher= Thorndike Press |location=Waterville, Maine |page= [https://archive.org/details/nickeldreamsmyli00tuck_0/page/132 132] |isbn=0-7862-1182-2 |url-access=registration |url= https://archive.org/details/nickeldreamsmyli00tuck_0/page/132 }}</ref>
Before Bette Midler's recording, [[Nashville]]-based producer [[Billy Sherrill]] heard her sing "Delta Dawn" on ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson|The Tonight Show]]'' and wanted to sign Midler to [[Epic Records]] and have her record it. Upon finding that Midler already signed with [[Atlantic Records]], Sherrill cut the song with Tanya Tucker, who was newly signed to Epic,<ref name="KosserM">{{cite book|last=Kosser|first=Michael|title=How Nashville Became Music City, U.S.A.: A History Of Music Row|publisher=Backbeat Books|location=Lanham, Maryland, US|date=2006|isbn=978-1-49306-512-7|page=147}}</ref> at the [[Bradley Studios#Columbia Studios|Columbia Studios]] in Nashville, Tennessee. Tucker's version was released in April 1972; it reached number six [[Hot Country Singles|Country]] that spring.<ref name="Nickel Dreams p132">{{cite book |first=Tanya |last=Tucker |year=1997 |title=Nickel Dreams: My life |edition=Large print |publisher= Thorndike Press |location=Waterville, Maine |page= [https://archive.org/details/nickeldreamsmyli00tuck_0/page/132 132] |isbn=0-7862-1182-2 |url-access=registration |url= https://archive.org/details/nickeldreamsmyli00tuck_0/page/132 }}</ref>


While Harvey's original version started with the first verse, Sherrill suggested starting with the chorus instead, done [[a cappella]]&nbsp;– a term unknown to 13-year-old Tucker.<ref name=songfacts/> This distinction became a signature of her version.
While Harvey's original version started with the first verse, Sherrill suggested starting with the chorus instead, done [[a cappella]]&nbsp;– a term unknown to 13-year-old Tucker.<ref name=songfacts/> This distinction became a signature of her version.
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| artist = [[Helen Reddy]]
| artist = [[Helen Reddy]]
| album = [[Long Hard Climb]]
| album = [[Long Hard Climb]]
|language=[[English language|English]]| B-side = If We Could Still be Friends
| B-side = If We Could Still Be Friends
| released = June 1973<ref name="Billboard Discography 1974">{{cite magazine |page=52 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QQkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA52 |title=Discography |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date = 3 August 1974|volume=86 |number=31 |issn=0006-2510}}</ref>
| released = June 1973<ref name="Billboard Discography 1974">{{cite magazine |page=52 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QQkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA52 |title=Discography |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date = 3 August 1974|volume=86 |number=31 |issn=0006-2510}}</ref>
| recorded = 1972
| recorded = 1972
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Reddy had reached number two with both "[[I Don't Know How to Love Him]]" and [[I Am Woman]] in her native [[Australia]]; "Delta Dawn" became her first number one hit there, spending five weeks at the top of the ''[[Kent Music Report]]'' in August and September 1973.<ref name="aus">{{cite web |url= http://hitsofalldecades.com/chart_hits/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1799&Itemid=52|title=Australian Weekly Single Ccharts (David Kent) for 1973|website=Hitsofalldecades.com|access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> "Delta Dawn" also marked Reddy's only chart appearance in South Africa, reaching number 13 in the autumn of 1973.<ref name="saf">{{cite web| url= http://rock.co.za/files/springbok_top_20_(R).html|title=SA Charts 1965 - 1989 Acts R|website=South African Rock Lists|access-date=7 June 2018}}</ref>
Reddy had reached number two with both "[[I Don't Know How to Love Him]]" and [[I Am Woman]] in her native [[Australia]]; "Delta Dawn" became her first number one hit there, spending five weeks at the top of the ''[[Kent Music Report]]'' in August and September 1973.<ref name="aus">{{cite web |url= http://hitsofalldecades.com/chart_hits/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1799&Itemid=52|title=Australian Weekly Single Ccharts (David Kent) for 1973|website=Hitsofalldecades.com|access-date=June 7, 2018}}</ref> "Delta Dawn" also marked Reddy's only chart appearance in South Africa, reaching number 13 in the autumn of 1973.<ref name="saf">{{cite web| url= http://rock.co.za/files/springbok_top_20_(R).html|title=SA Charts 1965 - 1989 Acts R|website=South African Rock Lists|access-date=7 June 2018}}</ref>

===Sylvie Vartan (in French)===
{{Infobox song
| name = Toi le garçon
| image = Sylvie Vartan Toi le garçon.jpg
| alt =
| caption =
| type = single
| artist = [[Sylvie Vartan]]
| album =
| language = [[French language|French]]
| English_title = You're the boy
| B-side = L'amour au diapason
| released = October 1973
| recorded = Summer–fall 1973
| studio =
| genre = [[Pop music|Pop]]
| length = 3:24
| label = [[RCA Records|RCA]]
| writer = {{hlist|[[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]]|[[Alex Harvey (country musician)|Alex Harvey]]|Michel Mallory}}
| producer =
| prev_title = L’homme que tu seras
| prev_year = 1973
| next_title = [[Bad, Bad Leroy Brown|Bye Bye Leroy Brown]]
| next_year = 1973
}}

In 1973, the song was adapted into [[French language|French]] by Michel Mallory as "''Toi le garçon''" (meaning "You're the boy") and was recorded by French pop singer [[Sylvie Vartan]] and was released as a non-album single in October 1973.<ref>{{Cite web |title=45 Tours 70 – Site officiel de Sylvie Vartan |url=https://www.sylvie-vartan.com/france-45-tours-70/ |access-date=2024-06-21 |language=fr-FR}}</ref> Vartan's version peaked at Number 22 on the French Belgian charts on March 9, 1974.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sylvie Vartan - Toi le garçon - ultratop.be |url=https://www.ultratop.be/fr/song/9aea/Sylvie-Vartan-Toi-le-garcon |access-date=2024-06-21 |website=www.ultratop.be}}</ref>


===Other recordings===
===Other recordings===
{{unreferenced section|date=December 2016}}
{{unreferenced section|date=December 2016}}
* [[Waylon Jennings]] on his 1972 album [[Ladies Love Outlaws (Waylon Jennings album)|''Ladies Love Outlaws'']]
* [[Waylon Jennings]] on his 1972 album [[Ladies Love Outlaws (Waylon Jennings album)|''Ladies Love Outlaws'']]; Jennings transposed the two verses, making the story chronological.
* [[Loretta Lynn]] on her 1972 album ''[[Here I Am Again]]''
* [[Loretta Lynn]] on her 1972 album ''[[Here I Am Again]]''
* Other 1972 covers included those by [[Kitty Wells]], [[Jody Miller]], [[Bob Luman]] (''[[Lonely Women Make Good Lovers (album)|Lonely Women Make Good Lovers]]''), and [[Nat Stuckey]].
* Other 1972 covers included those by [[Kitty Wells]], [[Jody Miller]], [[Bob Luman]] (''[[Lonely Women Make Good Lovers (album)|Lonely Women Make Good Lovers]]''), and [[Nat Stuckey]].
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* [[Dash Rip Rock]] on its 1991 live album ''Boiled Alive.''
* [[Dash Rip Rock]] on its 1991 live album ''Boiled Alive.''
* [[Me First and the Gimme Gimmes]] on its album ''[[Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah]]''
* [[Me First and the Gimme Gimmes]] on its album ''[[Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah]]''
* Debbie Rule on her 2015 album ''Texas Girls''
* [[Hellbound Glory]] on its 2017 album ''Pinball'', although the location in the song was changed to the [[Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta|Sacramento River Delta]].
* [[Hellbound Glory]] on its 2017 album ''Pinball'', although the location in the song was changed to the [[Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta|Sacramento River Delta]].
* [[Home Free (group)|Home Free]] and [[Brooke Eden]] - 2023
* [[Home Free (group)|Home Free]] and [[Brooke Eden]] - 2023
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{{singlechart|Billboardcountrysongs|6 |artist=Tanya Tucker}}
{{singlechart|Billboardcountrysongs|6 |artist=Tanya Tucker}}
|-
|-
|Canadian ''RPM'' Country Tracks<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.7656&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.7656.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.7656|title=RPM Country Singles - Volume 17, No. 23|website=[[Library and Archives Canada]]|access-date=7 November 2024}}</ref>
|Canadian ''RPM'' Country Tracks
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|3
|}
|}
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| style="text-align:center;"|13
| style="text-align:center;"|13
|-
|-
|US ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]]<ref>''Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990'' - {{ISBN|0-89820-089-X}}</ref>
|US ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]]<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/helen-reddy/chart-history/hsi/ |title=Helen Reddy Chart History (Hot 100) |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=7 November 2024}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|1
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
|-
|US ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Easy Listening]]
|US ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Easy Listening]]<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/helen-reddy/chart-history/asi/ |title=Helen Reddy Chart History (Adult Contemporary) |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=7 November 2024}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|1
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
|-
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|}
|}
{{col-end}}
{{col-end}}
====Sylvie Vartan version (in French)====
{|class="wikitable"
!align="left"|Chart (1974)
!align="center"|Peak<br />position
|-
|align="left"|[[Belgium]] ([[Ultratop 50]] Wallonia)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sylvie Vartan - Toi le garçon - ultratop.be |url=https://www.ultratop.be/fr/song/9aea/Sylvie-Vartan-Toi-le-garcon |access-date=2024-06-21 |website=www.ultratop.be}}</ref>
|align="center"|22
|}


===Certifications===
===Certifications===
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{{Certification Table Entry|title=Delta Dawn|artist=Helen Reddy|type=single|relyear=1973|certyear=1974|region=Australia|award=Gold|certref=<ref name="Aus74">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1974/CB-1974-03-23.pdf|title=Cash Box Magazine|magazine=[[Cash Box magazine|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=51|date=23 March 1974|access-date=15 November 2021}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|title=Delta Dawn|artist=Helen Reddy|type=single|relyear=1973|certyear=1974|region=Australia|award=Gold|certref=<ref name="Aus74">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1974/CB-1974-03-23.pdf|title=Cash Box Magazine|magazine=[[Cash Box magazine|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=51|date=23 March 1974|access-date=15 November 2021}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|title=Delta Dawn|artist=Helen Reddy|type=single|relyear=1973|certyear=1975|region=New Zealand|award=Gold|certref=<ref name="NZ1975">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1975/CB-1975-11-22.pdf|title=Gold from Down Under |magazine=[[Cash Box magazine|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=unknown|date=22 November 1975|access-date=15 November 2021}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|title=Delta Dawn|artist=Helen Reddy|type=single|relyear=1973|certyear=1975|region=New Zealand|award=Gold|certref=<ref name="NZ1975">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1975/CB-1975-11-22.pdf|title=Gold from Down Under |magazine=[[Cash Box magazine|Cash Box]]|via=World Radio History|page=unknown|date=22 November 1975|access-date=15 November 2021}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Helen Reddy|title=Delta Dawn|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=1973|certyear=1973|access-date=August 15, 2024}}
{{Certification Table Bottom}}
{{Certification Table Bottom}}

==Use in popular media==
{{unreferenced section|date=December 2016}}
* On ''[[Friends (TV series)|Friends]]'', [[Monica Geller]] sang it at a [[piano bar]] where [[Mike Hannigan]] worked.
* [[Stone Cold Steve Austin]] gave the first verse his take on an episode of ''[[WWE Raw]]'' – notable for his failure to hit the high notes.
* [[Sonny Bono|Sonny]] and [[Cher]] performed it on their ''[[The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour]]'' on CBS.
* Appeared in the movie ''[[Big Fan]]'', starring [[Patton Oswalt]].


==Notes==
==Notes==

Latest revision as of 05:18, 22 December 2024

For the formerly unidentified decedent, see Murder of Alisha Heinrich. For the fictional animated character, see Trolls World Tour.
"Delta Dawn"
1971 promotional single
Promotional single by Alex Harvey
from the album Alex Harvey
B-side"Same song"
Released1971
GenreCountry, folk rock
Length4:02
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Michael Sunday
Alex Harvey singles chronology
"To Make My Life Beautiful"
(1971) 		"Delta Dawn"
(1971) 		"Old Fashioned Feeling"
(1972)
"Delta Dawn"
Single by Bette Midler
from the album The Divine Miss M
A-side"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy"
ReleasedMay 1973
Recorded1972
StudioAtlantic Recording Studios (New York, New York)
GenrePop rock
Length5:18
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)
"Delta Dawn"
side-A label
One of side-A labels of the US single
Single by Tanya Tucker
from the album Delta Dawn
B-side"I Love the Way He Loves Me"
ReleasedApril 10, 1972
RecordedMarch 17, 1972
StudioColumbia (Nashville, Tennessee)
GenreCountry
Length2:59
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Billy Sherrill
Tanya Tucker singles chronology
"Delta Dawn"
(1972) 		"Love's the Answer/The Jamestown Ferry"
(1972)

"Delta Dawn" is a song written by musician Larry Collins and country songwriter Alex Harvey.[a] The first notable recording of the song was in 1971 by American singer and actress Bette Midler for her debut album The Divine Miss M. However it is best known as a 1972 top ten country hit for Tanya Tucker[1] and a 1973 US number one hit for Helen Reddy.

Though the song is attributed exclusively to Collins and Harvey, the melody of the chorus is virtually identical to the Christian hymn Amazing Grace.

Content

[edit]

The title character is a faded former Southern belle from Brownsville, Tennessee, who, at 41, is obsessed to unreason with the long-ago memory of a suitor who jilted her. The lyrics describe how the woman regularly "walks downtown with a suitcase in her hand / looking for a mysterious dark haired man" who she says will be taking her "to his mansion in the sky."

Reddy's recording in particular includes choir-like inspirational overtones.

The song's writing

[edit]

Alex Harvey said he wrote the song about his mother:

My mother had come from the Mississippi Delta and she always lived her life as if she had a suitcase in her hand but nowhere to put it down.

Ten years before Harvey wrote the song, he was performing on TV and told his mother not to come, lest she get drunk and embarrass him. That night she died in a car crash, and Harvey believed it was suicide caused by his rejection.[2]

For years Harvey suffered from guilt over the incident, until a cathartic incident the night he wrote the song. He was at fellow songwriter Larry Collins' house, who was asleep while Harvey noodled around on his guitar. He believed his mother then came to him in a vision:

I looked up and I felt as if my mother was in the room. I saw her very clearly. She was in a rocking chair and she was laughing...I really believe that my mother didn't come into the room that night to scare me, but to tell me, 'It's okay,' and that she had made her choices in life and it had nothing to do with me. I always felt like that song was a gift to my mother and an apology to her. It was also a way to say 'thank you' to my mother for all she did.[3]

After writing the first few lines of the song, Harvey woke Collins and they finished it together.

Recording history

[edit]

The first recording of "Delta Dawn" was made by Harvey for his eponymous album released in November 1971. Harvey had performed as the opening act for Helen Reddy at the Troubadour, in January 1972, but at that time Reddy (who also was signed with the Capitol Records label) made no connection with any of Harvey's compositions.[4]

Dianne Davidson sang backup for Harvey's recording. She was the first singer after Harvey to record the song and chart in 1971–1972.[citation needed]

Tracy Nelson also sang backup on Harvey's recording, and performed "Delta Dawn" in her live act.[citation needed]

Bette Midler

[edit]

After hearing Tracy Nelson sing "Delta Dawn" at the Bottom Line in New York City, Bette Midler added the song to her repertoire.[citation needed]

During the time Tanya Tucker’s and Helen Reddy’s recordings of the song were being produced (see below), Bette Midler recorded "Delta Dawn" for her The Divine Miss M debut album, for which her bluesy version was planned as the lead single. Reddy's single was released June 1973, two days after Midler's. The preemption required a marketing change for Midler, so the original B-side "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" was shopped to radio, itself becoming a top ten hit.

The song was also included on Midler's 1977 live album Live at Last (Bette Midler album) which was recorded at the Cleveland Music Hall in Cleveland, Ohio.

Tanya Tucker

[edit]

Before Bette Midler's recording, Nashville-based producer Billy Sherrill heard her sing "Delta Dawn" on The Tonight Show and wanted to sign Midler to Epic Records and have her record it. Upon finding that Midler already signed with Atlantic Records, Sherrill cut the song with Tanya Tucker, who was newly signed to Epic,[5] at the Columbia Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. Tucker's version was released in April 1972; it reached number six Country that spring.[6]

While Harvey's original version started with the first verse, Sherrill suggested starting with the chorus instead, done a cappella – a term unknown to 13-year-old Tucker.[3] This distinction became a signature of her version.

Helen Reddy

[edit]
"Delta Dawn"
vinyl label
One of US reissues
Single by Helen Reddy
from the album Long Hard Climb
B-side"If We Could Still Be Friends"
ReleasedJune 1973[7]
Recorded1972
GenrePop[8]
Length3:11
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)Larry Collins, Alex Harvey
Producer(s)Tom Catalano
Helen Reddy singles chronology
"Peaceful"
(1973) 		"Delta Dawn"
(1973) 		"Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)"
(1973)

Record producer Tom Catalano created an instrumental track of "Delta Dawn." Catalano first offered the vocal track to Barbra Streisand, but she refused; after this he gave the vocal to Reddy.[9]

Reddy's version, which added upward modulation to Tucker's cold intro and nonstop vocals throughout, entered the top ten on 18 August 1973, on its way to its lone week at number one on the main Billboard Hot 100 chart, on 15 September 1973. It remained in the top 10 for eight weeks,[10] and was ranked as the No. 14 song for 1973 according to Billboard. "Delta Dawn" was also the first of Reddy's six consecutive — and eight overall — number one hits on the Billboard Easy Listening chart.[11] The song also topped the Cash Box chart on 8 September 1973, remaining at number one for two weeks.[12]

Reddy had reached number two with both "I Don't Know How to Love Him" and I Am Woman in her native Australia; "Delta Dawn" became her first number one hit there, spending five weeks at the top of the Kent Music Report in August and September 1973.[13] "Delta Dawn" also marked Reddy's only chart appearance in South Africa, reaching number 13 in the autumn of 1973.[14]

Sylvie Vartan (in French)

[edit]
"Toi le garçon"
Single by Sylvie Vartan
LanguageFrench
English titleYou're the boy
B-side"L'amour au diapason"
ReleasedOctober 1973
RecordedSummer–fall 1973
GenrePop
Length3:24
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)
Sylvie Vartan singles chronology
"L’homme que tu seras"
(1973) 		"Toi le garçon"
(1973) 		"Bye Bye Leroy Brown"
(1973)

In 1973, the song was adapted into French by Michel Mallory as "Toi le garçon" (meaning "You're the boy") and was recorded by French pop singer Sylvie Vartan and was released as a non-album single in October 1973.[15] Vartan's version peaked at Number 22 on the French Belgian charts on March 9, 1974.[16]

Other recordings

[edit]

Chart performance

[edit]

Weekly charts

[edit]

Tanya Tucker version

[edit]
Chart (1972) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100[18] 72
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[19] 6
Canadian RPM Country Tracks[20] 3

Helen Reddy version

[edit]

Sylvie Vartan version (in French)

[edit]
Chart (1974) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[32] 22

Certifications

[edit]
Certifications for the Helen Reddy version
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[33] Gold 50,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[34] Gold 10,000*
United States (RIAA)[35] Gold 1,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Harvey more often went by the name Alexander Harvey in later years, to avoid being confused with Glaswegian rocker Alex Harvey.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 357.
  2. ^ Chicken Soup for the Soul: Country Music: The Inspirational Stories behind 101 of Your Favorite Country Songs by Jack Canfield — ISBN 978-1935096672
  3. ^ a b "Delta Dawn by Helen Reddy". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  4. ^ "(unknown)". Billboard. Vol. 84, no. 2. 8 January 1972. p. 12.
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