About Somethin'_Stupid

"Somethin' Stupid" is a song written by C. Carson Parks and originally recorded in 1967 by Parks and his wife Gaile Foote, as "Carson and Gaile". It is best known in the hit version by Frank Sinatra and his daughter, Nancy Sinatra.

Original recording by Carson and Gaile

In the early 1960s, Carson Parks was a folk singer in Los Angeles. He was an occasional member of The Easy Riders, and also performed with The Steeltown Three, which included his younger brother Van Dyke Parks. In 1963 he formed the Greenwood County Singers, later known as The Greenwoods, who had two minor hits and included singer Gaile Foote. Before the Greenwoods disbanded, Parks and Foote married and, as Carson and Gaile, recorded an album for Kapp Records, San Antonio Rose, which included the track "Something Stupid". The recording was then brought to the attention of Frank Sinatra.^[1][2]

Frank and Nancy Sinatra

The most successful and best known version of the song was issued by Frank and Nancy Sinatra on Frank's album The World We Knew. The song spent four weeks at #1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and nine weeks atop the adult contemporary chart, becoming Mr. Sinatra's second gold single as certified by the RIAA and Ms. Sinatra's third.^[3] It was the first and only instance of a father-daughter number-one song in America. The single also reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart the same year. Al Casey was the guitarist on this recording.

Other versions

The song has been covered many times in the years since the song was originally released.

Robbie Williams version

“Somethin' Stupid�
Single by Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman from the album Swing When You're Winning
Released	December 10, 2001
Format	CD Single, Cassette, DVD Single
Recorded	2001
Genre	Pop
Length	2:50
Label	Chrysalis
Writer(s)	C. Parks
Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman singles chronology
"Better Man" (2001) "Somethin' Stupid" (2001) "Mr. Bojangles/I Will Talk And Hollywood Will Listen" (2002)

British singer Robbie Williams recorded "Somethin' Stupid" as a duet in 2001 with Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman. The song appeared on Williams' 2001 album, Swing When You're Winning, and it topped the UK Singles Chart at the end of the year. The song became Williams' first Christmas Number-One single in the United Kingdom, and fifth as a featured artist. The single sold 98,506 copies in its first week and 366,000 copies over all earning a Silver Certification by the BPI.^[4][5][6]

The song also became another number-one single for Williams in New Zealand, being certified Gold,^[7] and became, at the time, his best selling single in Europe charting inside the top ten in most countries. In Australia, it became Williams' fourth top ten single, earning a Gold certification for over 35,000 copies sold.^[8]

These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Somethin' Stupid".

UK CD
(Released December 10, 2001)

1. "Somethin' Stupid" featuring Nicole Kidman - 2:50
2. "Eternity" [Orchestral Version] - 5:33
3. "My Way" [Live at the Albert Hall] - 7:01
4. "Somethin' Stupid" Enhanced Video

UK DVD
(Released December 10, 2001)

1. "Somethin' Stupid" Music Video
2. "Somethin' Stupid" Behind Scenes
3. "That's Life" Audio
4. "Let's Face The Music and Dance" Audio

Other artists

• In the same year as the Sinatras' version topped the US charts, rising country star Tammy Wynette released her version (with David Houston) on her debut album, My Elusive Dreams.

• Also in 1967, French singer Sacha Distel released a French language version called "Ces mots stupides."

• Ali Campbell (of the band UB40) and his daughter Kibibi Campbell recorded the song for his 1995 solo album Big Love; it was released as a single in the UK reaching number 30 in December.

• The Smithereens' compilation album, Attack of the Smithereens, features a cover of the song.

• Other versions figured in the 2005 album by Albin de la Simone, sung in duet with Jeanne Cherhal; by Amanda Barrie and Johnny Briggs; by the jazz-alpine-folk band Global Kryner; and released by The Mavericks with Trisha Yearwood on their 1995 album Music for All Occasions; a Hebrew version, called "I Love You", was recorded by Matti Caspi and his daughter, and released in 2005, on his album You Are My Woman; the song was also performed as a b-side by the Australian band Frente off the single for "Accidentally Kelly Street".

• In 2006, the band DeVotchKa released the EP Curse Your Little Heart, which included a cover of "Somethin' Stupid."

• Also Welsh folk singer Mary Hopkin recorded a version on Y Caneuon Cynnar (The Early Recordings).

• Colombian duo, Ana & Jaime, recorded a version in Spanish called "Algo Estupido"

Cultural references

• In a third season episode of The Simpsons entitled "Black Widower" (episode 8F20), "Somethin' Stupid" is sung as a duet in a karaoke bar by Sideshow Bob and his fiancée, Selma Bouvier. Later in the episode, as Bob is plotting to kill Selma, he sings a slightly altered line to himself: And then I go and spoil it all / By doing somethin' stupid like explode you.
• A music video for this song appears in one of the World of Warcraft video games.

References