Delta Dawn

"Delta Dawn"
Single by Tanya Tucker
from the album Delta Dawn
B-side	"I Love the Way He Loves Me"
Released	May 13, 1972
Recorded	1972
Genre	Country
Length	3:09
Label	Columbia
Writer(s)	Larry Collins, Alex Harvey
Producer(s)	Billy Sherrill
Tanya Tucker singles chronology
"Delta Dawn" (1972) "Love's the Answer"/"The Jamestown Ferry" (1972)

"Delta Dawn"
Single by Helen Reddy
from the album Long Hard Climb
B-side	"If We Could Still be Friends"
Released	June 1973
Format	7"
Recorded	1972
Genre	Adult contemporary
Length	3:11
Label	Capitol
Writer(s)	Larry Collins, Alex Harvey
Producer(s)	Tom Catalano
Helen Reddy singles chronology
"Peaceful" (1973) "Delta Dawn" (1973) "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" (1973)

"Delta Dawn" is a song written by former child rockabilly star Larry Collins and songwriter Alex Harvey, best known as a 1972 top ten country hit for Tanya Tucker^[1] and a number one hit for Helen Reddy in 1973.

The co-writer more often goes by the name Alexander Harvey today, to not be confused with Glaswegian rocker Alex Harvey.

The song draws its melody from the traditional Scottish song The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond.

Lyrical story

The title character is a faded Southern belle from Brownsville, Tennessee who, at forty-one, is obsessed to unreason with the long-ago memory of an errant suitor. The song's lyrics describe how the woman regularly "walks down town with a suitcase in her hand / looking for a mysterious dark haired man" who she says will be taking her "to his mansion in the sky".

Reddy's recording in particular has choir-like inspirational overtones as well.

Background and recording history

The first recording of "Delta Dawn" was made by Harvey for his eponymous album released in November 1971. Although Harvey opened for Helen Reddy – his Capitol labelmate – at the Troubadour in January 1972, Reddy made no apparent connection with any of Harvey's compositions at that time.^[2]

Dianne Davidson, who sang backup on Harvey's recording, was the first artist to record a cover and chart in 1971–72. Tracy Nelson, who also sang backup on Harvey's recording, performed "Delta Dawn" in her live act. After hearing her sing the song at the Bottom Line in New York City, Bette Midler added the song to her repertoire. Nashville-based producer Billy Sherrill heard Midler sing "Delta Dawn" on The Tonight Show and wanted to sign her to Epic Records and have her record the song. Finding out that Midler was already signed to Atlantic Records, Sherrill cut the song with Tanya Tucker who was newly signed to Epic, and Tucker's version was released in April 1972 to reach number 6 C&W that spring.^[3]

Record producer Tom Catalano prepped an instrumental track of "Delta Dawn", virtually replicating that of Tucker's single, and – despite Catalano having worked with Helen Reddy – the track was first offered to Barbra Streisand, upon whose refusal Catalano had Reddy add her vocals to the track.^[4]

In the meantime Bette Midler had recorded "Delta Dawn" for her The Divine Miss M debut album from which her bluesy version was planned as the lead single. The June 1973 single release of Reddy's version was two days before Midler's, necessitating the amendment of the latter's single so that the original B-side "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" was shopped to radio, becoming a Top Ten hit. Reddy's version, with upward modulation added to the mimicking of Tucker's cold intro and nonstop vocals throughout, entered the Top Ten on 18 August 1973 on its way to its lone frame at number 1, on 15 September 1973. Reddy's Hot 100 #1 hits, in order, were 1972's "I Am Woman", then "Delta Dawn", then 1974's "Angie Baby". "Delta Dawn" also became the first of Reddy's six consecutive – and eight overall – number 1 hits on the Easy Listening chart in Billboard.^[5]

In Reddy's native Australia, where she had reached number 2 with both "I Don't Know How to Love Him" and "I Am Woman", "Delta Dawn" became Reddy's first number 1 hit, spending five weeks atop the chart in August and September 1973. The follow-up single "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" gave Reddy a second consecutive – and final – Australian number 1.

"Delta Dawn" also marked Reddy's only chart appearance in South Africa, reaching number 13 in the autumn of 1973.

The Statler Brothers released their version of the song on their 1973 Mercury album The Statler Brothers Sing Country Symphonies in E Major.

Chart performance (Tanya Tucker)

Chart (1972)	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100[6]	72
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[7]	6
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	3

Other versions

• Waylon Jennings sang the song on his 1972 album Ladies Love Outlaws.
• Scott Walker released a cover in 1974.
• Me First and the Gimme Gimmes released a cover on their album Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah.
• On Friends, Monica Geller sang the song at a piano bar where Mike Hannigan worked.
• Stone Cold Steve Austin sang the first verse on an episode of WWE Raw, notable for his failure to hit the high notes.

See also

• List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1973 (U.S.)
• List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 1973 (U.S.)

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 357.
2. Billboard vol#84 #2 (8 January 1972) p.12
3. Tucker, Tanya (1997). Nickel Dreams: my life (Large print ed.). Waterville ME: Thorndike Press. p. 132. ISBN 0-7862-1182-2.
4. Tucker, Tanya (1997). Nickel Dreams: my life (Large print ed.). Waterville ME: Thorndike Press. p. 178. ISBN 0-7862-1182-2.
5. Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits. New York City: Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 126. ISBN 0-8230-7693-8.
6. "Tanya Tucker – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Tanya Tucker.
7. "Tanya Tucker – Chart history" Billboard Hot Country Songs for Tanya Tucker.

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics