Strangers in the Night
Encyclopedia
"Strangers in the Night" is a popular song composed by Bert Kaempfert
with English lyrics by Charles Singleton and Eddie Snyder
. It was originally created under the title Beddy Bye as part of the instrumental score for the movie A Man Could Get Killed
. The song was made famous in 1966 by Frank Sinatra
.
Reaching number one on both the Billboard Hot 100
chart and the Easy Listening
chart, it was the title song for Sinatra's 1966 album Strangers in the Night
, which would become his most commercially successful album. The song also reached number one on the UK Singles Chart
.
Sinatra's recording won him the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
and the Grammy Award for Record of the Year
, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Arrangement Accompanying a Vocalist or Instrumentalist
for Ernie Freeman
at the Grammy Awards of 1967
.
of the melody with the syllables "doo-be-doo-be-doo" as the song fades to the end. This inspired the name for the cartoon canine Scooby Doo. Also the fading of the song was made too early, and many fans lament the fact that Sinatra's improvisation is cut off too soon. For the recently released CD Nothing But The Best
, the song was remastered and the running time clocks in at 2:44, instead of the usual 2:35. The extra nine seconds is just a continuation of Sinatra's scat noises.
The track was recorded on April 11, 1966, one month before the rest of the album.
Sinatra despised the song, calling it at once, "a piece of shit," and "the worst fucking song that I have ever heard." Understandably, he wasn't afraid to voice his disapproval for playing it live. In spite of his contempt for the song, for the first time in eleven years, he had a number one song that topped the charts, it remained there for fifteen weeks.
Italian-American tenor Sergio Franchi
(among many others), covered the song on his 1967 RCA Victor album From Sergio - With Love.
was the original composer of Strangers in the Night, and sold the rights to Kaempfert after he entered it without success into a song contest in Yugoslavia. This can not be substantiated. Robić - often referred to as "Mr. Morgen" for his 1950s charts success with Morgen, which was created in collaboration with Bert Kaempfert - was rather the singer of the Yugoslav version of the song called Stranci u Noći. It was published in 1966 by the Yogoslav record company Jugoton
under the serial number EPY-3779. On the label of the record "B. Kaempfert" and "M. Renota" are stated as authors, whereby Marija Renota is the creator of the Yugoslav lyrics. The original composition of Strangers was under the title Beddy Bye - referring to the lead character William Beddoes - as an instrumental for the score of the movie A Man Could Get Killed. The phrase Strangers in the Night was created after the composition, when the New York music publishers Roosevelt Music requested the lyricists Snyder and Singleton - then of fresh Spanish Eyes, composed by Kaempfert as Moon Over Naples, fame - to put some text to the tune. Stranci u Noći is a literal translation of this phrase.
In 1967 French composer Michel Philippe-Gérard, more commonly known just as Philippe-Gérard established a claim, that the melody of Strangers was based on his composition Magic Tango, which was published in 1953 through Chappells in New York. Royalties from the song where thus frozen until a court in Paris ruled in 1971 against plagiarism and stated that many songs were based on similar constant factors.
Bert Kaempfert
Bert Kaempfert was a German orchestra leader and songwriter. He made easy listening and jazz-oriented records, and wrote the music for a number of well-known songs, such as "Strangers in the Night" and "Spanish Eyes".-Biography:He was born in Hamburg, Germany - where he received his lifelong...
with English lyrics by Charles Singleton and Eddie Snyder
Eddie Snyder
Edward Abraham Snyder was an American composer and songwriter. Snyder is credited with co-writing the English language lyrics and music for Frank Sinatra's 1966 hit, "Strangers in the Night"....
. It was originally created under the title Beddy Bye as part of the instrumental score for the movie A Man Could Get Killed
A Man Could Get Killed
A Man Could Get Killed is a 1966 adventure comedy film directed Ronald Neame and Cliff Owen, shot on various locations in Portugal and starring James Garner, Melina Mercouri, Sandra Dee, Anthony Franciosa, and Robert Coote, as well as the fourteen year old Jenny Agutter in a minor role. The...
. The song was made famous in 1966 by Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
.
Reaching number one on both the 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...
chart and the Easy Listening
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...
chart, it was the title song for Sinatra's 1966 album Strangers in the Night
Strangers in the Night (Frank Sinatra album)
Strangers in the Night is a 1966 studio album by Frank Sinatra.The album marked Sinatra's return to #1 on the pop album charts in the mid-1960s, and it consolidated the comeback he started in 1966. Combining pop hits with show tunes and standards, the album creates a balance between big band and...
, which would become his most commercially successful album. The song also reached number one on the 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 ...
.
Sinatra's recording won him the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance was awarded between 1966 and 2011...
and the Grammy Award for Record of the Year
Grammy Award for Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards presented annually. It has been awarded since 1959.-History:The honorees through its history have been:*1959-1965: Artist only.*1966-1998: Artist and producer....
, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Arrangement Accompanying a Vocalist or Instrumentalist
Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)
The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist has been awarded since 1963. The award is presented to the arranger of the music.There have been several minor changes to the name of the award:...
for Ernie Freeman
Ernie Freeman
Ernie Freeman was an American pianist, organist and arranger.In 1935 he began playing in local Cleveland area nightclubs, and also formed a classical music trio for local social functions with his father and his sister Evelyn...
at the Grammy Awards of 1967
Grammy Awards of 1967
The 9th Grammy Awards were held March 2, 1967. They recognized accomplishments of musicians for the year 1966. The 9th Grammy Awards is notable for not presenting the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.-Award winners:*Record of the Year...
.
Vocal improv
One of the most memorable and recognizable features of the record is Sinatra's scat improvisationScat singing
In vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. Scat singing gives singers the ability to sing improvised melodies and rhythms, to create the equivalent of an instrumental solo using their voice.- Structure and syllable choice...
of the melody with the syllables "doo-be-doo-be-doo" as the song fades to the end. This inspired the name for the cartoon canine Scooby Doo. Also the fading of the song was made too early, and many fans lament the fact that Sinatra's improvisation is cut off too soon. For the recently released CD Nothing But The Best
Nothing But the Best (album)
- DVD edition :# "Introduction by Princess Grace of Monaco"# "You Make Me Feel So Young"# "Pennies from Heaven"# "I've Got You Under My Skin"# "Something"# "The Lady Is a Tramp"# "I Get Along Without You Very Well"# "Didn't We"# "One for My Baby"...
, the song was remastered and the running time clocks in at 2:44, instead of the usual 2:35. The extra nine seconds is just a continuation of Sinatra's scat noises.
The track was recorded on April 11, 1966, one month before the rest of the album.
Sinatra despised the song, calling it at once, "a piece of shit," and "the worst fucking song that I have ever heard." Understandably, he wasn't afraid to voice his disapproval for playing it live. In spite of his contempt for the song, for the first time in eleven years, he had a number one song that topped the charts, it remained there for fifteen weeks.
Italian-American tenor Sergio Franchi
Sergio Franchi
Sergio Franchi was an Italian tenor.Franchi was born in Cremona, Italy. His father wanted him to become an electrical engineer, so he studied both music and engineering simultaneously. The family moved to South Africa in 1952, where Sergio worked part-time as a draftsman, while continuing to study...
(among many others), covered the song on his 1967 RCA Victor album From Sergio - With Love.
Copyright issues
It is sometimes claimed that the Yugoslav-Croatian singer Ivo RobićIvo Robic
Ivo Robić was Croatian singer and songwriter.-Domestic career:Robić began his career as a soloist with the Radio Zagreb Orchestra, while studying at the same time in Zagreb...
was the original composer of Strangers in the Night, and sold the rights to Kaempfert after he entered it without success into a song contest in Yugoslavia. This can not be substantiated. Robić - often referred to as "Mr. Morgen" for his 1950s charts success with Morgen, which was created in collaboration with Bert Kaempfert - was rather the singer of the Yugoslav version of the song called Stranci u Noći. It was published in 1966 by the Yogoslav record company Jugoton
Jugoton
Jugoton was the largest record label and chain record store in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia based in Zagreb, Socialist Republic of Croatia. After the breakup of Yugoslavia the company continued to work in independent Republic of Croatia under the name Croatia...
under the serial number EPY-3779. On the label of the record "B. Kaempfert" and "M. Renota" are stated as authors, whereby Marija Renota is the creator of the Yugoslav lyrics. The original composition of Strangers was under the title Beddy Bye - referring to the lead character William Beddoes - as an instrumental for the score of the movie A Man Could Get Killed. The phrase Strangers in the Night was created after the composition, when the New York music publishers Roosevelt Music requested the lyricists Snyder and Singleton - then of fresh Spanish Eyes, composed by Kaempfert as Moon Over Naples, fame - to put some text to the tune. Stranci u Noći is a literal translation of this phrase.
In 1967 French composer Michel Philippe-Gérard, more commonly known just as Philippe-Gérard established a claim, that the melody of Strangers was based on his composition Magic Tango, which was published in 1953 through Chappells in New York. Royalties from the song where thus frozen until a court in Paris ruled in 1971 against plagiarism and stated that many songs were based on similar constant factors.
External links
- Teddy Harold & Jeremy http://www.45vinylvidivici.net/SEVENTIESARTISTES45%20(AM)/HAROLD%20TEDDY.htm