Today’s song Bette Davis Eyes was recorded several times and didn’t go anywhere… in 1974 it was released and was a total flop. It was written about an old-time movie star that the newer generation didn’t really know. 5 years later it was re-recorded with a completely different arrangement… adding an undeniable 80s synth line with a voice so raspy everyone mistook the singer for Rod Stewart… only it was a woman: Kim Carnes. With her distinct voice, the song spread like wildfire. It hit the #1 spot for 9 weeks and became the biggest song of the year and one of the biggest of the decade. It was so big. Its success was impossible to duplicate. A true bottled lightning classic. When it was on top of the world, the legendary actress Bette Davis had no idea about it, since she didn’t listen to the radio. The only way she found out was when her grandchildren told her. Even though she’d been in over 100 films it was this song that made her grandkids think she was cool! A great story is next on Professor of Rock.
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Hey music junkies, Professor of Rock, always here to celebrate the greatest artists and the greatest songs of all time. If you long for the days of walkmans, saturday morning cartoons and Mtv when they actually played music videos you’ll dig this channel. Nostalgia all the time. Make sure to subscribe below right now. We also have a patreon you'll want to check out. There you’ll find an additional catalog of exclusive content and you can even become an honorary producer to help us curate this music history.
It’s time for another edition of our show Bottled Lightning
where we celebrate a song or album that was king for a day. Here honor artists and bands and that rocketed up the charts… but for reasons unknown weren’t able to sustain that success. Called by some as ‘one hit wonders’, we celebrate them instead as lightening in a bottle. Today’s artist was NOT a one hit wonder. She had 6 top 40 hits but really only one that is still celebrated today. She had a very cool raspy voice and should’ve been a bigger success. She ruled the early 80s with a Nine week #1 hit. One of the biggest of the neon decade.
I’m talking about Kim Carnes and her ultra catchy classic Bette Davis Eyes. Although, initially written by the songwriting team of Jackie DeShannon and Weiss in 1974, Kim took the song to a whole new level thanks to an 80s synth-inspired arrangement and her raspy, cigarettes for breakfast voice. For many it seemed like she came out of nowhere. But it would actually be a long time coming before Carnes would captivate the world with her rendition.
Born in Los Angeles in 1945, Carnes penned her first song at the age of four. By the 1960s she began writing songs for other artists, performing at local clubs, and working as a session vocalist. In 1966, she joined the popular folk group the New Christy Minstrels which included a young Kenny Rogers, but later left with her husband and songwriting partner Dave Ellingson. In 1972, Kim recorded her first album, Rest On Me, but it went nowhere. Her 1975 self-titled record yielded her first chart hit, a duet with Gene Cotton, "You're a Part of Me." That scored a #34 ranking on the Billboard AC chart.
Her next album Sailin', produced by the legendary Jerry Wexler, failed to chart break the Billboard 200 altogether. As did her 1979 EMI LP, St. Vincent's Court.