"I'm Sorry" is a 1960 hit song by 15-year-old American singer

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...

. The song was written by Dub Allbritten and

Ronnie Self Ronnie Self (July 5, 1938 – August 28, 1981) was an American rockabilly singer and songwriter. His solo career was unsuccessful, despite being signed to contracts with Columbia and then Decca from the late 1950s through the early 1960s. Hi ...

. It peaked at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart in July 1960. On the UK Singles Chart, the song peaked at No.12.

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 ...

guide wrote that it is the pop star's "definitive song", and one of the "finest teen pop songs of its era". In 1999, the 1960 recording by Lee on

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 ...

was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Background

According to the ''Billboard Book of Number One Hits'' by

Fred Bronson Fredric M. "Fred" Bronson (born January 10, 1949) is an American journalist, author and writer. He is the author of books related to number one songs on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and other books related to various music charts as well. He ...

, Brenda Lee recorded the song early in 1960, but her label,

, held it from release for several months out of concern that a 15-year-old girl was not mature enough to sing about

unrequited love Unrequited love or one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such by the beloved. The beloved may not be aware of the admirer's deep affection, or may consciously reject it knowing that the admirer admires them. Me ...

. When the song finally was released, it was considered to be the flip side of the more uptempo " That's All You Gotta Do". Although "That's All You Gotta Do" was a chart success in its own right, reaching No. 6 on the Hot 100, it was "I'm Sorry" that became the smash hit and the standard. On other charts, "I'm Sorry" peaked at number four on the R&B chart and "That's All You Gotta Do" peaked at number nineteen on the R&B charts. "I'm Sorry" was released as the A-side (with "That's All You Gotta Do" as the B-side) when the single was released in the UK in July 1960. "I'm Sorry" was not one of Lee's more successful singles in the UK, where Lee's previous single, "

Sweet Nothin's Sweet Nothin's is a 1959 song by Brenda Lee written by Ronnie Self. It peaked at No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and No. 12 on the Hot R&B Sides chart, in 1960. The song (as Sweet Nuthin's) also charted on the UK Singles Chart in 1960, pea ...

", and several later releases (notably "

Speak to Me Pretty "Speak to Me Pretty" is a song written by "By" Dunham and Henry Vars and performed by Brenda Lee. The song featured on Lee's 1961 album, '' All the Way''. Not chosen to be a single in the United States, the song was selected by Lee's U.K. reco ...

", "

All Alone Am I "All Alone Am I" is a song from 1962 popularized by the American singer Brenda Lee. The song was originally composed by the Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis and recorded in Greek by Tzeni Karezi for the soundtrack of the film ''To nisi ton genneon ...

" and " As Usual") were substantially bigger hits. Although "I'm Sorry" was never released to country radio in the United States as a single, it would in time become accepted by American country fans as a standard of the genre. The song—a fixture on many " country oldies" programs—was an early example of the new " Nashville sound", a style that emphasized a stringed-instrumental sound and background vocals.

Charts

Weekly charts

All-time charts

Covers

A remake of "I'm Sorry" was a minor hit for

Joey Heatherton Davenie Johanna "Joey" Heatherton (born September 14, 1944) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. A sex symbol of the 1960s and 1970s, she is best known for her many television appearances during that time. Heatherton was a frequent variet ...

in 1972 reaching No. 87 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It was recorded as a track on ''The Joey Heatherton Album''. on July 26, 1972, and issued that November as the second single to the follow-up to Heatherton's sole

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...

hit " Gone". "I'm Sorry" has also been recorded by

Bobby Vee Robert Thomas Velline (April 30, 1943 – October 24, 2016), known professionally as Bobby Vee, was an American singer who was a teen idol in the early 1960s and also appeared in films. According to '' Billboard'' magazine, he had thirty- ...

(album ''Bobby Vee Sings Your Favorites''/ 1960),

Jane Morgan Jane Morgan (born Florence Catherine Currier; May 3, 1924) is an American former singer and recording artist of traditional pop. Morgan initially found success in France and the UK before achieving recognition in the US, receiving six gold re ...

(album ''In My Style''/ 1965),

Dottie West Dottie West (born Dorothy Marie Marsh; October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country singer and songwriter. She also had several credits as an actress. A distinguished figure in the country genre, West was among several people ...

(album '' Feminine Fancy''/ 1968), Allison Durbin (album ''Are You Lonesome Tonight''/ 1977),

Billy Joe Royal Billy Joe Royal (April 3, 1942 – October 6, 2015) was an American country soul singer. His most successful record was " Down in the Boondocks" in 1965. Life and career Born in Valdosta, Georgia, to Clarence and Mary Sue Smith Royal, and ra ...

(album ''Billy Joe Royal''/ 1980) and

Roch Voisine Joseph Armand Roch Voisine, (born 26 March 1963) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, actor, and radio and television host who lives in Montreal and Paris. He writes and performs material in both English and French. He won the Juno Award for Male V ...

(album ''AmerIIcana''/ 2009). A recording by

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

made in 1960 was first released on the 2006 Pat Boone

box set A boxed set or (its US name) box set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box, hence 'boxed', and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists ...

''The Sixties 1960-1962''. A Czech-language rendering of "I'm Sorry", titled "Roň Slzy", was recorded in 1965 by Yvonne Přenosilová, who also performed the song in English as well during live performances. There is also a lesser known version by

Helena Vondráčková Helena Vondráčková (born 24 June 1947, in Prague) is a Czech people, Czech singer and actress whose prolific career as a performer has spanned more than six decades, earning her acclaim both domestically and internationally. Recognized for h ...

. "I'm Sorry" has since been rendered in Danish as "Jeg be'r dig" recorded by Birthe Kjær on her 1974 album ''Tennessee Waltz'' and in Flemish as "Vergeef me" recorded by Mieke (album ''Horen zien en zingen''/ 1978).

Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks and billed for their first two decades as the Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for Novelty records in ...

covered the song for their TV series episode "The Secret Life of Dave Seville".

In popular culture

The song was sampled in the Sweet Valley track "Hypomania". It is playing in the background in the movie

Tommy Boy ''Tommy Boy'' is a 1995 American buddy comedy film directed by Peter Segal, written by Bonnie and Terry Turner, produced by Lorne Michaels, and starring soon-to-be former ''Saturday Night Live'' castmates and close friends Chris Farley and D ...

when

David Spade David Wayne Spade (born July 22, 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and podcaster. His comedic style, in both his stand-up material and acting roles, relies heavily on sarcasm and self-deprecation. For his roles on television, Spade h ...

and

Chris Farley Christopher Crosby Farley (February 15, 1964 – December 18, 1997) was an American actor and comedian. He was a member of Chicago's Second City Theatre and later a cast member of the NBC sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'' for fiv ...

are sitting in a rural diner, after Spade hits Farley across the face with a large piece of wood. It was used as an interlude in

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

's 2016 tour

The Formation World Tour The Formation World Tour was the seventh concert tour by American singer-songwriter Beyoncé in support of her sixth studio album, ''Lemonade'' (2016). The all-stadium tour was announced following her guest appearance at the Super Bowl 50 halfti ...

and in episode 3 of the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

series '' The End of the F***ing World''. It plays over the end credits of

Richard Linklater Richard Linklater (; born July 30, 1960) is an American filmmaker. He is known for making films that deal thematically with suburban culture and the effects of the passage of time. In 2015, Linklater was included on the annual ''Time'' 100 li ...

's '' Tape''.

Ben Vaughn Ben Vaughn (born ) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, composer for television and film, and a syndicated radio show host. Biography Vaughn grew up in Mount Ephraim, New Jersey, outside Philadelphia, and graduate ...

referenced it in his song "I'm Sorry (But So Is Brenda Lee)".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I'm Sorry (Brenda Lee Song) 1960 singles Brenda Lee songs Billy Joe Royal songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients 1960 songs Songs written by Ronnie Self Torch songs Decca Records singles