Gloria (Them Song)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

"Gloria" is a rock song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter
Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...
, and originally recorded by Morrison's band Them in 1964. It was released as the
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
of "
Baby, Please Don't Go "Baby, Please Don't Go" is a traditional blues song that was popularized by Delta blues musician Big Joe Williams in 1935. Many cover versions followed, leading to its description as "one of the most played, arranged, and rearranged pieces in ...
". The song became a
garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...
staple and a part of many rock bands' repertoires.


Composition and recording

According to Morrison, he wrote "Gloria" while performing with the Monarchs in Germany in the summer of 1963, at just about the time he turned 18 years old. He started to perform it at the Maritime Hotel when he returned to
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
and joined up with the Gamblers to form the band Them. He would ad-lib lyrics as he performed, sometimes stretching the song to 15 or 20 minutes. After signing a contract with Dick Rowe and
Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...
, Them went to London for a recording session at Decca Three Studios in West Hampstead on 5 April 1964; "Gloria" was one of the seven songs recorded that day. Besides Morrison, present were Billy Harrison on guitar, Alan Henderson on bass guitar, Ronnie Millings on drums and Pat McCauley on keyboards. Rowe brought in session musicians Arthur Greenslade on organ and Bobby Graham on drums, since he considered the Them members too inexperienced. There remains some dispute about whether Millings and McCauley were actually miked, but Alan Henderson contends that Them constituted the first rock group to use two drummers on a recording. Although some sources claim that
Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...
played second guitar, other sources deny this.


Releases and charts

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
released "Gloria" as the B-side of "
Baby, Please Don't Go "Baby, Please Don't Go" is a traditional blues song that was popularized by Delta blues musician Big Joe Williams in 1935. Many cover versions followed, leading to its description as "one of the most played, arranged, and rearranged pieces in ...
" in the UK on 6 November 1964, with only the latter reaching the singles chart. In the US the same pairing, released by
Parrot Records Parrot Records was an American record label, a division of London Records, which started in 1964. The label usually licensed (or leased) recordings made by Decca Records, England, for release in the United States and Canada, most notably by th ...
, became a regional hit on the US West Coast. Between March and June 1965, the single (both songs) appeared on weekly Top 40 playlists for Los Angeles radio station
KRLA KRLA (870 AM) "AM 870 The Answer" is a commercial radio station broadcasting a conservative talk radio format. Licensed to Glendale, California, it serves Greater Los Angeles and Southern California. The station is owned by Salem Media Group, ...
, reaching number one for three weeks in April. A year later, after the release of a cover version of "Gloria" by the Shadows of Knight, Them's original entered the national ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. Both peaked during the week of 14 May 1966, with Them at number 75 and the Shadows of Knight at number 10. ''
Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' described it as "a bluesy, up tempo stomp'er devoted to 'Gloria. "Gloria" was added to Them's first UK album ''
The Angry Young Them ''The Angry Young Them'' is the first album by the Northern Irish rhythm and blues group Them, whose lead singer and songwriter was Van Morrison. The album was released in the UK in June 1965. In the U.S., the album was released as ''Them'' w ...
'' (1965), which was re-titled with some different tracks as ''Them'' in the US. The song also appears on several compilations, including '' The Story of Them Featuring Van Morrison'' (1997) and '' The Best of Van Morrison'' (1990).


Certifications


Cover versions

*1965 The Shadows of Knight recorded "Gloria", which was released as a single in December 1965 and later included on the album of the same name. Bill Janovitz describes it as "a faithful, though tamer version of the original". The song reached number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 8 on Canada's
RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...
charts in 1966, due to its popularity with radio stations that chose not to play Them's original because of its lyricsthe Shadows of Knight replaced Morrison's line "She comes to my room" with "She calls out my name". *The Canadian band ''King-Beezz'' reached number 75 on the
RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...
charts with their version, June 6, 1966. *1966–1970
The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts ...
performed the song several times, with one recording released on '' Alive, She Cried'' (1983). It was also released as a single, which reached number 18 on Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and number 71 on ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1983. The song is included on '' Legacy: The Absolute Best'' (2003) and '' The Very Best of The Doors'' (2007). *1975
Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...
recorded it for her album ''
Horses The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 milli ...
''. Based on the Van Morrison tune, the lyrics had been adapted from an early poem, 'Oath'. Smith's band had started to play the song live and merged it with the poem by 1974, so the song contained half of Smith's own words. For the recording of her debut album, Smith and her band recorded the song live and, after mixing, chose it as the album's opener. The spoken intro begins, "Jesus died for somebody's sins, but not mine," being the statement of the album. According to Janovitz, "Smith's intermingling of lascivious sex and religious guilt (or lack thereof) certainly foreshadows similar sacred/profane juxtapositions from ultra-feminine
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
and androgynous
Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
." ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' said similarly that the "legend-making first line of Smith's galvanic act of rock & roll vandalism" showed the band to be "reveling in its cathartic simplicity" and "creating something reverent and revolutionary." ''Rolling Stone'' ranked her version at number 97 in its 2024 list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". *1993Van Morrison recorded a version with
John Lee Hooker John Lee Hooker (August 22, 1912 or 1917 – June 21, 2001) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist. The son of a sharecropper, he rose to prominence performing an electric guitar-style adaptation of Delta blues that he develo ...
, which reached the Top 40 in several countries:
Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are ...
No. 17, UK Singles Chart No. 31, US
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart published by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States. It is an administrative category that combines the " active rock" and " heritage rock" ...
No. 36, AUS No. 22 and the Netherlands No. 37. *2017 -
Car Seat Headrest Car Seat Headrest is an American indie rock band formed in Leesburg, Virginia, and currently located in Seattle, Seattle, Washington. The band consists of Will Toledo (vocals, guitar, piano, synthesizers), Ethan Ives (guitar, bass, backing voca ...
frequently interpolated Patti Smith's cover into the song "Connect The Dots (The Story of Frank Sinatra).


Recognition

One explanation for the timeless popularity of the song was offered in
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
's review by Bill Janovitz: "Gloria" was rated number 69 on
Dave Marsh Dave Marsh (born ) is an American music critic and radio talk show host. He was an early editor of '' Creem'' magazine, has written for various publications such as ''Newsday'', ''The Village Voice'', and ''Rolling Stone'', and has published num ...
's list in the 1989 book ''The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made''. He described the song as "one of the few rock songs that's actually as raunchy as its reputation." In his book ''Rock and Roll: The 100 Best Singles'', Paul Williams said about the two sides of the "Baby Please Don't Go/Gloria" recording: "Into the heart of the beast ... here is something so good, so pure, that if no other hint of it but this record existed, there would still be such a thing as rock and roll ... Van Morrison's voice a fierce beacon in the darkness, the lighthouse at the end of the world. Resulting in one of the most perfect rock anthems known to humankind." In 1999, "Gloria" by Them received the
Grammy Hall of Fame Award The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
. In 2000, "Gloria" by Them was listed as number 81 on
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
's list of The 100 Greatest Rock Songs of All Time. In 2004, "Gloria" by Them was ranked No. 208 on ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
''s list of the
500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring song ranking compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2 ...
, moving down to No. 211 in the 2010 updated list, and 413 in the 2021 list. Patti Smith's version was ranked at number 97 on the 2021 list. "Gloria" was also included in
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
twice: by Patti Smith and by Shadows of Knight. Author/columnist
Dave Barry David McAlister Barry (born July 3, 1947) is an American author and columnist who wrote a nationally Print syndication, syndicated humor column for the ''Miami Herald'' from 1983 to 2005. He has written numerous books of humor and parody, as we ...
wrote, “You can throw a guitar off a cliff, and as it bounces off the rocks on the way down, it will, all by itself, play Gloria.”


References


Sources

* * * Heylin, Clinton (2003). ''Can You Feel the Silence? Van Morrison: A New Biography'', Chicago Review Press * Turner, Steve (1993). '' Van Morrison: Too Late to Stop Now'', Viking Penguin, {{DEFAULTSORT:Gloria (Them Song) 1964 songs 1965 singles 1974 singles 1976 singles 1993 singles Songs written by Van Morrison British punk rock songs Protopunk songs Them (band) songs Van Morrison songs Patti Smith songs The Doors songs Eddie and the Hot Rods songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Decca Records singles Parrot Records singles Warner Records singles Polydor Records singles Mercury Records singles Arista Records singles