Somethin' Stupid
Encyclopedia
"Somethin' Stupid" is a song written by C. Carson Parks and originally recorded in 1966
by Parks and his wife Gaile Foote, as "Carson and Gaile". It is best known in the hit version by Frank Sinatra
and his daughter, Nancy Sinatra
.
. He was an occasional member of The Easy Riders
, and also performed with The Steeltown Three, which included his younger brother Van Dyke Parks
. In 1963 he formed the Greenwood County Singers, later known as The Greenwoods, who had two minor hits and included singer Gaile Foote. Before the Greenwoods disbanded, Parks and Foote married and, as Carson and Gaile, recorded an album for Kapp Records
, San Antonio Rose, which included the track "Something Stupid". The recording was then brought to the attention of Frank Sinatra.
. Frank Sinatra played Parks' recording to his daughter Nancy's producer, Lee Hazlewood
, who recalled "He asked me, 'Do you like it?' and I said, 'I love it, and if you don't sing it with Nancy, I will.' He said, 'We're gonna do it, book a studio.'" Their rendition was recorded on February 1, 1967. Al Casey
played guitar on the recording. Some sources credit Claus Ogerman as having done the arrangement of the song; others, Billy Strange.
The song spent four weeks at #1 on the US
Billboard Hot 100
chart and nine weeks atop the adult contemporary
chart, becoming Mr. Sinatra's second gold single as certified by the RIAA and Ms. Sinatra's third. It was the first and only instance of a father-daughter number-one song in America. The single also reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart
the same year. Because of the song's intimate nature, this single is sometimes unofficially referred to as "The Incest Song".
many times in the years since the song was originally released.
singer Robbie Williams
recorded "Somethin' Stupid" as a duet in 2001 with Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman
. The song appeared on Williams' 2001 album, Swing When You're Winning
, and it topped the UK Singles Chart at the end of the year. The song became Williams' first Christmas Number-One single in the United Kingdom, and fifth as a featured artist. The single sold 98,506 copies in its first week and 366,000 copies over all earning a Silver Certification by the BPI
. The song was the 30th best selling single of 2001 in the UK. The song also became another number-one single for Williams in New Zealand
, being certified Gold, and became, at the time, his best selling single in Europe charting inside the top ten in most countries. In Australia
, it became Williams' fourth top ten single, earning a Gold certification for over 35,000 copies sold. These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Somethin' Stupid".
UK CD Single
UK DVD Single
1966 in music
-Events:*January 3 – Hullabaloo shows promotional videos of The Beatles songs "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work it Out".*January 8 – Shindig! airs for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who...
by Parks and his wife Gaile Foote, as "Carson and Gaile". It is best known in the hit version by Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
and his daughter, Nancy Sinatra
Nancy Sinatra
Nancy Sandra Sinatra is an American singer and actress. She is the daughter of singer/actor Frank Sinatra, and remains best known for her 1966 signature hit "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'"....
.
Original recording by Carson and Gaile
In the early 1960s, Carson Parks was a folk singer in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. He was an occasional member of The Easy Riders
The Easy Riders (American band)
The Easy Riders were an American folk music band, that operated from 1956 to 1959, consisting of Terry Gilkyson, Richard Dehr, and Frank Miller. Their career was guided by Mitch Miller, who had them under contract for Columbia Records....
, and also performed with The Steeltown Three, which included his younger brother Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks is an American composer, arranger, producer, musician, singer, author and actor. Parks is perhaps best known for his contributions as a lyricist on the Beach Boys album Smile....
. In 1963 he formed the Greenwood County Singers, later known as The Greenwoods, who had two minor hits and included singer Gaile Foote. Before the Greenwoods disbanded, Parks and Foote married and, as Carson and Gaile, recorded an album for Kapp Records
Kapp Records
Kapp Records was an independent record label started in 1954 by David Kapp, brother of Jack Kapp . David Kapp founded his own label after stints with Decca Records and RCA Victor Records. Kapp licensed its records to London Records for release in the UK.In 1967, David Kapp sold his label to MCA Inc...
, San Antonio Rose, which included the track "Something Stupid". The recording was then brought to the attention of Frank Sinatra.
Frank and Nancy Sinatra
The most successful and best known version of the song was issued by Frank and Nancy Sinatra on Frank's album The World We KnewThe World We Knew
The World We Knew is a 1967 studio album by American singer Frank Sinatra.The title track reached #30 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart in 1967, while the Frank/Nancy Sinatra duet "Somethin' Stupid" reached #1 on both charts.-Reception:The Allmusic review by...
. Frank Sinatra played Parks' recording to his daughter Nancy's producer, Lee Hazlewood
Lee Hazlewood
Lee Hazlewood , born Barton Lee Hazlewood was an American country and pop singer, songwriter, and record producer, most widely known for his work with guitarist Duane Eddy during the late 1950s and singer Nancy Sinatra in the 1960s.Hazlewood had a distinctive baritone voice that added an ominous...
, who recalled "He asked me, 'Do you like it?' and I said, 'I love it, and if you don't sing it with Nancy, I will.' He said, 'We're gonna do it, book a studio.'" Their rendition was recorded on February 1, 1967. Al Casey
Al Casey (rock & roll guitarist)
Alvin W. Casey was an American guitarist. He was mainly noted for his work as a session musician, but also released records and scored three Billboard Hot 100 hits in the United States...
played guitar on the recording. Some sources credit Claus Ogerman as having done the arrangement of the song; others, Billy Strange.
The song spent four weeks at #1 on the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart and nine weeks atop the adult contemporary
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
chart, becoming Mr. Sinatra's second gold single as certified by the RIAA and Ms. Sinatra's third. It was the first and only instance of a father-daughter number-one song in America. The single also reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
the same year. Because of the song's intimate nature, this single is sometimes unofficially referred to as "The Incest Song".
Other versions
The song has been coveredCover 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...
many times in the years since the song was originally released.
Robbie Williams version
BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
singer Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
recorded "Somethin' Stupid" as a duet in 2001 with Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...
. The song appeared on Williams' 2001 album, Swing When You're Winning
Swing When You're Winning
Swing When You're Winning is a swing cover album by English singer-songwriter Robbie Williams.-Background:After the success of his third studio album, Sing When You're Winning, Williams wanted to take another musical direction...
, and it topped the UK Singles Chart at the end of the year. The song became Williams' first Christmas Number-One single in the United Kingdom, and fifth as a featured artist. The single sold 98,506 copies in its first week and 366,000 copies over all earning a Silver Certification by the BPI
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
. The song was the 30th best selling single of 2001 in the UK. The song also became another number-one single for Williams in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, being certified Gold, and became, at the time, his best selling single in Europe charting inside the top ten in most countries. In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, it became Williams' fourth top ten single, earning a Gold certification for over 35,000 copies sold. These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Somethin' Stupid".
UK CD Single
- "Somethin' Stupid" - 2:51
- "Eternity" [Orchestral Version] - 5:32
- "My Way" [Live at the Albert Hall] - 7:00
- "Somethin' Stupid" [Video] - 3:08
UK DVD Single
- "Somethin' Stupid" [Video] - 3:08
- "Let's Face The Music and Dance" [Audio] - 2:36
- "That's Life" [Audio] - 3:07
| Country | Certification (if any) | Sales/shipments |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Gold | 35,000+ |
| Austria | Gold | 15,000+ |
| France | Silver | 100,000+ |
| Germany | Gold | 250,000+ |
| New Zealand | Gold | 7,500+ |
| Switzerland | Gold | 20,000+ |
| United Kingdom | Silver | 200,000+ |
| Chart (2001) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| European Hot 100 | 1 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 1 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 2 |
| German Singles Chart | 2 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 2 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 2 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 3 |
| Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart | 5 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 5 |
| Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart | 6 |
| Danish Singles Chart | 6 |
| Australian Singles Chart | 8 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 9 |
| Romanian Singles Chart | 9 |
| French Singles Chart | 16 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 17 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 25 |
Other artists
- In the same year as the Sinatras' version topped the US charts, rising country star Tammy WynetteTammy WynetteVirginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of the genre's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
released her version (with David HoustonDavid Houston (singer)Charles David Houston was an American country music singer. His peak in popularity came between the mid-1960s through the early 1970s.-Biography:...
) on her debut album, My Elusive Dreams.
- The Lennon Sisters recorded a version, featured on their album Somethin' Stupid. It was played during one of their spots on the Lawrence Welk Show
- Also in 1967, FrenchFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
singer Sacha DistelSacha DistelSacha Distel was a French singer and guitarist who had hits with a cover version of the Academy Award-winning "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" , "Scoubidou", and "The Good Life". He was born in Paris.-Career:Sacha Distel, born Alexandre Distel, was a son of Russian White émigré Leonid Distel...
released a French languageFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
version called "Ces mots stupides" (meaning These stupid words). Also in the same year, Paul MauriatPaul MauriatPaul Mauriat was a French orchestra leader, specializing in light music. He is best known in the United States for his million selling remake of André Popp's "Love is Blue", which was #1 for 5 weeks in 1968...
recorded an instrumental version of the song, which appeared on Album No. 5.
- The MotownMotown RecordsMotown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
recording duo Marvin GayeMarvin GayeMarvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
and Tammi TerrellTammi TerrellThomasina Winifred Montgomery, known as Tammi Terrell was an American singer-songwriter most notable for her association with Motown and her duets with Marvin Gaye. As a teenager she recorded for the Scepter–Wand, Try Me and Checker record labels. She signed with Motown in April 1965 and enjoyed...
covered the song on their 1967 album, UnitedUnited (Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell album)United is a studio album by soul musicians Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, released August 29, 1967 on the Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records. Harvey Fuqua and Johnny Bristol produced all of the tracks on the album, with the exception of "You Got What It Takes" and "Oh How I'd Miss You"...
.
- Ali CampbellAli CampbellAli Campbell, , is a British singer, solo artist and songwriter and was the lead singer and founding member of UB40. As part of UB40, Campbell sold over 70 million records world wide and toured the globe for 30 years. In 2008 Campbell left UB40 and embarked on a successful solo career.-Personal...
(of the band UB40UB40UB40 are a British reggae/pop band formed in 1978 in Birmingham. The band has placed more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. One of the world's best-selling music artists, UB40 have sold over 70 million records.Their hit singles...
) and his daughter Kibibi Campbell recorded the song for his 1995 solo album Big Love; it was released as a single in the UK reaching number 30 in December.
- The SmithereensThe SmithereensThe Smithereens are a rock band from Carteret, New Jersey, United States. The group formed in 1980 with members Pat DiNizio , Jim Babjak , Mike Mesaros , and Dennis Diken...
' compilation album, Attack of the Smithereens, features a cover of the song.
- Other versions figured in the 2005 album by Albin de la Simone, sung in duet with Jeanne CherhalJeanne CherhalJeanne Cherhal is a French singer-songwriter.-Biography:After spending her younger years in Erbray near Châteaubriant, Cherhal studied philosophy before moving to Paris. She started her singing career playing piano – solo, or accompanied by her guitarist Éric Löhrer in small concert venues. At the...
; by Amanda BarrieAmanda BarrieAmanda Barrie is an English actress.-Career:Born as Shirley Anne Broadbent, Barrie attended St Anne's College, St Anne's on Sea. She then trained at the Arts Educational School in London and later at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School...
and Johnny BriggsJohnny Briggs (actor)Johnny Briggs, MBE is an English actor. He is best known for his role as Mike Baldwin in the soap opera Coronation Street, in which he appeared from 1976 to 2006...
; by the jazz-alpine-folk band Global KrynerGlobal KrynerGlobal Kryner is a six-piece Austrian folk group, consisting of clarinet player Christof Spörk, bass trombonist, tenor and yodeller Sebastian Fuchsberger, guitarist Edi Koehldorfer, trumpet player Karl Rossmann, accordion player Anton Sauprügl, and jazz vocalist Sabine Stieger...
; and released by The MavericksThe MavericksThe Mavericks is a country music band founded in 1989 in Miami, Florida, United States. Between 1991 and 2003 they recorded six studio albums, in addition to charting 14 singles on the Billboard country charts...
with Trisha YearwoodTrisha YearwoodPatricia Lynn Yearwood, professionally known as Trisha Yearwood , is an American country music artist. She is best known for her ballads about vulnerable young women from a female perspective that have been described by some music critics as "strong" and "confident."Trisha Yearwood signed with MCA...
on their 1995 album Music for All OccasionsMusic for All OccasionsMusic for All Occasions is the fourth studio album by American country music band The Mavericks. The album was released on September 26, 1995 by MCA Nashville...
; a Hebrew version, called "I Love You", was recorded by Matti CaspiMatti CaspiMatti Caspi is an Israeli composer, musician, singer, and lyricist. Born in 1949, he is regarded as one of Israel’s top musicians.His music style is difficult to classify. He is influenced by classical music, Brazilian and Latin music, Jazz, Rock and other genres. It is possible to hear all these...
and his daughter, and released in 2005, on his album You Are My Woman; the song was also performed as a b-side by the Australian band Frente off the single for "Accidentally Kelly Street".
- In 2006, the band DeVotchKaDeVotchKaDeVotchKa is a four-piece multi-instrumental and vocal ensemble. They take their name from the Russian word devochka , meaning "girl"...
released the EP Curse Your Little HeartCurse Your Little HeartCurse Your Little Heart is an EP from the band DeVotchKa, released by Ace Fu in 2006. Five out of the six tracks are cover versions of other bands' songs, with the title track first appearing on the album SuperMelodrama.-Track listing:...
, which included a cover of "Somethin' Stupid."
- Also WelshWalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
folk singer Mary HopkinMary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
recorded a version on Y Caneuon Cynnar (The Early Recordings).
- Colombian duo, Ana & Jaime, recorded a version in Spanish called "Algo Estupido"
- The Trashcan SinatrasThe Trash Can SinatrasThe Trash Can Sinatras, now generally known as Trashcan Sinatras, are a Scottish band that was formed in Irvine, Scotland in 1986. The band's music makes frequent use of wordplay and pop harmonies.-Formation:...
, legendary Scottish Band covered this song on their Album entitled "On a B Road"
- The Secret SistersThe Secret SistersThe Secret Sisters are a new-age traditional Country music duo, consisting of vocalists Laura and Lydia Rogers, signed to Universal Republic/Beladroit Records. Their 1950s-inspired musical style has been described as "a guileless, rapturous mixture of rootsified pop"...
, country duo from Alabama, covered the song and featured it on their debut album "The Secret Sisters"