.gif)
Dark Lady (song)
Encyclopedia
"Dark Lady" is an pop rock
song recorded by American singer actress Cher
from eleventh studio album, Dark Lady
. Produced by Snuff Garrett
, it was released as the album's first single in early 1974. The song became Cher's third solo U.S.
number one hit on March 23, 1974 and her last until "Believe
" a quarter-century later.
keyboard player Johnny Durrill. He recalled: "I spent a week in his (Snuff Garrett's) office playing him songs, one of which Cher recorded. Later, when I was on tour in Japan with the Ventures, I was writing an interesting song. I telegraphed the unfinished lyrics to Garrett. He said to 'make sure the bitch kills him.' Hence, in the song both the lover and fortune teller were killed."
The "Dark Lady" of the song's title is a fortune teller. The narrator of the song learns that her lover has been unfaithful to her with, as the fortune teller says, "someone else who is very close to you." The narrator returns home in a state of shock and then realizes that she had once smelled, in her own room, the perfume the fortune teller had been wearing. She races back to the fortune teller's place with a gun
and catches her lover and the fortune teller "laughing and kissing", and shoots them both to death in a fit of rage.
In 1974, "Dark Lady" topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
for one week, becoming Cher's third solo #1 hit. The song was also a #1 hit in Canada and Sweden, a top ten hit in Norway and a top twenty hit in the Netherlands. Like Half-Breed
, the song struggled in West Germany and the UK, though it managed to reach top forty status in the UK.
The first version of the video is a live performance that was aired in the third season of The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
in 1973. In this performance Cher was dressed in all black and was wearing a black veil on her head. The second video of the song is a cartoon
. This second video follows the whole story of the song.
In 2002, a special remix medley was created by Dan-O-Rama for a video montage that was used in Cher's Living Proof: The Farewell Tour
. The medley contains videos of "All I Really Want to Do
", "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves", "Half-Breed"
and "Dark Lady". Unlike the other videos "Dark Lady" was unique because both the live and the cartoon videos had been mixed.
In 1999, Cher performed this song throughout her Do You Believe? Tour
, for the first time in twenty-five years. In 2002, she performed the song 325 times in her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour
.
Cher performed the song on the following concert tours:
recorded the Finnish rendering of "Dark Lady" entitled "Tumma nainen": the track was featured on Laven's Niin album and with the title cut
"Tumma nainen" became a double A-side Top Ten hit in Finland affording Laven her career record. "Tumma nainen" was also recorded by Ami Aspelund
for her 1974 Ami album.
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
song recorded by American singer actress Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
from eleventh studio album, Dark Lady
Dark Lady (album)
- Personnel :* Cher - lead vocals* Snuff Garrett - record producer* Lennie Roberts - sound engineer* Al Capps - arrangement assistance* Richard Avedon - photography* Calvin Klein - dress- Chart positions :...
. Produced by Snuff Garrett
Snuff Garrett
Snuff Garrett is a retired American record producer whose most famous work was during the 1960s and 1970s. His nickname is a play on Garrett's Snuff, a brand of snuff....
, it was released as the album's first single in early 1974. The song became Cher's third solo U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
number one hit on March 23, 1974 and her last until "Believe
Believe (Cher song)
"Believe" is a song by American recording artist Cher. It was released on November 24, 1998 as the lead single from her twenty-third studio album of the same name. It was written by Brian Higgins, Stuart McLennen, Paul Barry, Steven Torch, Matthew Gray, and Timothy Powell and produced by Mark...
" a quarter-century later.
Song information and story
"Dark Lady" was written by The VenturesThe Ventures
The Ventures is an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. Founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, the group in its various incarnations has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. With over 100 million records sold, the group is the best-selling...
keyboard player Johnny Durrill. He recalled: "I spent a week in his (Snuff Garrett's) office playing him songs, one of which Cher recorded. Later, when I was on tour in Japan with the Ventures, I was writing an interesting song. I telegraphed the unfinished lyrics to Garrett. He said to 'make sure the bitch kills him.' Hence, in the song both the lover and fortune teller were killed."
The "Dark Lady" of the song's title is a fortune teller. The narrator of the song learns that her lover has been unfaithful to her with, as the fortune teller says, "someone else who is very close to you." The narrator returns home in a state of shock and then realizes that she had once smelled, in her own room, the perfume the fortune teller had been wearing. She races back to the fortune teller's place with a gun
Gun
A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
and catches her lover and the fortune teller "laughing and kissing", and shoots them both to death in a fit of rage.
In 1974, "Dark Lady" topped the U.S. 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...
for one week, becoming Cher's third solo #1 hit. The song was also a #1 hit in Canada and Sweden, a top ten hit in Norway and a top twenty hit in the Netherlands. Like Half-Breed
Half-Breed (song)
"Half-Breed" is a song recorded by Cher and released as a single in 1973. On October 6, 1973, it became Cher's second U.S. number one hit as a solo artist, similarly becoming her second solo single to hit the top spot in Canada on the same date....
, the song struggled in West Germany and the UK, though it managed to reach top forty status in the UK.
Music video
There are two version of the video.The first version of the video is a live performance that was aired in the third season of The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour is an American variety show based on the married couple of American pop-singer Cher and her husband, Sonny Bono. The show ran on CBS in the United States, when it premiered in August 1971...
in 1973. In this performance Cher was dressed in all black and was wearing a black veil on her head. The second video of the song is a cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
. This second video follows the whole story of the song.
In 2002, a special remix medley was created by Dan-O-Rama for a video montage that was used in Cher's Living Proof: The Farewell Tour
Living Proof: The Farewell Tour
Living Proof: The Farewell Tour is the seventh concert tour by American singer, Cher. The tour supported her twenty-fourth studio album, Living Proof and eleventh compilation album, The Very Best of Cher...
. The medley contains videos of "All I Really Want to Do
All I Really Want to Do (song)
"All I Really Want to Do" is a song written by Bob Dylan and featured on his Tom Wilson-produced 1964 album, Another Side of Bob Dylan . It is arguably one of the most popular songs that Dylan wrote in the period immediately after he abandoned topical songwriting...
", "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves", "Half-Breed"
Half-Breed (song)
"Half-Breed" is a song recorded by Cher and released as a single in 1973. On October 6, 1973, it became Cher's second U.S. number one hit as a solo artist, similarly becoming her second solo single to hit the top spot in Canada on the same date....
and "Dark Lady". Unlike the other videos "Dark Lady" was unique because both the live and the cartoon videos had been mixed.
In 1999, Cher performed this song throughout her Do You Believe? Tour
Do You Believe? Tour
The Do You Believe? Tour, sometimes also known as The Believe Tour, was Cher’s third solo concert tour. The tour which took place in 1999 and 2000, was used to promote her album Believe.-History:...
, for the first time in twenty-five years. In 2002, she performed the song 325 times in her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour
Living Proof: The Farewell Tour
Living Proof: The Farewell Tour is the seventh concert tour by American singer, Cher. The tour supported her twenty-fourth studio album, Living Proof and eleventh compilation album, The Very Best of Cher...
.
Cher performed the song on the following concert tours:
- Do You Believe? TourDo You Believe? TourThe Do You Believe? Tour, sometimes also known as The Believe Tour, was Cher’s third solo concert tour. The tour which took place in 1999 and 2000, was used to promote her album Believe.-History:...
- The Farewell TourLiving Proof: The Farewell TourLiving Proof: The Farewell Tour is the seventh concert tour by American singer, Cher. The tour supported her twenty-fourth studio album, Living Proof and eleventh compilation album, The Very Best of Cher...
- Cher at the ColosseumCher at the Colosseum'Cher at the Colosseum was a series of concerts by Cher at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. For the three years engagement, Cher received $180 million. Performing at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, the first show occurred on May 6, 2008 and the last show was on February 5, 2011...
Formats and track listing
- UK and US 7"
- "Dark Lady" – 3:26
- "Two People Clinging To A Thread" – 2:40
- Argentina 7"
- "Dark Lady" – 3:26
- "Carousel Man" – 3:02
- White Label 2002 Promo Remix
- "Dark Lady" (White Label Remix) – 7:25
Credits and personnel
- Cher – vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
- Johnny Durrell – lyrics
- Snuff Garrett – producer
Charts
| Chart (1974) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. 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... |
1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 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... |
3 |
| Belgian Singles Chart | 22 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
2 |
| Dutch Mega Top 50 Mega Top 50 The Mega Top 50 is a Dutch music chart, originally started on May 23, 1969 as the Hilversum 3 Top 30. Throughout the years, the chart has had several names and lengths:*1969 - 1974: Hilversum 3 Top 30... Singles Chart |
15 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
11 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
10 |
| South African Singles Chart | 4 |
| Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
1 |
| 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 ... |
36 |
Certifications
Achievements
Other versions
In 1974 Lea LavenLea Laven
Lea Laven is a Finnish pop singer....
recorded the Finnish rendering of "Dark Lady" entitled "Tumma nainen": the track was featured on Laven's Niin album and with the title cut
Sì (song)
"Sì" is the name of the Italian entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 1974, which finished second behind the Swedish entry "Waterloo" sung by ABBA.-Background:...
"Tumma nainen" became a double A-side Top Ten hit in Finland affording Laven her career record. "Tumma nainen" was also recorded by Ami Aspelund
Ami Aspelund
Ami Aspelund is a Finnish singer. She is the younger sister of singer Monica Aspelund.-Career:Ami Aspelund released her first single in 1973 called Apinamies....
for her 1974 Ami album.
External links
- Cher - Official Site
- "Dark Lady" lyrics MTVMTVMTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....