Betty Barton (born Betty Jean Champion, October 24, 1944), better known by the stage name Bettye Swann, is a retired American

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

singer. She is best known for her 1967 hit song " Make Me Yours".

Career

Swann was born in

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population of 393,406 in 2020, is ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...

, United States, one of 14 children. She grew up in Arcadia, Louisiana, and moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, in 1963. Although some sources state that Swann was in a vocal group known as The Fawns who recorded for

Capital Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of not ...

in 1964, she has refuted this, saying that she sang with a trio in Arcadia by that name.Las Vegas City Life
; accessed June 24, 2015. In 1964, Swann started a solo singing career, changing her name to Bettye Swann at the prompting of local DJ Al Scott, who became her manager. After a minor hit with the self-penned "Don’t Wait Too Long", her big breakthrough came with " Make Me Yours", which topped the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' R&B charts in July 1967 and made No. 21 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 1968, she split with Scott, moved to Georgia, won a new contract with

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of not ...

, and had another hit in 1969 with her cover of the

Jeannie Seely Marilyn Jeanne Seely (born July 6, 1940) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She also has several acting credits and published a book. Seely found success with the Grammy Award-winning hit " Don't Touch Me" (196 ...

hit " Don't Touch Me" (No. 14 R&B, No. 38 Hot 100). In 1972, Swann transferred to

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most im ...

and had a pair of minor hits with "Victim of a Foolish Heart" (later covered by

Joss Stone Joscelyn Eve Stoker (born 11 April 1987), known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, ''The Soul Sessions'', which made the 2004 Merc ...

) and

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...

's "

Today I Started Loving You Again "Today I Started Loving You Again" is a 1968 song written by Merle Haggard and Bonnie Owens. Haggard first recorded it as a B-side to his number 1 hit, " The Legend of Bonnie and Clyde", but it failed to chart. It also appears on his 1968 album, '' ...

". After leaving Money Records she lived for a short time in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...

, Georgia. She continued to record until the mid-1970s, but with little commercial success. Her last public performance was in 1980, the year her husband and manager, George Barton, died. Swann later changed her name to Betty Barton, began working as a teacher in the

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

area, and became a

Jehovah's Witness Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

. She is now retired and, according to a 2005 interview, suffers from a degenerative spinal condition. In 2015, multiple elements from Swann's 1974 recording "Kiss My Love Goodbye" were sampled in the

Galantis Galantis is a Swedish electronic dance music production, songwriting and DJ duo consisting of Christian Karlsson and Linus Eklöw. Karlsson is also known as Bloodshy as part of two other musical groups, a duo (Bloodshy & Avant) and a trio (Mi ...

single " Peanut Butter Jelly". In 2019, Swann's "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" enjoyed a resurgence of interest when it was used as the closing song in the finale of the second series of

The End of the F***ing World ''The End of the F***ing World'' is a British black comedy-drama television programme. The eight-part first series premiered its first episode on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom on 24 October 2017, after which the following episodes were releas ...

. In 2021, the Vermont-based rapper Subtex eke Kreitzersampled the beginning lines of Swann's 1968 song, "(My Heart Is) Closed For The Season" in his track, "Love Art Pain."

Discography

Albums

*1967: ''Make Me Yours'' (Money) *1969: ''The Soul View Now'' (Capitol) - R&B #48 *1969: ''Don't You Ever Get Tired of Hurting Me'' (Capitol) *1990: ''Sweet Dreams'' (Capitol) *2001: ''The Money Recordings'' (Kent) *2004: ''Bettye Swann'' (

Astralwerks Astralwerks is an American record label primarily focused on electronic music owned by Universal Music Group. Its material is distributed via Capitol Music Group in the United States. The label was founded in 1993 and, in its early years, featur ...

Honest Jon's Honest Jon's is a British independent record shop based on Portobello Road in Ladbroke Grove, London, operating since 1974. The shop is owned and run by Mark Ainley and Alan Scholefield, who took over from one of the original proprietors, "Hone ...

) *2014: ''The Complete Atlantic Recordings'' (Rhino) *2015: ''The Very Best of Bettye Swann'' (Kent)

Singles

References

External links

2005 interview with Bettye Swann, by Jarret Keane
* Profile of Bettye Swann on AMG* {{DEFAULTSORT:Swann, Bettye 1944 births Living people People from Shreveport, Louisiana African-American women singer-songwriters American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Apex Records artists Atlantic Records artists Capitol Records artists Singer-songwriters from Louisiana People from Arcadia, Louisiana 21st-century African-American women singers 20th-century African-American women singers