Sandy Posey
Encyclopedia
Sandy Posey is an American
popular singer, who enjoyed success in the 1960s with singles such as her 1966 recording of Martha Sharpe's composition, "Single Girl
." She is often described as a country
singer, although, like Skeeter Davis
(to whom she has been frequently compared) her output has varied. Later in her career, the term "countrypolitan," associated with the "Nashville sound
", was sometimes applied. Posey had four hit singles in the United States
, three of which peaked at number 12 in the sales charts.
. She graduated from high school
in West Memphis, Ar. in 1962. Posey obtained work as a session singer, after she was recommended by an aunt to an acquaintance who worked in television
. In addition to working as a receptionist
at a studio in Memphis, she took part in recordings across the Deep South
and appeared, for example, on recording sessions produced by Lincoln “Chips” Moman
for Elvis Presley
and on Percy Sledge
’s "When a Man Loves a Woman
" (a number one hit in the US in 1966). Other singers whom she backed included Joe Tex
, Bobby Goldsboro
and Tommy Roe
.
of "Born a Woman", written by Martha Sharpe. According to Posey, Chips Moman "went wild" when he heard this and helped her to obtain a contract
with MGM
in Nashville
.
.jpg)
. "Born a Woman" was a somewhat melodramatic ("You're born to be stepped on, lied to, cheated on") but musically adept song featuring prominent piano, understated strings and horns, and distinctive multi-tracked vocals. Posey received two Grammy Award
nominations for "Born a Woman" in the categories of vocal performance (female) and contemporary (R&R
) solo vocal. "Born A Woman" was later covered by Nick Lowe (Bowi
EP) and Hubble Bubble
.
", also written by Martha Sharpe, which was notable for the gentle crescendo
and piano refrain
of its final verse. Recorded in Nashville on August 19, 1966, this also reached number 12 in America in January 1967 and number 15 in Great Britain
, where it benefited from airplay on pirate radio
(peaking, for example, at number 7 in Radio London
's non-sales-based Fab 40 on New Year's Day
, 1967). It followed "Born a Woman" by selling in excess of one million copies. "Single Girl" was re-released in Britain in 1975 and reached the top 50 for a second time.
until 1968, including "What A Woman In Love Won't Do" that peaked at number 31 in the US in late 1967. These were mostly produced by Moman, but a few, including a version of the Shirelles' hit "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" (1968), were produced by Joe South
. Posey continued recording as a solo artist into the early 1980s, when she reverted to session work. She made a number of country recordings with a religious theme after embracing Christianity
in 1974.
In 1983, Posey had another charted single on the country charts, titled "Can't Get Used To Sleeping Without You". In 2004, Posey recorded an album for King Records in Nashville, Tennessee. She is now signed with Crossworlds Entertainment of Lebanon, Tennessee. During 2007, Posey released several songs through Crossworlds Entertainment which have been available to purchase online.
under the name of Elvis Wade. Posey appeared with Presley during an engagement in Las Vegas
in 1969.
^ "Single Girl" was re-released in the UK in 1975 and peaked at #35.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
popular singer, who enjoyed success in the 1960s with singles such as her 1966 recording of Martha Sharpe's composition, "Single Girl
Single Girl
Single Girl was the title of a song by Martha Sharpe that was an international hit for American singer Sandy Posey from late 1966 to early 1967.-Recording by Sandy Posey :...
." She is often described as a country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer, although, like Skeeter Davis
Skeeter Davis
Mary Frances Penick , better known as Skeeter Davis, was an American country music singer best known for crossover pop music songs of the early 1960s. She started out as part of The Davis Sisters as a teenager in the late 1940s, eventually landing on RCA Records. In the late '50s, she became a solo...
(to whom she has been frequently compared) her output has varied. Later in her career, the term "countrypolitan," associated with the "Nashville sound
Nashville sound
The Nashville sound originated during the late 1950s as a sub-genre of American country music, replacing the chart dominance of honky tonk music which was most popular in the 1940s and 1950s...
", was sometimes applied. Posey had four hit singles in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, three of which peaked at number 12 in the sales charts.
Session singer
Sandy Posey was born Sandra Lou Posey in Jasper, AlabamaJasper, Alabama
Jasper is a city in Walker County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 14,659. As of 2011 the population had was 13,857. The city is the county seat of Walker County, and once ranked among the world's leading producers of coal....
. She graduated from high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in West Memphis, Ar. in 1962. Posey obtained work as a session singer, after she was recommended by an aunt to an acquaintance who worked in television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
. In addition to working as a receptionist
Receptionist
A receptionist is an employee taking an office/administrative support position. The work is usually performed in a waiting area such as a lobby or front office desk of an organization or business...
at a studio in Memphis, she took part in recordings across the Deep South
Deep South
The Deep South is a descriptive category of the cultural and geographic subregions in the American South. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the pre-Civil War period...
and appeared, for example, on recording sessions produced by Lincoln “Chips” Moman
Chips Moman
Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman is an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. As a record producer, Moman is known for recording Elvis Presley, Bobby Womack, Carla Thomas, and Merrilee Rush, as well as guiding the career of the Box Tops in Memphis, Tennessee during the 1960s...
for Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
and on Percy Sledge
Percy Sledge
Percy Sledge is an American R&B and soul performer who recorded the hit "When a Man Loves a Woman" in 1966.-Early career:...
’s "When a Man Loves a Woman
When a Man Loves a Woman (song)
"When a Man Loves a Woman" is a song recorded by Percy Sledge in 1966 at Norala Sound Studio in Sheffield, Alabama. It made number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B singles charts. It was listed 54th in the List of Rolling Stone magazine's 500 greatest songs of all time...
" (a number one hit in the US in 1966). Other singers whom she backed included Joe Tex
Joe Tex
Joseph Arrington, Jr. , better known as "Joe Tex", was an American Southern soul singer-songwriter, most popular during the 1960s and 1970s...
, Bobby Goldsboro
Bobby Goldsboro
Bobby Goldsboro is an American country and pop singer-songwriter. He had a string of Pop and Country hits during the 1960s and 1970s, including his signature #1 classic "Honey," which sold well over one million copies in the United States.-Early life:Goldsboro was born in Marianna, Florida...
and Tommy Roe
Tommy Roe
Tommy Roe is an American pop music singer-songwriter.Best-remembered for his hits "Sheila" and "Dizzy" , critic Bill Dahl wrote that Roe was "widely perceived as one of the archetypal bubblegum artists of the late 1960s, but Roe cut some pretty decent rockers along the way, especially early in his...
.
Solo career
Posey's first single record, under the name Sandy Carmel was "Kiss Me Goodnight" (1965), written by William Cates, which was coupled with "First Boy". This was released by Bell Records, but received minimal publicity and made little impact. Assisted by Gary Walker, a music publisher who became her manager, Posey then made a demonstration recordingDemo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
of "Born a Woman", written by Martha Sharpe. According to Posey, Chips Moman "went wild" when he heard this and helped her to obtain a contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with MGM
MGM Records
MGM Records was a record label started by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946, for the purpose of releasing soundtrack albums of their musical films. Later it became a pop label, lasting into the 1970s...
in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
.
Born a Woman
Posey had her first hit with "Born a Woman", which Moman produced in Nashville on March 15, 1966. This reached number 12 on the U.S. Billboard sales charts in August 1966. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold discMusic recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
. "Born a Woman" was a somewhat melodramatic ("You're born to be stepped on, lied to, cheated on") but musically adept song featuring prominent piano, understated strings and horns, and distinctive multi-tracked vocals. Posey received two Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations for "Born a Woman" in the categories of vocal performance (female) and contemporary (R&R
R&R (magazine)
R&R was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes...
) solo vocal. "Born A Woman" was later covered by Nick Lowe (Bowi
Bowi
Bowi was the first EP released on Stiff Records. Recorded by Nick Lowe, who had also released the first Stiff single, the title and cover were a humorous response to the David Bowie album Low, released earlier in the year...
EP) and Hubble Bubble
Hubble Bubble
Hubble Bubble is generally an uncontrolled mixture and this dish is similar to Bubble and Squeak in that it is an English dish containing leftover food items such as potatoes, cabbage, brussel sprouts, carrots and onion but with the addition of baked beans in tomato sauce.While the ingredients of...
.
Single Girl
Posey's next single release was "Single GirlSingle Girl
Single Girl was the title of a song by Martha Sharpe that was an international hit for American singer Sandy Posey from late 1966 to early 1967.-Recording by Sandy Posey :...
", also written by Martha Sharpe, which was notable for the gentle crescendo
Dynamics (music)
In music, dynamics normally refers to the volume of a sound or note, but can also refer to every aspect of the execution of a given piece, either stylistic or functional . The term is also applied to the written or printed musical notation used to indicate dynamics...
and piano refrain
Refrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
of its final verse. Recorded in Nashville on August 19, 1966, this also reached number 12 in America in January 1967 and number 15 in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, where it benefited from airplay on pirate radio
Pirate radio
Pirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. The term is most commonly used to describe illegal broadcasting for entertainment or political purposes, but is also sometimes used for illegal two-way radio operation...
(peaking, for example, at number 7 in Radio London
Wonderful Radio London
Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 offshore commercial station that operated from 16 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, three and a half miles off Frinton-on-Sea, Essex, England...
's non-sales-based Fab 40 on New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
, 1967). It followed "Born a Woman" by selling in excess of one million copies. "Single Girl" was re-released in Britain in 1975 and reached the top 50 for a second time.
Other work
Posey’s final top 20 hit was "I Take It Back", another US number 12 in July 1967, although she made other recordings for MGM RecordsMGM Records
MGM Records was a record label started by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946, for the purpose of releasing soundtrack albums of their musical films. Later it became a pop label, lasting into the 1970s...
until 1968, including "What A Woman In Love Won't Do" that peaked at number 31 in the US in late 1967. These were mostly produced by Moman, but a few, including a version of the Shirelles' hit "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" (1968), were produced by Joe South
Joe South
Joe South is a multi-talented American singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Career:...
. Posey continued recording as a solo artist into the early 1980s, when she reverted to session work. She made a number of country recordings with a religious theme after embracing Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
in 1974.
In 1983, Posey had another charted single on the country charts, titled "Can't Get Used To Sleeping Without You". In 2004, Posey recorded an album for King Records in Nashville, Tennessee. She is now signed with Crossworlds Entertainment of Lebanon, Tennessee. During 2007, Posey released several songs through Crossworlds Entertainment which have been available to purchase online.
The Elvis connection
In 1968, Posey married Wade Cummings, who performed as an impersonator of Elvis PresleyElvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
under the name of Elvis Wade. Posey appeared with Presley during an engagement in Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
in 1969.
Albums
| Year | Album | Chart Positions | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US Country | |||
| 1966 | Born a Woman | 129 | — | MGM |
| 1967 | A Single Girl | — | — | |
| Sandy Posey Featuring "I Take It Back" | 182 | — | ||
| The Best of Sandy Posey | — | — | ||
| 1968 | Looking at You | — | — | |
| The Very Best of Sandy Posey | — | — | ||
| 1972 | Why Don't We Go Somewhere and Love | — | 28 | Columbia |
| 1982 | Because of You | — | — | Audiograph |
| — denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 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... |
US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
CAN Country | UK 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 ... |
AUS | |||
| 1966 | "Born a Woman" | 12 | — | 7 | — | 24 | 2 | Born a Woman |
| "Single Girl Single Girl Single Girl was the title of a song by Martha Sharpe that was an international hit for American singer Sandy Posey from late 1966 to early 1967.-Recording by Sandy Posey :... "[A] |
12 | — | 11 | — | 15 | 5 | A Single Girl | |
| 1967 | "What a Woman In Love Won't Do" | 31 | — | — | — | 48 | 21 | The Very Best of Sandy Posey |
| "I Take It Back" | 12 | — | — | — | — | 9 | Sandy Posey Featuring "I Take It Back" | |
| "Are You Never Coming Home" | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | The Best of Sandy Posey | |
| 1968 | "Something I'll Remember" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Looking at You |
| 1972 | "Bring Him Safely Home to Me" | — | 18 | — | 13 | — | — | Why Don't We Go Somewhere and Love |
| "Why Don't We Go Somewhere and Love" | — | 51 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby" | — | 36 | — | — | — | — | non-album singles | |
| 1973 | "Don't" | — | 39 | — | 60 | — | — | |
| 1976 | "Trying to Live Without You Kind of Days" | — | 99 | — | — | — | — | |
| "It's Midnight (Do You Know Where Your Baby Is?)" | — | 93 | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1978 | "Born to Be with You" | — | 21 | — | — | — | — | |
| "Love, Love, Love/Chapel of Love" | — | 26 | — | 19 | — | — | ||
| 1979 | "Love Is Sometimes Easy" | — | 26 | — | 30 | — | — | |
| "Try Home" | — | 82 | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982 | "She's Got You She's Got You "She's Got You" is a famous pop song written by Hank Cochran and was first recorded and released as a single by Patsy Cline in 1962. Musically the song is an upbeat jazz-pop song with country overtones to support it.-History:... "[B] |
— | — | — | — | — | — | Because of You |
| 1983 | "Can't Get Used to Sleeping Without You" | — | 88 | — | — | — | — | |
| — denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||||||
^ "Single Girl" was re-released in the UK in 1975 and peaked at #35.
- B^ "She's Got You" peaked at #22 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary Tracks chart.
External links
- [ Allmusic]
- Countrypolitan
- Sandy Posey: MGM home page (with extensive discography)