"Son of a Preacher Man" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Dusty Springfield | ||||
from the album Dusty in Memphis | ||||
B-side | "Just a Little Lovin'" | |||
Released | November 8, 1968 | |||
Recorded | American Studios, Memphis, Tennessee, September 1968 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 2:29 | |||
Label | Atlantic (US) Philips (international) | |||
Songwriter(s) | John Hurley, Ronnie Wilkins | |||
Producer(s) | Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin, Jeff Barry, Tom Dowd | |||
Dusty Springfield singles chronology | ||||
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Audio sample | ||||
"Son of a Preacher Man" is a song written and composed by American songwriters John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins and recorded by British singer Dusty Springfield in September 1968 for the album Dusty in Memphis.
Springfield's version was produced by Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd, and Arif Mardin for her first album for the Atlantic Records label. The single, released in late 1968 and credited as "Son-of-a Preacher Man" on UK, US and other releases, became an international hit, reaching no. 9 in the UK singles chart and no. 10 on Billboard's Hot 100 in January 1969. The album Dusty in Memphis was released in stereo, though its singles were remixed and released in mono.
"Son of a Preacher Man" was Springfield's last Top 30 hit until 1987, when her collaboration with UK synthpop duo the Pet Shop Boys yielded the huge hit "What Have I Done to Deserve This?". "Son of a Preacher Man" found a new audience when it was included on the soundtrack of Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film Pulp Fiction ; a re-release of the single reached number one in Iceland in 1995.
In 1968, songwriters John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins (who had recently had a hit with "Love of the Common People") wrote the song with Aretha Franklin in mind, according to a 2009 interview with Wilkins. Atlantic Records producer and co-owner Jerry Wexler, who was recording Dusty Springfield's first Atlantic album in Memphis at the time, liked the song and suggested it to Springfield for the Dusty in Memphis album. [3]
Following Springfield's top-10 single release, the song was recorded in 1969 by Franklin for her This Girl's in Love with You album. Franklin's version also appeared as the B-side of her hit single "Call Me". Franklin's older sister Erma Franklin also recorded the song and included it on her 1969 Brunswick album Soul Sister.
Cash Box said that Springfield "shows a new soul" and that the song is "brim-full of the special southern-combo sound and a vocal strongly influenced by Aretha [Franklin]." [4]
The writers of Rolling Stone magazine placed Dusty Springfield's recording at number 77 among "The 100 Best Singles of the Last 25 Years" in 1987. The record was placed at number 43 among the "Greatest Singles of All Time", by the writers of New Musical Express in 2002, and in 2004, the song was on the Rolling Stone list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". [5]
In 1994, the song was featured in a scene of the film Pulp Fiction . [6] "Son of a Preacher Man" helped to sell more than two million units of the film's soundtrack [7] and to help it reach number six on the charts, according to SoundScan. [8] Quentin Tarantino has been quoted, on the "Collectors Edition" DVD of Pulp Fiction, as saying that he probably would not have filmed the scene in which the song is featured had he not been able to use it.
In 2001, Emma Wilkinson's UK television performance of "Son of a Preacher Man" won the Grand Final of the talent show Stars in Their Eyes garnering the most votes from 15 million television viewers. [9] [10]
Samples from "Son of a Preacher Man" were used on Cypress Hill's "Hits from the Bong" on their album Black Sunday . The song is also featured in the 2016 video game Mafia III . [11]
Chart (1968–1969) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Go-Set [12] | 6 |
Ö3 Austria Top 40 [13] | 10 |
Belgian BRT Top 30 [14] | 23 |
Canada RPM Magazine [15] | 11 |
Dutch Single Top 100 [16] | 4 |
Dutch Top 40 [17] | 6 |
French SNEP Chart [18] | 115 |
German Media Control [19] | 38 |
Irish Singles Charts [20] | 11 |
Malaysian Singles Chart (Radio Malaysia) [21] | 2 |
New Zealand Singles Chart [22] | 7 |
Singapore Singles Charts (Radio Singapore) [23] | 1 |
Swiss Singles Top 75 [24] | 3 |
UK Singles Chart [25] | 9 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [26] | 10 |
Chart (1995) | Peak position |
---|---|
Icelandic Singles Chart [27] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [28] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [29] | Gold | 25,000‡ |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [30] | Platinum | 60,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [31] | 2× Platinum | 1,200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien, better known by her stage name Dusty Springfield, was an English singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano sound, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, pop and dramatic ballads, with French chanson, country, and jazz in her repertoire. During her 1960s peak, she ranked among the most successful British female performers on both sides of the Atlantic. Her image – marked by a peroxide blonde bouffant/beehive hairstyle, heavy makeup and evening gowns, as well as stylised, gestural performances – made her an icon of the Swinging Sixties.
Dusty in Memphis is the fifth studio album by English singer Dusty Springfield. Initial sessions were recorded at American Sound Studio in Memphis, while Springfield's final vocals and the album's orchestral parts were recorded at Atlantic Records' New York City studios. The album was released in March 1969 in the United States by Atlantic Records, and Philips Records distributed the record outside the U.S. Springfield worked on the album with a team of musicians and producers that included Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin, Tom Dowd, conductor Gene Orloff, backing vocalists the Sweet Inspirations, bassist Tommy Cogbill, and guitarist Reggie Young.
"I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" is a soul song most popularly released as a joint single performed by Diana Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations for the Motown label. This version peaked for two weeks at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in the United States, selling 900,000 copies in its first two weeks, and at No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart in January 1969.
The Sweet Inspirations are an American R&B girl group mostly known for their work as backup singers on studio recordings for other R&B and rock artists. A founding member of the group was Dionne Warwick, who was later replaced by her aunt, Cissy Houston.
A Brand New Me is the sixth studio album by English singer Dusty Springfield, released in 1970.
"Angel of the Morning" is a popular song written by Chip Taylor, originally recorded by Evie Sands but which first charted with a version by Merrilee Rush. The song has been covered by many artists including Chrissie Hynde, Dusty Springfield, P. P. Arnold, Connie Eaton, Mary Mason, Guys 'n' Dolls, Melba Montgomery, Olivia Newton-John and most recognizably by Juice Newton.
Reggie Grimes Young Jr. was an American musician who was lead guitarist in the American Sound Studio house band, The Memphis Boys, and was a leading session musician.
"Breakfast in Bed" is a soul–R&B song written by Muscle Shoals songwriters Eddie Hinton and Donnie Fritts for Dusty Springfield. It takes a knowing spin on the line "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me", the title of a song that had previously been a number one hit for her in the UK. After being released on her 1969 album Dusty in Memphis, it was recorded and popularized the same year by Baby Washington. Harry J produced three reggae versions in 1972, by Lorna Bennett, Scotty and Bongo Herman.
The discography of English pop singer Dusty Springfield includes twenty one studio albums, one live album, thirty compilations, four extended plays and sixty-nine singles. Some of Springfield's albums and singles were unreleased, most notably 1974's Longing. Additionally, many of her early US album releases were released by the US arm of Philips Records, using material recorded in England and America with US and UK single releases included and re-ordered. Thus, these album releases were often collections of her recordings that were not intended by Springfield to have been released as proper albums at all. From 1969 on through 2015, her albums were released simultaneously in the US and the UK, though occasionally with different names and artwork, but the same track listings. Only 1968's Dusty... Definitely and 1972's See All Her Faces and 1982's White Heat deviated from that format.
"Am I the Same Girl?" is a popular song written by Eugene Record and Sonny Sanders. First recorded in 1968 by Barbara Acklin, "Am I the Same Girl?" charted most successfully in the US as a 1992 release by Swing Out Sister. However, the song had its greatest impact as a 1968–69 instrumental hit single by Young-Holt Unlimited under the title "Soulful Strut".
"What Have I Done to Deserve This?" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys and soul singer Dusty Springfield, taken from the duo's second studio album, Actually (1987). The song was released as the second single from the album on 10 August 1987.
"I Only Want to Be with You" is a song written by Mike Hawker and Ivor Raymonde. The debut solo single released by British singer Dusty Springfield under her long-time producer Johnny Franz, "I Only Want to Be with You" peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles chart in January 1964.
"The Windmills of Your Mind" is a song with music by French composer Michel Legrand and English lyrics written by American lyricists Alan and Marilyn Bergman. French lyrics, under the title "Les Moulins de mon cœur", were written by Eddy Marnay.
"Mockingbird" is a 1963 song written and recorded by Inez and Charlie Foxx, based on the lullaby "Hush, Little Baby".
Just a Little Lovin' is the tenth studio album by Shelby Lynne, released in the United States and Canada on January 29, 2008. The album is a tribute to British singer Dusty Springfield, and features covers of nine songs popularized by her, in addition to "Pretend", an original song written by Lynne. In contrast to the more fully instrumented original versions Dusty Springfield recorded, Lynne's remakes featured sparse arrangements, favoring acoustic guitars and pianos rather than a string or horn section.
Thomas Clark Cogbill was an American bassist, guitarist and record producer known for his work in R&B, soul and country music.
Touch 'Em with Love is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bobbie Gentry. It was released on July 7, 1969, by Capitol Records. The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, and produced by Kelso Herston.
The American Sound Studio was a recording studio located in Memphis, Tennessee which operated from 1964 to 1972. Founded by Chips Moman, the studio at 827 Thomas Street came to be known as American North, and the studio at 2272 Deadrick Street came to be known as American East or the Annex.
"Gimme Gimme Good Lovin'" is a song written by Joey Levine and Ritchie Cordell and performed by Crazy Elephant. It reached #12 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart in 1969, and was featured on their 1969 album, Crazy Elephant.
John David Hurley and Ronald Stephen Wilkins were American musicians and songwriting partners responsible for writing the hit songs "Love of the Common People" and "Son of a Preacher Man". Hurley also recorded three albums in the 1970s.
...Dusty managed to unfurl her golden pipes and set them loose in the mildly perverse Country/Soul amble of "Son of a Preacher Man"...
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