Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Tuesday's For Covers #12 : «SUNNY» by Bobby Hebb

 

«Sunny, yesterday my life was filled with rain»

“Sunny”, a soul – jazz song written by Bobby Hebb in 1963, is the cover song for this week. This soul standard speaks of an uplifting love that brings comfort through the pain. Unlike many songs with this message, "Sunny" is very ambiguous - it could apply to a man, woman, parent, child, lover or friend. It could even be about God, as some have speculated. Bobby Hebb never attributed a specific inspiration for the song, but the death of his brother, Hal Hebb (also a musician), on November 23, 1963 - the day after John F. Kennedy was assassinated - was a formative event in his life. He explained that the song brought him balance and hope for a brighter future - a message that connected with many listeners. [songfacts.com]

Bobby Hebb released it as a single in 1966, but the first release was the 1965 version of Mieko Hirota.

BMI rates "Sunny" #25 in its "Top 100 songs of the century" and it is one of the most performed and recorded popular songs, with hundreds of versions released. 

Watch seven versions of the song, one from each decade, performed by female singers.

Mieko Hirota            1965

Ella Fitzgerald          1971 

Sarah Jane Morris     1988

Mary Stallings          1990 

Elisabeth Kontomanou       2006 

Ayo     2013

Rebecca DuMaine and The Dave Miller Trio      2021 

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