| "The Story of My Life" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Marty Robbins | ||||
| from the album Marty's Greatest Hits | ||||
| B-side | "Once-a-Week Date" | |||
| Released | November 1957 | |||
| Recorded | July 22, 1957 [1] | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 2:33 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Burt Bacharach, Hal David | |||
| Marty Robbins singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"The Story of My Life" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. [2] It was published in 1957. It was recorded by Marty Robbins and reached number one on Billboard's country chart in 1958, and it became a number one hit song for Michael Holliday in the UK.
"The Story of My Life" was the first successful collaboration between Hal David and Burt Bacharach. [3] Although they did not set out to write a country song, their song was recorded by American country music singer Marty Robbins. [2] [4] Robbins was accompanied in the recording by the whistling of the Ray Conniff Singers and a small-scale guitar. [5] The song was released in November 1957 and peaked at number one on two US country charts (C&W Best Sellers in Stores and Most Played C&W by Jockeys), staying for four weeks on Best Sellers in early 1958. [6] [7] It also crossed over to the pop chart, reaching number fifteen. [8] It reached number two on the Australian Singles Chart.[ citation needed]
| Chart (1957–1958) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada ( CHUM Hit Parade) [9] | 2 |
| US ( Billboard Most Played by Jockeys) [10] | 15 |
| US (Billboard C&W Best Sellers) [6] | 1 |
In the United Kingdom, Michael Holliday recorded a cover version on 10 December 1957 at the Abbey Road Studio. Holliday was backed by the Mike Sammes Singers, with Sammes singing the deep-voiced "bom-boms". The sound engineer created an echo effect with a second tape head, producing a fuller sound for Holliday's voice. [11] Although Holliday was dissatisfied with the record, [11] it became his first No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1958. [12] The song was replaced as No. 1 by Perry Como's " Magic Moments", also written by Bacharach and David, [13] the first time any songwriters had consecutive No. 1s on the British chart. [4]
In addition to Michael Holliday's No. 1 single (Columbia 45-DB-4058), three other versions of "The Story of My Life" were released in the UK around the same time in 1958: Gary Miller recorded a version that reached No. 14 in the UK; [14] a version by Alma Cogan reached No. 25; [15] and a single by Dave King reached No. 20. [16]
- A pop-rock version by Herman's Hermits was included on the US compilation LP The Best Of Herman's Hermits – Volume II, released in 1966.[ citation needed]
- Connie Francis recorded the song in 1968 for possible inclusion in her album Connie Francis Sings Bacharach & David, but it was omitted. The track was later released in 1979 on the album titled Connie Francis – Sings Bacharach, Kaempfert, Last & Mancini.[ citation needed]
- Larry Cunningham recorded a version which reached No. 16 on the Irish chart in 1983. [17]
- Irish singer Val Doonican also recorded the song, which became his signature theme. He titled his 2009 autobiography "My Story, My Life", in reference to the song title.[ citation needed]
- ^ Praguefrank
- ^ a b Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 24 - The Music Men. [Part 2]" (audio). Pop Chronicles. University of North Texas Libraries.
- ^ Whorf, Michael (2014). American Popular Song Lyricists: Oral Histories, 1920s-1960s. McFarland. p. 61. ISBN 9780786490615.
- ^ a b David, Eunice (2016). Hal David: His Magic Moments : There is Always Something There to Remind Me. Dorrance Publishing Company. p. 13. ISBN 9781480931008.
- ^ Dominic, Serene (2003). Burt Bacharach: Song By Song. Music Sales. ISBN 9780857122599.
- ^ a b "C&W Best Sellers in Store". Billboard. January 20, 1958. p. 78.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 293.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 532.
- ^ "CHUM Hit Parade, week of December 9, 1957".
- ^ "Most Played by Jockeys". Billboard. January 13, 1958. p. 60.
- ^ a b Kutner, Jon; Leigh, Spencer (2010). 1,000 UK Number One Hits. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857123602.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 81. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. pp. 35–6. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
- ^ "Gary Miller". The Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Alma Cogan". The Official Charts Company.
- ^ Roberts, David (2005). British Hit Singles & Albums. London: Guinness World Records. p. 626. ISBN 1-904994-00-8.
- ^ "Larry Cunningham". The Irish Charts.
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