"Things" is a song which was written and recorded by
Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor who performed Pop music, pop, Swing music, swing, Folk music, folk, rock and roll, and country music.
Darin started ...
in
1962
The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War.
Events January
* January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...
. Released as a single, it reached No.3 in the U.S.and Canada, No.2 in the U.K., and No.3 in the first-ever official
Irish Singles Chart, published by RTÉ in October 1962. It was later covered by
Ronnie Dove and became a Top 30 country hit for him.
In 1962, Darin began to write and sing country music, with hit songs including "Things". It was the final Darin single released on the
Atco Records
ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the com ...
unit of
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 the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...
before he began recording for
Capitol Records
Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
. While vault material would continue to be issued on Atco, Darin wouldn't return to Atlantic Records until 1965.
Darin's next hits after "Things" were "You're the Reason I'm Living" (U.S. No.3), and "18 Yellow Roses" (U.S. No.10) on Capitol Records, which Darin joined in 1962 (he returned to Atlantic four years later).
Chart history
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Ronnie Dove version
In 1975, pop and country singer
Ronnie Dove recorded the song for Melodyland Records,
Motown
Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...
’s country label. His version reached #25 on the country chart that year, and became Ronnie’s highest charting country hit. It was released on an album called “New Old-Fashioned Love” in 1977, which was released on M.C. Records only as a promotional album sent to radio stations.
Other versions
Lawrence Welk
Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. The program was known for its light and family-friendly style, and the ...
surprisingly kept up with the times by allowing Larry Hooper and
The Lennon Sisters to sing this song on a season premier show in 1962.
The song was sung as a duet by
Dean Martin and
Nancy Sinatra in the
1967
Events January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...
TV special ''
Movin' with Nancy'', starring Nancy Sinatra. The TV special was released to home video in the U.S. in 2000.
Italian singer
Remo Germani made a cover in 1962 called "Baci".
A cover of the song by
Anne Murray from her 1976 album ''
Keeping in Touch'' peaked at No. 12 on the US
adult contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...
chart and No. 22 Country.
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock 'n' roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis m ...
covered the song on his 1995 album ''
Young Blood''.
Singer
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, launching a solo career in 1996. His debut studio album, ''Life thru a Lens'', was re ...
recorded a version of "Things", with
Jane Horrocks, for his 2001 swing album
Swing When You're Winning.
British rock n roll revivalist band Showaddywaddy covered the song on their 1983 album Living Legends with Bill “Buddy” Gask on lead vocals.
''Phantom of the Opera'' film actress
Emmy Rossum did a cover of "Things" on her 2013 album ''Sentimental Journey'', which peaked at 92 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart.
[ Sentimental Journey (Emmy Rossum album)]
Notes
{{Authority control
1962 songs
1962 singles
1976 singles
Songs written by Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin songs
Dean Martin songs
Nancy Sinatra songs
Anne Murray songs
Song recordings produced by Ahmet Ertegun
Atco Records singles
Reprise Records singles
Capitol Records singles