The End of the World (Skeeter Davis song)
| "The End of the World" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Skeeter Davis | ||||
| from the album Skeeter Davis Sings The End of the World | ||||
| B-side | "Somebody Loves You", "Blueberry Hill" | |||
| Released | 1962 | |||
| Format | 7" single | |||
| Recorded | 1962 | |||
| Genre | Country, pop | |||
| Length | 2:33 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Writer(s) | Arthur Kent, Sylvia Dee | |||
| Producer | Chet Atkins | |||
| Skeeter Davis singles chronology | ||||
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"The End of the World" is a pop music hit song by Skeeter Davis that enjoyed international success in the 1960s.
Background
"The End of the World" was written by Arthur Kent and Sylvia Dee; the latter drew on her sorrow on her father's death.
Davis recorded her version on June 8, 1962 at the RCA Victor Studio in Nashville. Produced by Chet Atkins, the track featured Floyd Cramer. Released by RCA Records in December 1962, "The End of the World" peaked in March 1963 at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, #2 on the Billboard country singles,[1] #1 on Billboard's easy listening, and #4 on Billboard's rhythm and blues.[2] Davis's four-chart top-ten has never been duplicated by any other artist in the history of Billboard.[citation needed]
Davis's recording of "The End of the World" was played at Atkins's funeral in an instrumental by Marty Stuart, and at Davis's own funeral at the Ryman Auditorium.
Davis's version has been featured in Girl, Interrupted, Riding In Cars With Boys, Daltry Calhoun, An American Affair, The Boat That Rocked, "Shut the Door. Have a Seat" episode of Mad Men,[3] and in the opening credits of the BYU Television drama series Granite Flats.
Chart performance
| Chart (1963) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report | 32 |
| U.K. Singles Chart[4] | 18 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Easy Listening | 1 |
Sonia version
| "End of the World" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Sonia | ||||
| from the album Everybody Knows | ||||
| B-side | "Can't Help The Way That I Feel" | |||
| Released | August 25, 1990 | |||
| Format | CD Single 7" Single 12" Single |
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| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 3:36 | |||
| Label | Chrysalis | |||
| Writer(s) | Arthur Kent, Sylvia Dee | |||
| Producer | Stock, Aitken & Waterman | |||
| Sonia singles chronology | ||||
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In 1990, British singer Sonia covered "End of the World". The fifth and final single from her debut album, Everybody Knows, it reached number 18 in the UK,[5] the same chart position as the original.[4] The single's B-side "Can't Help The Way That I Feel" appeared on Sonia's debut album. This was her final single with Stock Aitken Waterman.
Formats and track listings
- 7" single
- "End of the World"
- "Can't Help the Way That I Feel"
- CD single and 12" vinyl single
- "End of the World"
- "Can't Help the Way That I Feel"
- "Counting Every Minute" (Tick Tock Remix)
Charts
| Chart (1990) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | 18 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 18 |
Other versions
A #2 hit in Sweden in September 1966 via a local cover by Mike Wallace & the Caretakers, "The End of the World" has also been remade by a number of other artists including Jessica Andersson, Anika (as a b-side to her single "Yang Yang" and on her album Anika), Eddy Arnold, Best Coast, Debby Boone, Brilliant, Carola (in Finnish as "Maailmain"), The Carpenters, Rivers Cuomo, Bobby Darin, Lana Del Rey, Barbara Dickson, Dion, Mary Duff, Allison Durbin, Exposé, Agnetha Fältskog, Rosie Flores, Girls, Nina Gordon, Herman's Hermits (as the B-side of "I'm Henry VIII, I Am"), Satoko Ishimine, Joni James, Brenda Lee, Lobo, Julie London, Claudine Longet, Loretta Lynn, Al Martino, Johnny Mathis, Anne Mattila (in Finnish as "Maailmain"), Imelda May, John Cougar Mellencamp, Anita Meyer, the Mills Brothers, Ronnie Milsap, Dorothy Moore, Mud, Anne Murray, Leigh Nash, Nomeansno, Patti Page, Helen Shapiro, Anne Shelton, Vonda Shepard, Nancy Sinatra, Sonia, The Tokens, Twiggy, Twinkle, The Vanguards, Bobby Vinton, Jeff Walker, Dottie West, and Lena Zavaroni. In 2009 Susan Boyle remade "The End of the World" for her debut album, I Dreamed a Dream.
A cover version by Allison Paige peaked at number 72 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in May 2000.[6]
References
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 180.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 147.
- ^ Levinson, Paul (2009-11-02). "Mad Men 3.12: The End of the World". InfiniteRegress.tv. Retrieved 2009-11-02.
- ^ a b Skeeter Davis UK chart history, The Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
- ^ Sonia UK chart history, The Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
- ^ Bronson, Fred (May 13, 2000). "Country Is Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood". Billboard. Retrieved March 11, 2013.
External links
| Preceded by "Rhythm of the Rain" by The Cascades |
"Billboard" Middle-Road number-one single by Skeeter Davis March 16, 1963 (four weeks) |
Succeeded by "Can't Get Used to Losing You" by Andy Williams |
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