Tammy (song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Tammy” | |
|---|---|
| Single by Debbie Reynolds | |
| B-side | “French Heels” |
| Released | June 1957 |
| Recorded | 1957 |
| Genre | Traditional pop |
| Length | 3:00 |
| Label | Coral |
| Songwriter(s) | Jay Livingston, Ray Evans |
| Producer(s) | Joseph Gershenson |
| Debbie Reynolds singles chronology | |
| “The Tender Trap“ (1956)”Tammy“ (1957)”A Very Special Love” (1957) |
“Tammy” is a popular song with music by Jay Livingston and lyrics by Ray Evans. It was published in 1957 and made its debut in the film Tammy and the Bachelor. It was nominated for the 1957 Oscar for Best Original Song. “Tammy” is heard in the film in two versions. The one that became a number one hit single for Debbie Reynolds in 1957 is heard midway through the film, and was a UK No. 2 hit single in the same year. Another version was heard during the main titles at the beginning of the film and was a hit for the Ames Brothers. There have been several other cover versions of the song.
The song’s title served as the inspiration for Berry Gordy‘s first record label. In 1959, Gordy set up a new record company, and wanted to call it “Tammy Records” after the song, but the name was taken and “Tamla” was chosen instead. The main Motown label was created later that year and the two labels were incorporated into the Motown Record Corporation in 1960. Tamla served as a primary R&B and soul subsidiary throughout Motown’s existence.
Debbie Reynolds version
The most popular version, by actress and singer Debbie Reynolds, was released by Coral Records as catalog number 61851. The backing orchestrations were done by Joseph Gershinson. It first reached the Billboard charts on July 22, 1957, and peaked at No. 1 on all the U.S. charts: the Disk Jockey chart, the Best Seller chart, and the composite chart of the top 100 songs. The single “Tammy” earned her a gold record. It is featured in the films The Long Day Closes, The Big Lebowski, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and was sampled in the song “A Different Feeling” by Australian electronic band The Avalanches on their 2000 album “Since I Left You“.
Ames Brothers version
A recording by the Ames Brothers, heard over the main titles of Tammy and the Bachelor, also charted. It was released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 47-6930. It first reached the Billboard charts on July 22, 1957. On the Disk Jockey chart, it peaked at No. 5; on the Best Seller chart, at No. 24; on the composite chart of the top 100 songs, it reached No. 29. On the Cash Box charts, where all versions were combined, the song reached No. 1.
Other versions
- Polly Bergen sang “Tammy” on the premiere episode of her short-lived 1957–1958 comedy/variety show, The Polly Bergen Show, aired on NBC on September 21, 1957.
- Hank Garland recorded an instrumental version on his album Velvet Guitar in 1959.
- Ray Conniff recorded an orchestral version in 1960
- Sam Cooke recorded a version for his 1957 album, Around the World.
- Bing Crosby recorded the song in 1957 for use on his radio show and it was subsequently issued on the CD New Tricks – 60th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (2017).
- Chet Atkins released a guitar-based instrumental version of the song with his 1961 record Chet Atkins’ Workshop. This version features a fingerstyle arrangement, as well as a fairly prominent tremolo sound added to Atkins’ electric guitar – it is worth noting that this is one of the few instances where Atkins used this particular electronic effect for a recording.
- Andy Williams released a version on his 1962 album, Danny Boy and Other Songs I Love to Sing.
- Sergio Franchi returned to England in 1963 to record this song with conductor Wally Stott on his RCA Victor Red Seal album, Women in My Life.
- A Trini Lopez version of “Tammy” was recorded for his LP The Love Album (Reprise Records R-6165).
- In 2002, the song was recorded by Michael Feinstein for his album, Livingston And Evans Songbook.
- Swedish singer-songwriter Jens Lekman recorded a version of the song on his 2005 Australian tour EP You Deserve Someone Better Than a Bum Like Me.
- Olivia Newton-John has stated that her performance of “Hopelessly Devoted to You” in the movie Grease is inspired by Debbie Reynolds’ performance of “Tammy” in Tammy and the Bachelor.
- Nancy Sinatra covered the song in 1963.
- A spare instrumental version was used in the youth dance scene at the end of the landmark Danish film Tree of Knowledge.
- It was recorded by the Graham Bond Organisation on its The Sound of ’65 album.
- After seeing the film Tammy and the Bachelor at the age of 12, Thomasina Montgomery changed her name to ‘Tammy’ and would later become Motown singer Tammi Terrell.
- Slim Whitman also recorded a version of the song for the album Slim Whitman Sings (1962).
- The Avalanches sampled the song in their track “A Different Feeling” from their album Since I Left You.
- Stan Freberg parodied the song in the sketch Gray Flannel Hat Full of Teenage Werewolves: “When I hold your sweet hairy hand tight in mine… Clammy! Clammy!”
- A piano version of “Tammy” is played by an Omega Theta Pi member in the opening scene of the 1978 film National Lampoon’s Animal House.
- Welsh singer Mary Hopkin issued a recording of the song on an EP in 1969.
- Connie Francis
Tammy (film series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the “Tammy” movie of 2014, see Tammy (film).
The Tammy movies are a series of four light-hearted American films about a naive 17-year-old girl from Mississippi, produced by Universal between 1957 and 1967. The main character of the movies is Tambrey “Tammy” Tyree, portrayed as a kind, sweet and polite country girl looking for romantic love. Some elements common to each film are: Tammy falling in love; Tammy singing about being in love; Tammy being hurt by sophisticated city folk; city folk learning something from Tammy; Tammy “puckering up” and then comparing the kiss with her first kiss; Tammy praying to God and talking to her grandmother; Tammy quoting from the Bible; and Tammy relating the wisdom of her grandfather, a lay preacher and moonshiner. Tammy’s speech is stereotypical of dialects of the rural Deep South. Although Tammy is very unworldly and has little formal education, she possesses considerable natural intelligence and determination, which help to bring about happy endings to each of her tales.
The films formed the basis of a later television series, simply called Tammy.
The Tammy movies are a series of four light-hearted American films about a naive young lady from Mississippi. They were produced by Universal between 1957 and 1967, and based on the character created in Cid Ricketts Sumner‘s 1948 book Tammy Out of Time.
The main character of the first three films, Tambrey “Tammy” Tyree, is portrayed as a kind and friendly country girl who finds romantic love. Her rustic southern dialect shows her isolation from modern culture, as well as her her rural upbringing but, in the original novel, Tammy Out of Time, Professor Brent discovers that she uses speech expressions going back to Chaucer, and much of her vocabulary is from the Elizabethan era “as is true of some of the mountain folk of Kentucky and Tennessee.”
Tammy and the Bachelor was the basis for the 1965-1966 television series Tammy. In the series Tammy’s last name was Tarleton, and she lives on a houseboat with her grandfather and uncle, but finds work as the secretary of wealthy Mr. Brent. Four episodes of Tammy were reedited into the last Tammy movie, Tammy and the Millionaire.
Film synopsis
Tammy and the Bachelor (1957)
Main article: Tammy and the Bachelor
Seventeen-year-old Tammy (Debbie Reynolds) lives on a houseboat with her grandpa (Walter Brennan). One day she comes upon the wreckage of a plane, plus the unconscious pilot, Peter Brent (Leslie Nielsen). Tammy and Grandpa nurse him back to health, and before he leaves for home Peter tells Tammy that if anything happens to her kin she can come and stay with the Brent family. When Grandpa is arrested for making moonshine liquor Tammy and her pet goat, Nan, go to live at Brentwood Hall. With her rustic upbringing and common-sense Tammy is able to save the aristocratic Brent family from bankruptcy. She and Peter fall in love.
Tammy Tell Me True (1961)
Main article: Tammy Tell Me True
Tammy’s (Sandra Dee) boyfriend, Pete, left for agricultural college but didn’t write to her, so she decides to take classes at a local college. She hoped to rent a room from rich widow Annie Rook Call, (Beulah Bondi) but the lady ends up moving into Tammy’s houseboat, and she remembers living on her uncle’s shanty-boat. Tammy falls in love with one of her teachers, Tom Freeman (John Gavin).
Tammy and the Doctor (1963)
Main article: Tammy and the Doctor
When Mrs. Call (Beulah Bondi) needs medical treatment in California Tammy (Sandra Dee) goes with her, becomes a nurse’s aide, and is wooed by a doctor (Peter Fonda).
Tammy and the Millionaire (1967)
A re-edit of four half-hour episodes of the Tammy TV series. Tammy Tarleton (Debbie Watson) had been raised on a houseboat by her grandpa (Denver Pyle) and Uncle Lucius (Frank McGrath) before being hired as a secretary for wealthy John Brent (Donald Woods). His neighbor, Lavinia Tate (Dorothy Green) was always trying to make Tammy look bad so that Brent’s son, Steven (Jay Sheffield) will become interested in Mrs. Tate’s daughter. But Mrs. Tate’s plans always backfire, and Tammy ends up impressing Mr. Brent, and winning Steven’s heart.
){kind=link}
Comments