Mustang Sally (song)
Encyclopedia
"Mustang Sally" is an R&B/straightforward blues
first recorded by Mack Rice
in 1965
. It gained greater popularity when it was covered
by Wilson Pickett
on a single the following year. Pickett's version was also included on his 1967 album The Wicked Pickett.
According to music historian Tom Shannon, the song started as a joke when Della Reese
wanted a new Ford Mustang
. Rice called the early version "Mustang Mama," but changed the title after Aretha Franklin
suggested "Mustang Sally."
Rice's version made it to #15 on the U.S. R&B charts in 1965. Pickett's version climbed to #6 R&B and #23 Pop in 1966, #4 in Canada (RPM Magazine
) and #28 in the UK Singles Chart on its original release and #62 when re-released in 1987
In 2004, Rolling Stone
ranked Wilson Pickett
's recording of the song at #434 on a list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song dropped seven spots to #441 when the magazine published its 2010 update of the list.
The song featured prominently in the 1991 film The Commitments
, and appears on the film's soundtrack album, as sung by Andrew Strong
. It was released as a single from the album and reached #63 in the UK Singles Chart.
Wilson's version was also set to the Pecos Bill
segment from Disney's Melody Time
in DTV.
The song was played by NASA
Mission Control as a morning wakeup song for astronaut Sally Ride
on one of her Space Shuttle
missions.
The song was played by K.I.T.T in one of the episodes of Knight Rider (2009).
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
first recorded by Mack Rice
Mack Rice
Mack Rice , is a American songwriter, whose compositions have been performed by many well-known artists, including The Staple Singers, Ike and Tina Turner, Albert King, Johnnie Taylor, Shirley Brown, Rufus Thomas, Etta James, Billy Eckstine, Eddie Floyd, Buddy Guy, The Rascals, Wilson Pickett,...
in 1965
1965 in music
-Events:*January 4 – Fender Musical Instruments Corporation is sold to CBS for $13 million.*January 12 – Hullabaloo premieres on NBC. The first show included performances by The New Christy Minstrels, comedian Woody Allen, actress Joey Heatherton and a segment from London in which Brian Epstein...
. It gained greater popularity when it was covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett was an American R&B/Soul singer and songwriter.A major figure in the development of American soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, and frequently crossed over to the US Billboard Hot 100...
on a single the following year. Pickett's version was also included on his 1967 album The Wicked Pickett.
According to music historian Tom Shannon, the song started as a joke when Della Reese
Della Reese
Delloreese Patricia Early, known professionally as Della Reese , is an American actress, singer, game show panelist of the 1970s, one-time talk-show hostess and ordained minister. She started her career in the 1950s as a gospel, pop and jazz singer, scoring a hit with her 1959 single "Don't You...
wanted a new Ford Mustang
Ford Mustang
The Ford Mustang is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company. It was initially based on the second generation North American Ford Falcon, a compact car. Introduced early on April 17, 1964, as a "1964½" model, the 1965 Mustang was the automaker's most successful launch since the Model A...
. Rice called the early version "Mustang Mama," but changed the title after Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
suggested "Mustang Sally."
Rice's version made it to #15 on the U.S. R&B charts in 1965. Pickett's version climbed to #6 R&B and #23 Pop in 1966, #4 in Canada (RPM Magazine
RPM (magazine)
RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,...
) and #28 in the UK Singles Chart on its original release and #62 when re-released in 1987
In 2004, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
ranked Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett was an American R&B/Soul singer and songwriter.A major figure in the development of American soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, and frequently crossed over to the US Billboard Hot 100...
's recording of the song at #434 on a list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song dropped seven spots to #441 when the magazine published its 2010 update of the list.
The song featured prominently in the 1991 film The Commitments
The Commitments (film)
The Commitments , the soundtrack for the film, was released on 13 Aug 1991. "Mustang Sally" was released as a single. Most of the songs on the album are performed by the cast band, but two are by Irish singer Niamh Kavanagh.-Track listing:-Chart positions:-The Commitments, Vol...
, and appears on the film's soundtrack album, as sung by Andrew Strong
Andrew Strong
Andrew Strong is an Irish singer and the son of Irish musician and singing coach Robert Strong. He grew up in Naas, Co Kildare. He starred as Deco Cuffe in the 1991 cult film The Commitments, based on the book by Roddy Doyle, having been cast at only 16 years of age with a voice sounding much older...
. It was released as a single from the album and reached #63 in the UK Singles Chart.
Wilson's version was also set to the Pecos Bill
Pecos Bill
Pecos Bill is an American cowboy, apocryphally immortalized in numerous tall tales of the Old West during American westward expansion into the Southwest of Texas, New Mexico, Southern California, and Arizona. Their stories were probably invented into short stories and book by Edward O'Reilly in the...
segment from Disney's Melody Time
Melody Time
Melody Time is a 1948 animated feature produced by Walt Disney and released to theatres by RKO Radio Pictures on May 27, 1948. Made up of several sequences set to popular music and folk music, the film is, like Make Mine Music before it, the popular music version of Fantasia Melody Time is a 1948...
in DTV.
The song was played by NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Mission Control as a morning wakeup song for astronaut Sally Ride
Sally Ride
Sally Kristen Ride is an American physicist and a former NASA astronaut. Ride joined NASA in 1978, and in 1983 became the first American woman—and then-youngest American, at 32—to enter space...
on one of her Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
missions.
The song was played by K.I.T.T in one of the episodes of Knight Rider (2009).