| "Cathy's Clown" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single bythe Everly Brothers | ||||
| from the albumA Date with the Everly Brothers | ||||
| B-side | "Always It's You" | |||
| Released | April 1960 | |||
| Recorded | 1960 | |||
| Genre | Pop[1] | |||
| Length | 2:22 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Songwriter | Don Everly | |||
| Producer | Wesley Rose | |||
| The Everly Brothers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Cathy's Clown" is apopularsong, written byDon Everly and recorded byThe Everly Brothers in 1960. The lyrics describe a man who has been wronged and publicly humiliated by his lover: "Here he comes / That's Cathy's clown". The choruses are sung by brothers Don and Phil in their trademarkclose harmony style, while Don sings the bridges solo.
"Cathy's Clown" is noted for its unorthodox structure, such as beginning on achorus and havingbridges but noverses. The song was a worldwide success and the best-selling single of the Everly Brothers' career. Because of its enduring influence on popular music the song was added to theNational Recording Registry of theLibrary of Congress in 2013.[2]
The musicians included the Everlys and Hank Garland on guitars,Floyd Cramer on piano,Floyd Chance on bass andBuddy Harman on drums. The distinctive drum sound was achieved by recording them with a tape loop, making it sound as if there were two drummers.[3] "Cathy's Clown" was recorded live in a single take, with Don and Phil sharing a microphone.[2]
"Cathy's Clown" was The Everly Brothers' first single for Warner Bros., after they had recorded forArchie Bleyer'sCadence label for three years. It sold eight million copies worldwide, spending five weeks at number 1 on the U.S.Billboard Hot 100 chart and one week on the R&B chart.[4] The song spent seven weeks at number 1 on theUK Singles Chart in May and June 1960,[5] and was the Everly Brothers' biggest-selling single and their third and final U.S. number 1 hit.Billboard ranked it as the number 3 song of the year for 1960.[6]
In 2004, it was ranked 149th onRolling Stone magazine's list of the500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
In November 2018, a judge ruled that Don was the sole writer of "Cathy's Clown", as Phil had relinquished his rights sometime before June 1980.Acuff-Rose Music, which owned the song publishing, andBMI (the brothers' rights society) removed Phil's name from all the royalty statements. In 2011, Don filed to regain ownership, with the estate of Phil following in 2014.[7]
"Cathy's Clown" was inspired byFerde Grofé'sGrand Canyon Suite.[8] It was a major influence on theBeatles, who — having "once toyed with calling themselves The Foreverly Brothers" — three years later copied the Everly's harmonies on their first U.K. No. 1 hit single, "Please Please Me".[8][9]
"Cathy's Clown" is mentioned in theopening line ofElliott Smith's song "Waltz 2 (XO)", the title track of his 1998 albumXO.[10]
Jan and Dean recorded a cover of "Cathy's Clown" for their albumFilet of Soul, butLiberty Records rejected both track listings that included the song. Liberty later selected its own track listing, which did not include "Cathy's Clown", and released it shortly after Jan Berry's crash near Deadman's Curve. Jan & Dean's cover of "Cathy's Clown" is available on the "Filet Of Soul Redux: The Rejected Master Recordings" release.
| All-time charts[edit]
|
| "Cathy's Clown" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single byReba McEntire | ||||
| from the albumSweet Sixteen | ||||
| Released | April 1989 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:04 | |||
| Label | MCA | |||
| Songwriter | Don Everly | |||
| Producers | Jimmy Bowen, Reba McEntire | |||
| Reba McEntire singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The song was recorded by Americancountry music artistReba McEntire in April 1989 as the lead single from her fifteenth studio albumSweet Sixteen. The song reached #1 on theBillboardHot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[13] | 1 |
| USHot Country Songs (Billboard)[14] | 1 |
| Chart (1989) | Position |
|---|---|
| Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[15] | 11 |
| USCountry Songs (Billboard)[16] | 15 |
| "Le p'tit clown de ton cœur" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single byJohnny Hallyday | ||||
| from the album Nous les gars, nous les filles | ||||
| Language | French | |||
| English title | The Little Clown of your heart | |||
| B-side | "Oui j'ai" | |||
| Released | November 24, 1960 | |||
| Recorded | October 1960 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll | |||
| Length | 2:26 | |||
| Label | Disques Vogue | |||
| Songwriters | Don Everly,Georges Aber,Pierre Delanoë | |||
| Johnny Hallyday singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Also in 1960, the song was adapted intoFrench byGeorges Aber andPierre Delanoë as "Le p'tit clown de ton cœur"[17] (meaning "The Little Clown of your heart"), and was recorded by Frenchrock and roll singerJohnny Hallyday and was released as the lead single off of Hallyday's second studio albumNous les gars, nous les filles ("Us guys, us girls") that November, which was released two months later.[18] Hallyday's version peaked at Number 48 on the French Belgian charts in early 1961.[19]
| Chart (1961) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[20] | 48 |
The song was covered byBill and Boyd in New Zealand; their version reached number 1 on theLever Hit Parades chart in that country in July 1960.[21] Another cover, by the English singer Dick Jordon, reached number 5 in New Zealand.[22] English musicianJohn Lennon also recorded a version, though only as a short demo that was never finished.[23]Neil Sedaka recorded a cover version for his 1983 album "Come See About Me".
"Cathy's Clown" was the best-selling single of the duo's career, but it wasn't their greatest. It's a perfectly solid pop song...
