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Singer and songwriter Jackie DeShannon has quite a musical legacy. Her early singles crafted doo wop to intelligent lyrics. She toured with the Beatles in 1964 and more than held her own. She wrote songs with Randy Newman and Jimmy Page. She sang with Van Morrison. She was among the first artists to realize that folk and pop could work together and was a behind-the-scenes innovator in the creation of folk-rock. And she did it all with style and grace, singing with a sexy, husky voice full of energetic passion and writing songs that gracefully belied the craft behind them. By all accounts she should be a household name instead of just a respected rock & roll footnote.
Born Sharon Lee Meyers in Hazel, KY on August 21, 1944, she was singing country songs on a local radio show by the time she was six years old. By 11, she was hosting her own show on the station, and was already single-minded about a career in music. After the family moved to Illinois, Myers continued to work at singing and songwriting, and recorded regional singles under various names as a teenager, including sides as Jackie Dee and Jackie Shannon. Her versions of a pair of country songs, Buddy and Trouble, caught the ear of rocker Eddie Cochran, who sought her out and introduced her to his girlfriend, singer and songwriter Sharon Sheeley. Sheeley and Myers began writing songs together, including I Love Anastasia (a hit for the Fleetwoods) and Dum Dum (a hit for Brenda Lee).
Myers signed a recording contract with Liberty Records in 1960. By this point she had grafted the names Jackie Dee and Jackie Shannon together to become known as Jackie DeShannon, and it was under that name that her fine debut single, Lonely Girl, appeared later that year. Although she continued to release fine singles, including the Sonny Bono/Jack Nitzsche classic Needles and Pins and her own When You Walk in the Room, which innovatively merged folk-rock with a Phil Spector-like Wall of Sound arrangement (both songs were later big hits for the Searchers), she only had moderate success on the charts. But DeShannon, aside from her obvious talents as a writer and singer, was also a striking blonde with plenty of cool charisma, and Liberty Records was well aware of it, and stuck with her even though she wasnt reaching the top of the charts. Dating Elvis Presley for a time didnt hurt her in this regard, and neither did close friendships with Ricky Nelson and the Everly Brothers, and she was even cast in the teen movie Surf Party, where she was matched with singer Bobby Vinton.
Her biggest break came, though, when she opened for the Beatles on the groups first U.S. tour in 1964, and with a band that included a young Ry Cooder, she more than held her own. That same year the Byrds covered her song Dont Doubt Yourself Babe on their debut album for Columbia Records, which only added to her visibility. DeShannon moved briefly to England the next year in 1965, where she began writing songs with a pre-Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page (speculation has long been that Tangerine, from Zep's third album, is about DeShannon), including Dont Turn Your Back on Me and Dream Boy. Quickly becoming an A-list songwriter, DeShannon also penned Come and Stay with Me for Marianne Faithfull, who had a hit with it on both side of the Atlantic. Moving to New York, DeShannon began writing songs with a pre-fame Randy Newman (Did He Call Today Mama? and Hold Your Head High, among others). In 1965 DeShannon finally conquered the pop charts with her version of Burt Bacharach and Hal David's What the World Needs Now Is Love, and two years later in 1967 she played a folksinger in the movie Cmon Lets Live a Little, which also featured singer Bobby Vee.
But DeShannon was tough to market and peg -- she was obviously young and beautiful but her natural intelligence made her seem out of place as a teen idol, and the singer/songwriter era -- which later made a similar artist, Carole King, a huge star -- was still a couple of years down the road. DeShannon was as much a writer as she was a performer, however, and she stayed creative and productive behind the scenes. In 1969 she returned to the pop charts with her own Put a Little Love in Your Heart, following it with the only slightly less successful Love Will Find a Way. DeShannon left New York and moved to Los Angeles, signing with Atlantic Records in 1970, but although her work for the label was critically acclaimed, fine albums like Jackie and Your Baby Is a Lady failed to find large audiences. She was well respected in the industry, though, and artists like Van Morrison, who had DeShannon provide backup vocals on his Hard Nose the Highway album in 1973, were eager to work with her.
But DeShannon didnt exactly need house-to-house fame to make her career work -- she was an accomplished songwriter, and versions of her songs kept hitting the charts even if she wasn't singing them. Bette Davis Eyes, which DeShannon co-wrote with Donna Weiss, was a huge hit for Kim Carnes in 1981. Break-A-Way, originally covered by Irma Thomas in 1964, hit big in a version by Tracey Ullman in 1983. Put a Little Love in Your Heart charted again in 1989 in a duet version by Al Green and Annie Lennox, and then again in 1993 by Dolly Parton. Pam Tillis' rendition of When You Walk in the Room topped the country charts in 1994. In all, an impressive litany of artists has recorded versions of DeShannon songs, including Bruce Springsteen, Ella Fitzgerald, the Isley Brothers, Jim Croce, Steppenwolf, the Righteous Brothers, Karla Bonoff, Mahalia Jackson, Cher, the Carpenters, and Rita Coolidge, among many others. She returned in 2000 with a critically acclaimed comeback effort, You Know Me, but the album -- perhaps predictably -- failed to connect with a large audience. In 2010 she was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. DeShannon has been married since 1977 to writer and film composer Randy Edelman.
from Wikipedia:
Jackie DeShannon (born August 21, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter with a string of hit song credits from the 1960s onwards. She was one of the first female singer-songwriters of the rock 'n' roll period.
Life and early career
She was born Sharon Lee Myers in Hazel, Kentucky, the daughter of musically inclined farming parents, Sandra Jean and James Erwin Myers, and was singing country tunes on a local radio show at the age of six. By the age of 11, DeShannon was hosting her own radio program. When life on the farm became too difficult, the family moved to Aurora, Illinois, her mother's home town, and her father resumed his other career as a barber. After a year, they moved up the Fox River to Batavia, Illinois, where Sharon attended high school.
She began to record under various names such as Sherry Lee, Jackie Dee, and Jackie Shannon, but had little success. However, her interpretations of country songs "Buddy" and "Trouble" gained the attention of Rock'n'Roll star Eddie Cochran, who arranged for her to travel to California to meet his girlfriend, singer-songwriter Sharon Sheeley, who formed a writing partnership with DeShannon in 1960. The partnership produced hits such as "Dum Dum" for Brenda Lee.
In 1960, DeShannon signed with Liberty Records, adopting the name Jackie DeShannon, believed to be the name of an Irish ancestor, after executives at Liberty thought the name Sharon Myers would not help sell records. In a Fresh Air interview (June 14, 2010), DeShannon said that she chose "Jackie" as a cross-gender name. Since she had a low singing voice, she could be heard as either male or female. If thought of as male, she was more likely to sell to female record-buyers, who dominated the market. When she found that "Jackie Dee" was too similar to Brenda Lee, Sandra Dee, et al., she changed it to Jackie Dee Shannon, which people heard as DeShannon. The name stuck.
Armed with her new name, she made the WLS Chicago radio survey with the single "Lonely Girl" in late 1960. A string of mostly flop singles followed, although "The Prince" bubbled under at No. 108 in the United States in early 1962, and "Faded Love" became her first US Billboard Top 100 entry, squeaking in at #97 in February 1963.
She fared better with the Sonny Bono-Jack Nitzsche song "Needles and Pins" and the self-penned "When You Walk in the Room" later in 1963. Both reached the lower rungs of the US pop charts, but were Top 40 hits in Canada, where "Needles and Pins" made it all the way to No. 1. "Needles and Pins" and "When You Walk in the Room" later became US and UK hits for The Searchers.
DeShannon recorded many other singles that encompassed teen pop, country ballads, rockabilly, gospel, and Ray Charles-style soul that didn't fare as well on the charts. During these years it was her songwriting and public profile rather than her recording career that kept her contracted to Liberty. DeShannon dated Elvis Presley and formed friendships with The Everly Brothers and Ricky Nelson. She also co-starred and sang with Bobby Vinton in the teen surf movie Surf Party.
DeShannon's biggest break came in February 1964 when she supported The Beatles on their first US tour, and formed a touring band with guitarist Ry Cooder. DeShannon also wrote "Don't Doubt Yourself Babe" for the debut album of The Byrds. Her music at this stage was heavily influenced by the American West Coast sounds and folk music. Staying briefly in England in 1965, DeShannon formed a songwriting partnership with Jimmy Page, which resulted in the hit singles "Dream Boy" and "Don't Turn Your Back on Me". Page and DeShannon also wrote material for singer Marianne Faithfull, including her Top Ten UK and US hit "Come and Stay With Me". DeShannon also appeared on the television show Ready Steady Go!
Hit love songs
Moving to New York, DeShannon co-wrote with Randy Newman, producing such songs as "She Don't Understand Him" and "Did He Call Today Mama?", as well as writing "You Have No Choice" for Delaney Bramlett. In March 1965, DeShannon recorded Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "What the World Needs Now Is Love", which led to club tours and regular appearances on television and went to No. 7 on the US charts and No. 1 in Canada. (DeShannon's recording of the song was subsequently used in the 1969 film Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice.) She appeared in the 1967 film C'mon Let's Live a Little, with Bobby Vee, as a folk singer.
DeShannon continued writing and recording, but it was not until 1969 that she scored her next smash single and album, both entitled "Put a Little Love in Your Heart". The self-penned single sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. The single "Love Will Find A Way" from the same album was also a moderate hit. Switching to Atlantic Records in 1970 and moving to Los Angeles, DeShannon recorded the critically acclaimed albums Jackie and Your Baby Is A Lady, but they failed to produce the same commercial success as previous releases. In 1973, she was invited by Van Morrison to sing on his Hard Nose the Highway album.
"Put A Little Love In Your Heart" was performed as the closing number at the Music for UNICEF Concert, broadcast worldwide from the United Nations General Assembly in 1979.
Later career
While DeShannon has not produced any further Top Ten singles of her own, her songs have been covered by other artists who have converted them into hits. In 1974, she co-wrote "Queen of the Rodeo" and "Bette Davis Eyes" with Donna Weiss for her album New Arrangement [1]. "Bette Davis Eyes" which went on to become a worldwide no. 1 single for Kim Carnes in 1981, earning Weiss and DeShannon the 1982 Grammy Award for Song of the Year.
DeShannon also co-wrote "Break-A-Way", recorded by Irma Thomas in 1964 and by Tracey Ullman in 1983. "Put A Little Love In Your Heart" reached Billboard No. 9 in 1989 as a duet by Annie Lennox & Al Green and was also covered by Dolly Parton in 1993. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Stevie Nicks had a Top 40 US hit in 1986 with a cover of "Needles and Pins", which DeShannon originally recorded but did not write. A version of "When You Walk in the Room" by Pam Tillis in 1994 topped the country charts. Another recent cover of "When You Walk in the Room" was in 2004 by ex-ABBA vocalist Agnetha Fältskog, both in her comeback album My Colouring Book and as a UK (no. 34) and European (no. 53) hit single. Country rock artist Chris Hillman, one of the original members of The Byrds, also did a cover of "When You Walk in the Room" on his solo 1998 album "Like a Hurricane".
Jackie was portrayed by singer Liz Phair in an episode of the NBC period drama American Dreams.
On June 17, 2010, Jackie was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Also in 2010, Jackie DeShannon was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
Personal life
She has a brother, Randy James Myers, with whom she has sometimes written songs. In the mid 1960s, she dated Jimmy Page and Love guitarist Bryan MacLean. It is likely that Jimmy Page wrote the song "Tangerine" (which appeared on the third Led Zeppelin album) after the breakup of his relationship with DeShannon in early 1965. Her first husband was Liberty Records executive Irving "Bud" Dain, whom she married on January 29, 1966 (annulled in 1967). DeShannon has been married to singer/songwriter and film composer Randy Edelman since 1977. They have one son, Noah, born in 1978.
