"My Heart Cries for You"
Single by Guy Mitchell
B-side"The Roving Kind"
ReleasedNovember 1950
RecordedNovember 1950
GenreTraditional pop
Length2:41
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Carl Sigman, Percy Faith
Guy Mitchell singles chronology
"My Heart Cries for You"
(1950)		 "You're Just in Love"
(1951)

"My Heart Cries for You" is a popular song, adapted by Carl Sigman and Percy Faith from an 18th-century French melody.[1] The song has been recorded by many singers, the most successful of which was recorded by Guy Mitchell which reached No. 2 on the Billboard chart in 1951.

Background

The music is based on an old French song believed to date from the time of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, "La jardinière du Roi" ("The King's Gardener"),[2] also titled "Chanson de Marie Antoinette" (Marie Antoinette's song) as the music was said to have been written by Marie Antoinette.[3][4] The French song was published in the US in 1927,[4] and recorded by Lily Pons in 1938.

In 1950, Percy Faith (using the alias Peter Mars) adapted the music of the song with Carl Sigman writing new English lyrics for the song.[5] The lyrics of this version, "My heart cries for you, sighs for you, dies for you..." are original and unrelated to the French song. The song was written in three-quarter waltz time.[6]

Guy Mitchell recording

The song was recorded in November 1950 by Guy Mitchell with Mitch Miller and his orchestra.[7] Mitch Miller originally had intended "My Heart Cries for You" and "The Roving Kind" to be recorded by Frank Sinatra, however, Sinatra was not interested in the songs chosen for him when he arrived the day the recording was scheduled, and said: "I'm not doing any of that crap". Miller, who had already booked the musicians for the recording session, then looked for a replacement to record the song. He invited a new singer that he liked, Al Cernic, to come to the studio that evening. The recording went well, and Miller then told Cernic that he should change his name as Miller could not pronounce it. Cernic, initially reluctant, then became Guy Mitchell for the record release.[8]

The song was released with "The Roving Kind" as its B-side in November 1950 by Columbia Records (catalog number 39067). It became Mitchell's first hit song,[9] reaching number 2 for seven weeks on the Billboard chart in 1951 with over a million copies sold. It was number 1 on Your Hit Parade for two weeks, and number 1 on Cash Box for six weeks.[5]

Mitchell released another version of the song in 1958.[10]

Charts

Chart (1951) Peak
position
US Billboard Best Selling Pop Singles[11] 2
US Cash Box Best Selling Singles[12] 1

Other recordings

Early versions

Many versions of the song were recorded and released in late 1950 and early 1951. A version was first recorded by Dinah Shore with Henri René's Orchestra & Chorus in New York City, and released around the same time as Guy Mitchell. (RCA Victor Records catalog number 20-3978 in the US dated October 29, 1950,[13] and EMI on the His Master's Voice in the UK, catalog number B 10026.)[14] It reached number 3 on Billboard's pop chart.[15]

Numerous cover versions by other artists quickly followed, including Vic Damone (a number 4 hit on the Billboard chart), Jimmy Wakely (number 12 on pop and number 7 on country),[16] Bill Farrell (number 18), Al Morgan (number 24), Evelyn Knight and Red Foley, a duet which reached number 28 pop and number 6 country, and Victor Young and His Singing Strings (number 29 on pop).[15][17][18]

Other versions

"My Heart Cries for You"
Single by Connie Francis
B-side"Someone Took the Sweetness out of Sweetheart"
ReleasedJuly 1967
RecordedJune 1, 1967 (A-side)
May 19, 1967 (B-side)
GenreEasy listening
Length2:56 (A-side)
2:16 (B-side)
LabelMGM K 13773
Songwriter(s)Carl Sigman, Percy Faith
Producer(s)Pete Spargo
Connie Francis
US singles chronology
"Time Alone Will Tell" / "Born Free"
(1967)		 "My Heart Cries for You"
(1967)		 "Lonely Again" / "When You Care a lot for Someone"
(1967)
External audio
audio icon You may hear an arrangement of "My Heart Cries for You" by John Serry performed in 1956 Here on Archive.org
  • The composition was also arranged and recorded by John Serry, Sr. and his ensemble for Dot Records as a 33 RPM vinyl recording entitled Squeeze Play in 1956.[19] Subsequently, it was released by Versailles Records as a 45 RPM recording under the title Chicago Musette - John Serry et son Accordéon in 1958.[20][21]
  • A revival by Ray Charles reached the U.S. top forty in 1964.[22]
  • Connie Francis "bubbled under" the Billboard pop chart in 1967 (number 118) and peaked at number 12 on Billboard Adult Contemporary.[23] She also recorded the song in German as "Mein Herz ruft nach dir" and in French as "Mon cœur pleure pour vous", the latter marking her last French-language recording of the 1960s.[24]
  • Percy Faith himself recorded an instrumental version of this song in the early 1970s. It is on his 1973 album, Corazón.[25]
  • On his 2005 "comeback" album, The Moon Was Blue, country singer Bobby Bare also recorded a version of the song.[26]
  • On her 2006 album If Your Memory Serves You Well, Serena Ryder covers this, as well as many other classics.[27] The album received Gold certification.
  • Harry James released a version in 1981 on his album For Listening And Dancing (Reader's Digest RD4A 213)[28]
  • Margo Smith released a version in 1981 that peaked at number 72 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.[29]

References

  1. ↑ The Independent; Obituaries: Guy Mitchell 5 July 1999
  2. ↑ "London Digs Up Louis XVI Ditty". Billboard. February 10, 1951. p. 12.
  3. ↑ "Chanson de Marie Antoinette". The LiederNet Archive.
  4. 1 2 "Marie Antoinette's Song" (PDF).
  5. 1 2 Tyler, Don (2007). Hit Songs, 1900-1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era. McFarland. p. 318. ISBN 9780786429462.
  6. ↑ ""Irene" Starting Swings to Waltzes". Billboard. November 18, 1950. p. 16.
  7. ↑ "Is Disk Business Changing". Billboard. November 18, 1950. p. 39.
  8. ↑ Leigh, Spencer (2015). Frank Sinatra: An Extraordinary Life. McNidder and Grace Limited. ISBN 9780857160881.
  9. ↑ "Feet Up, Pat Him on the Po-Po! Let's Hear Him laugh!". Life. September 22, 1952. p. 38.
  10. ↑ "The Billboard Spotlight Winners of the Week". Billboard. October 13, 1958. p. 38.
  11. ↑ "The Billboard Music Popularity Charts: Best Selling Pop Singles". Billboard. January 27, 1951. p. 22.
  12. ↑ "The CASH BOX Best Selling Singles week ending February 24, 1951". Tropicalglen.
  13. ↑ "RCA Victor 20-3500 - 4000 78rpm numerical listing discography". 78discography.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  14. ↑ "Dinah Shore - Nobody's Chasing Me". 45cat.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  15. 1 2 Lonergan, David F. (2005). Hit Records, 1950-1975. Scarecrow Press. p. 155. ISBN 9780810851290.
  16. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 368.
  17. ↑
  18. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 124.
  19. ↑ "Dot Album Discography, Part 2 (1955-1960)". Bsnpubs.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  20. ↑ "My Heart Cries For You". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  21. ↑ "CHICAGO MUSETTE". Gallica.bnf.fr. 4 May 1959. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  22. ↑ "Ray Charles - My Heart Cries For You". 45cat.com. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  23. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 97.
  24. ↑ Ron Roberts: Connie Francis Discography 1955 – 1975, revised editions 1979 und 1983
  25. ↑ "Corazón - Percy Faith | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  26. ↑ "The Moon Was Blue - Bobby Bare | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  27. ↑ "If Your Memory Serves You Well - Serena Ryder | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  28. ↑ "Harry James & His Orchestra – For Listening And Dancing (1981, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1981. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  29. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
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