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{{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}}
{| id="toc" style="width:20em; margin:0 0 0.5em 1em; float:right;"
{{Infobox song
!align="center" bgcolor="yellow" colspan="3"|"Delta Dawn"
| name = Delta Dawn
| 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
| name = Delta Dawn
| image = Delta dawn by tanya tucker US single variant A.png
| alt = side-A label
| caption = One of side-A labels of the US single
| type = single
| artist = [[Tanya Tucker]]
| album = [[Delta Dawn (album)|Delta Dawn]]
| B-side = I Love the Way He Loves Me
| released = April 10, 1972
| recorded = March 17, 1972
| studio = [[Bradley Studios#Columbia Studios|Columbia]] (Nashville, Tennessee)
| genre = [[Country music|Country]]
| length = 2:59
| label = [[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
| writer = {{hlist|[[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]]|[[Alex Harvey (country musician)|Alex Harvey]]}}
| producer = [[Billy Sherrill]]
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title = [[Love's the Answer]]/[[The Jamestown Ferry]]
| 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 ''[[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-->

==Content==
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 [[wikt:jilt|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===
Alex Harvey said he wrote the song about his mother:

{{cquote|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.<ref>[[List_of_Chicken_Soup_for_the_Soul_books|Chicken Soup for the Soul: Country Music]]: The Inspirational Stories behind 101 of Your Favorite Country Songs by Jack Canfield — {{ISBN|978-1935096672}}</ref>

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:

{{cquote|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.<ref name=songfacts>{{Cite web|url=https://www.songfacts.com/facts/helen-reddy/delta-dawn|title=Delta Dawn by Helen Reddy |website=Songfacts.com|access-date=7 October 2023}}</ref>}}

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

==Recording history==
The first recording of "Delta Dawn" was made by Harvey for his [[eponym]]ous album released in November 1971. Harvey had performed as the opening act for [[Helen Reddy]] at [[The Troubadour (Los Angeles)|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.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Billboard |title=(''unknown'') |volume=84 |issue=2 |date=8 January 1972 |page=12}}</ref>

Dianne Davidson sang backup for Harvey's recording. She was the first singer after Harvey to record the song and [[Record chart|chart]] in 1971–1972.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

[[Tracy Nelson (singer)|Tracy Nelson]] also sang backup on Harvey's recording, and performed "Delta Dawn" in her live act.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

===Bette Midler===
After hearing [[Tracy Nelson (singer)|Tracy Nelson]] sing "Delta Dawn" at the [[The Bottom Line (venue)|Bottom Line]] in New York City, [[Bette Midler]] added the song to her repertoire.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

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 [[blues]]y 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 [[Billboard Hot 100|top&nbsp;ten hit]].

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

===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,<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.

===Helen Reddy===
{{Infobox song
| name = Delta Dawn
| image = Delta Dawn by Helen Reddy US Starline early reissue.png
| alt = vinyl label
| caption = One of US reissues
| type = single
| artist = [[Helen Reddy]]
| album = [[Long Hard Climb]]
| 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>
| recorded = 1972
| studio =
| genre = [[Pop music|Pop]]<ref name= "Breihan 2019">{{cite web|first= Tom |last= Breihan |title= The Number Ones: Helen Reddy's "Delta Dawn" |website= [[Stereogum]] |date= April 19, 2019 |url= https://www.stereogum.com/2040255/the-number-ones-helen-reddys-delta-dawn/columns/the-number-ones/|access-date= January 21, 2023}}</ref>
| length = 3:11
| label = [[Capitol Records|Capitol]]
| writer = [[Larry Collins (musician)|Larry Collins]], Alex Harvey
| producer = [[Tom Catalano]]
| prev_title = [[Peaceful (song)|Peaceful]]
| prev_year = 1973
| next_title = [[Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)]]
| next_year = 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.<ref name="Nickel Dreams p178">{{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/178 178] |isbn=0-7862-1182-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/nickeldreamsmyli00tuck_0/page/178 }}</ref>

Reddy's version, which added upward [[Modulation (music)|modulation]] to Tucker's [[Cold open|cold intro]] and nonstop vocals throughout, entered the top&nbsp;ten on 18&nbsp;August 1973, on its way to its lone week at number one on the main ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]] chart, on 15&nbsp;September 1973. It remained in the top 10 for eight weeks,<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://top40weekly.com/1973-all-charts/|title=All US Top 40 Singles For 1973|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]}}</ref> and was ranked as the [[Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1973|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'' [[Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks|Easy Listening chart]].<ref name="Billboard A/C #1 Hits">{{cite book |first=Wesley |last=Hyatt |year=1999 |title=The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits |publisher=Watson-Guptill Publications |location=New York |page=126 |isbn=0-8230-7693-8}}</ref> The song also topped the ''[[Cash Box (magazine)|Cash Box]]'' chart on 8&nbsp;September 1973, remaining at number one for two weeks.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://tropicalglen.com/Archives/70s_files/1973.html|title=Cash Box Top Singles - 1973|website=Tropicalglen.com|access-date=7 October 2023}}</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===
{{unreferenced section|date=December 2016}}
* [[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]]''
* 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]].
* [[The Statler Brothers]] on its 1973 Mercury album ''The Statler Brothers Sing Country Symphonies in E Major''
* Nola Francis released a version of the song in 1973. It peaked at number 98 in Australia.<ref name="aus2">{{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6|page=117}}</ref>
* Other 1973 covers included those by [[Sonny James]], [[Dottie West]], [[Teresa Brewer]], and [[Ray Conniff]].
* [[Scott Walker (singer)|Scott Walker]] in 1974
* [[Dash Rip Rock]] on its 1991 live album ''Boiled Alive.''
* [[Me First and the Gimme Gimmes]] on its album ''[[Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah]]''
* [[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

==Chart performance==
===Weekly charts===
====Tanya Tucker version====
{|class="wikitable sortable"
!Chart (1972)
!Peak<br />position
|-
|-
{{singlechart|Billboardhot100|72|artist=Tanya Tucker}}
!align="center" bgcolor="yellow" colspan="3"|Single by [[Helen Reddy]]
|-
|-
{{singlechart|Billboardcountrysongs|6 |artist=Tanya Tucker}}
!align="center" colspan="3"|From the album ''[[Long Hard Climb]]''
|-
|-
|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>
!align="left" valign="top"|Single Released
|align="center"|3
|colspan="2" valign="top"|Summer [[1973]]
|}

====Helen Reddy version====
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
|-
!Chart (1973)
!align="left" valign="top"|Recorded
!Peak<br />position
|colspan="2" valign="top"|Winter [[1972]]
|-
|-
|Australia ([[Kent Music Report]])<ref name="aus"/>
!align="left" valign="top"|Song Length
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|colspan="2" valign="top"|3:09
|-
|-
|Canada ''[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]]'' Top Singles<ref>{{cite web|title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |url=http://Collectionscanada.gc.ca|website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date= 2012-03-30|access-date=2018-02-19}}</ref>
!align="left" valign="top"|[[Record label]]
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|colspan="2" valign="top"|[[Capitol Records|Capitol]]
|-
|-
|Canada ''[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]]'' Adult Contemporary<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.4925&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.4925.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.4925 |title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date=1973-09-29 |access-date=2018-02-19}}</ref>
!align="left" valign="top"|[[Top 40|Chart]] positions
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|colspan="2" valign="top"|1 (USA)<br>1 (CAN)
|-
|New Zealand (''[[New Zealand Listener|Listener]]'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=search%20listener&qartistid=800#n_view_location|title=Flavour of New Zealand, 27 August 1973|website=Flavourofnz.co.nz|access-date=7 October 2023|archive-date=10 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170510114334/http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=search%20listener&qartistid=800#n_view_location|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|20
|-
|South Africa ([[Springbok Radio]])<ref name="saf"/>
| style="text-align:center;"|13
|-
|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
|-
|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
|-
|US [[Cash Box (magazine)|''Cash Box'']] Top 100<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://tropicalglen.com/Archives/70s_files/19730915.html |title=Cash Box Top 100 Singles, September 15, 1973 |access-date=February 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609220726/http://tropicalglen.com/Archives/70s_files/19730915.html |archive-date=June 9, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|align="center"|1
|-
|-
!bgcolor="yellow" colspan="3"|Helen Reddy single chronology
|-align="center"
|valign="top"|<small>"[[I Am Woman]]"<br />[[1972]]</small>
|valign="top"|<small>"Delta Dawn"<br />[[1973]]</small>
|valign="top"|<small>"[[Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)]]"<br />[[1973]]</small>
|}
|}
{{col-2}}


=====Year-end charts=====
'''"Delta Dawn"''' was a song written by Alex Harvey,not to be confused with the Sensational Alex Harvey, with some help from Larry Collins. ], and recorded by a number of female artists, most notably, [[Helen Reddy]] and [[Tanya Tucker]], whose versions topped the pop and country charts, respectively. Included on Tucker's first album, the song was released as a single and became the then thirteen-year old's first hit. Reddy cut the song shortly after Tucker's version became a hit, and her version became the seventh-highest selling single for the year [[1973]], hitting number one on the week ending [[September 15]]. [[Barbra Streisand]] was originally to have recorded the song, and a backing track was recorded, but upon hearing it, Streisand did not like the tune and refused to provide vocals. It was at this time that Reddy was approached to provide vocals for the already recorded backing track. Following the success of her widely popular [[1972]] single "[[I Am Woman]]", Reddy's version of "Delta Dawn" sold over a million copies upon its first release.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Chart (1973)
! style="text-align:center;"|Rank
|-
|Australia<ref name="Australian Chart Book 1970–1992">{{cite book|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|publisher=Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W |year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6|title-link=Kent Music Report}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|6
|-
|Canada ''RPM'' Top Singles<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.100214&URLjpg=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/028020/f4/nlc008388.100214.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.100214|title=Image : RPM Weekly|first=Library and Archives|last=Canada|website=[[Library and Archives Canada]] |date=December 26, 2017}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|2
|-
|US ''Billboard'' Hot 100<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/1973.htm|title=Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973|website=Musicoutfitters.com}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|14
|-
|US ''Billboard'' Easy Listening<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/70s/1973/Billboard%201973-12-29.pdf|title=Billboard Year-End Charts 1973|website=Americanradiohistory.com}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|-
|US ''Cash Box''<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://tropicalglen.com/Archives/70s_files/1973YESP.html |title=Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 29, 1973 |access-date=February 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715135835/http://tropicalglen.com/Archives/70s_files/1973YESP.html |archive-date=July 15, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|}
{{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===
In addition to Reddy and Tucker, [[Bette Midler]] has long been associated with "Delta Dawn", having included it on one of her early albums. She had heard the song in [[Nashville]], memorized it, and performed it three times on ''[[The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson]]''. Midler actually attempted to release her version as a single, but as luck would have it, Reddy's version was released a mere two days before Midler's, and most radio stations ended up preferring Reddy's recording; Midler's' version of the song was then moved to the [[B-side]] of her single release. [http://www.superseventies.com/1973_7singles.html] (Things ended up working out for Midler, just the same, as she also had a number-one pop hit with ''her'' single's flip side, a remake of the [[Andrews Sisters]]' "[[Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy]]".)
{{certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for the Helen Reddy version}}
{{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|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}}


==Notes==
The song is about a woman from [[Brownsville, Texas|Brownsville]] who earned the nickname "Delta Dawn" in her youth for her unmatched beauty and grace. After being dumped by a deceptive suitor, she lost her splendor and went insane, and now spends her days waiting for the return of her lost love. Although the song has a [[U.S. Southern states|Southern]] [[gospel]] feel (as evidenced by the song's introduction by a [[choir]], as well as the lyrics providing the setting of the song in the [[Deep South]]), Reddy is from [[Australia]], and trained her voice accordingly to mask her accent.
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}


==See also==
In addition to Reddy, Tucker and Midler, "Delta Dawn" was also covered by [[Teresa Brewer]] and, in more recent years, by the [[punk rock]] band [[Me First and the Gimme Gimmes]], on their album ''[[Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah]]''.
* [[List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1973 (U.S.)]]
* [[List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 1973 (U.S.)]]


==References==
It was also sung by [[Monica Geller]] in an episode of the hit sitcom, ''[[Friends]]'' ("TOW Monica Sings"). In this episode, her singing is greeted with raptuous applause, but only because the stage light causes her shirt to become transparent without her realizing.
{{reflist}}


==External links==
{{start box}}
* {{YouTube|g6ymXTFFtnc|Tanya Tucker - Delta Dawn}}
{{succession box
| before = "[[Let's Get It On (song)|Let's Get It On]]" by [[Marvin Gaye]]
| title = [[Billboard Hot 100]] [[List of number-one hits (United States)|number one single]] (Helen Reddy version)
| years = [[September 15]] [[1973]]
| after = "[[We're an American Band (song)|We're an American Band]]" by [[Grand Funk Railroad|Grand Funk]]
}}
{{end box}}


{{Tanya Tucker singles}}
==See also==
{{Helen Reddy}}
*[[Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1973 (USA)]]

{{authority control}}


[[Category:1972 songs]]
[[Category:1971 songs]]
[[Category:1972 debut singles]]
[[Category:1973 singles]]
[[Category:1973 singles]]
[[Category:Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles]]
[[Category:Waylon Jennings songs]]
[[Category:Tanya Tucker songs]]
[[Category:Helen Reddy songs]]
[[Category:Scott Walker (singer) songs]]
[[Category:Number-one singles in Australia]]
[[Category:Number-one singles in Australia]]
[[Category:Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles]]
[[Category:Cashbox number-one singles]]
[[Category:RPM Top Singles number-one singles]]
[[Category:Columbia Records singles]]
[[Category:Capitol Records singles]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Billy Sherrill]]

Latest revision as of 19:42, 4 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.

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.
  5. ^ Kosser, Michael (2006). How Nashville Became Music City, U.S.A.: A History Of Music Row. Lanham, Maryland, US: Backbeat Books. p. 147. ISBN 978-1-49306-512-7.
  6. ^ Tucker, Tanya (1997). Nickel Dreams: My life (Large print ed.). Waterville, Maine: Thorndike Press. p. 132. ISBN 0-7862-1182-2.
  7. ^ "Discography". Billboard. Vol. 86, no. 31. 3 August 1974. p. 52. ISSN 0006-2510.
  8. ^ Breihan, Tom (April 19, 2019). "The Number Ones: Helen Reddy's "Delta Dawn"". Stereogum. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  9. ^ Tucker, Tanya (1997). Nickel Dreams: my life (Large print ed.). Waterville, Maine: Thorndike Press. p. 178. ISBN 0-7862-1182-2.
  10. ^ "All US Top 40 Singles For 1973". Billboard.
  11. ^ Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits. New York: Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 126. ISBN 0-8230-7693-8.
  12. ^ "Cash Box Top Singles - 1973". Tropicalglen.com. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Australian Weekly Single Ccharts (David Kent) for 1973". Hitsofalldecades.com. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  14. ^ a b "SA Charts 1965 - 1989 Acts R". South African Rock Lists. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  15. ^ "45 Tours 70 – Site officiel de Sylvie Vartan" (in French). Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  16. ^ "Sylvie Vartan - Toi le garçon - ultratop.be". www.ultratop.be. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  17. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 117. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  18. ^ "Tanya Tucker Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  19. ^ "Tanya Tucker Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  20. ^ "RPM Country Singles - Volume 17, No. 23". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  21. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 2012-03-30. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  22. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1973-09-29. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  23. ^ "Flavour of New Zealand, 27 August 1973". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  24. ^ "Helen Reddy Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  25. ^ "Helen Reddy Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
  26. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, September 15, 1973". Archived from the original on June 9, 2015. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  27. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  28. ^ Canada, Library and Archives (December 26, 2017). "Image : RPM Weekly". Library and Archives Canada.
  29. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com.
  30. ^ "Billboard Year-End Charts 1973" (PDF). Americanradiohistory.com.
  31. ^ "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 29, 1973". Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  32. ^ "Sylvie Vartan - Toi le garçon - ultratop.be". www.ultratop.be. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  33. ^ "Cash Box Magazine" (PDF). Cash Box. 23 March 1974. p. 51. Retrieved 15 November 2021 – via World Radio History.
  34. ^ "Gold from Down Under" (PDF). Cash Box. 22 November 1975. p. unknown. Retrieved 15 November 2021 – via World Radio History.
  35. ^ "American single certifications – Helen Reddy – Delta Dawn". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
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