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Dark Lady (song)

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"Dark Lady"
Single cover
Single by Cher
from the album Dark Lady
B-side
  • "Two People Clinging to a Thread"
  • "Carousel Man" (Argentina)
ReleasedDecember 1973
Recorded1973
GenrePop[1]
Length3:27
LabelMCA
Songwriter(s)Johnny Durrill
Producer(s)Snuff Garrett
Cher singles chronology
"Carousel Man"
(1973) 		"Dark Lady"
(1973) 		"Train of Thought"
(1974)

"Dark Lady" is a song recorded by American singer-actress Cher, and the title selection song from her eleventh studio album, Dark Lady, released in 1974. Written and composed by John Robert "Johnny" Durrill and produced by Snuff Garrett, it was released as the album's first single in December of 1973.[2] The song became Cher's third solo U.S. number 1 hit on March 23, 1974.

Song information and story

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The song was written and composed by the Ventures' keyboard player Johnny Durrill. He recalled: "I spent a week in his [Snuff Garrett's] office playing him songs, one of which Cher recorded. Later, when I was on tour in Japan with the Ventures, I was writing an interesting song. I telegraphed the unfinished lyrics to Garrett. He said to 'make sure the bitch kills him.' Hence, in the song both the lover and fortune teller were killed."[3]

The critic Peter Fawthrop, writing for AllMusic, called this song a "grimly comedic folk song."[4]

The "Dark Lady" of the song's title is a gypsy fortune teller in New Orleans with an implied history of sleeping with clients. (The narrator of the song describes seeing scratches on the inside of the fortune teller's limousine from her previous conquests.) The narrator follows the fortune teller's limousine to her lair and pays money for her to tell her fortune. The narrator learns that her lover has been unfaithful to her with, as the (audibly uncomfortable) fortune teller says, "someone else who is very close to you." Advised to leave the fortune teller's shop, never to return, and to forget she has ever seen the fortune teller's face, the narrator returns home. She is in a state of shock, unable to sleep. But then she realizes to her horror that she can smell, in her own room, the same perfume that the fortune teller had been wearing. Alarmed, she snuck back to the fortune teller's shop with a gun, she catches her lover and the fortune teller "laughing and kissing." She shoots them both to death, presumably in a fit of rage. The song implies the narrator blacked out upon shooting. ("Next thing I knew, they were dead on the floor.") The narrator does not regret the outcome. She remarks that the "dark lady" will not be turning up cards anymore.

In 1974, "Dark Lady" topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for one week, becoming Cher's third solo #1 hit. The song became a top 10 hit in Norway and a top 20 hit in the Netherlands. Like "Half-Breed," the song struggled in West Germany and the UK, though it managed to reach top 40 status in the UK.

Music video

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The live version, and the cartoon version.

There are two versions of the video. The first version of the video is a live performance that was aired in the third season of The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour in 1973. In this performance Cher was dressed all in black and was wearing a black veil on her head. The second version of the video is an animated cartoon done by John David Wilson's animation studio; this second video follows the whole story of the song.

In 2002, a special remix medley was created by Dan-O-Rama for a video montage that was used in Cher's Living Proof: The Farewell Tour. The medley contains videos of "All I Really Want to Do", "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves", "Half-Breed", and "Dark Lady". Unlike the other videos, "Dark Lady" was unique because both the live-action and the animated videos had been mixed.

In 1999, Cher performed this song throughout her Do You Believe? Tour, for the first time in twenty-five years. In 2002, she performed the song 325 times in her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour.

Cher performed the song on the following concert tours/Las Vegas residencies:

Charts and certifications

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Formats and track listing

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Credits and personnel

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Cover versions

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In 1974 Lea Laven recorded the Finnish rendering of "Dark Lady" entitled "Tumma nainen". "Tumma nainen" was also recorded by Ami Aspelund for her 1974 album Ami and also by Jean S. for their 2003 album Sammakkoprinssi.[citation needed]

In the same year, Argentinian singer Johnny Tedesco recorded a Spanish version called "Te quiero tanto (Dulce gitana)".

References

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  1. ^ Breihan, Tom (May 10, 2019). "The Number Ones: Cher's "Dark Lady"". Stereogum. Retrieved June 19, 2023. But that doesn't make it a satisfying pop-music experience. "Dark Lady" is just a dull, clumsy song...
  2. ^ "Billboard® • Newspaper (p. 51 [PDF])" (PDF). Billboard. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  3. ^ "Dark Lady". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  4. ^ Peter Fawthrop. "Dark Lady - Cher | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  5. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 61. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  6. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2013-12-11. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  7. ^ "The Hits of Cher: The Danish Hits of Cher". Cherhits.blogspot.dk. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  8. ^ Steffen Hung. "Cher - Dark Lady". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  9. ^ "Flavour of New Zealand, 4 May 1974". Archived from the original on 29 July 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  10. ^ Steffen Hung. "Cher - Dark Lady". Norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  11. ^ "Palmarès de la chanson anglophone et allophone au Québec" (in French). BAnQ. Archived from the original on August 9, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
  12. ^ Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: Singles Chart Book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  13. ^ Brian Currin. "South African Rock Lists Website - SA Charts 1965 - 1989 Acts (C)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  14. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 112/3. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  15. ^ "Top 100 1974-03-30". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 2013-03-05. Retrieved 2015-04-16.
  16. ^ Australian-charts.com
  17. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  18. ^ "Billboard Top 100 - 1974". Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  19. ^ "Billboard Year-End Charts 1974" (PDF).
  20. ^ "American single certifications – Cher – Dark Lady". Recording Industry Association of America.
  21. ^ "The Number Ones: Cher's "Dark Lady"". Stereogum. 2019-05-10. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
  22. ^ a b c d e "ASCAP Repertory". ASCAP. 12 December 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
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