You Don't Have To Say You Love Me – The Iconic Dusty Springfield

 

You don't have to say you love me just be close at hand
You don't have to stay forever I will understand
Believe me, believe me I can't help but love you
But believe me I'll never tie you down

Dusty discovered this song herself at an Italian music festival with the same tune but completely different Italian words.  She asked an English lyricist to make up some English lyrics and so that is when this powerful song really came to be.

When Dusty recorded this she ended up doing part of it in a stairwell to achieve the sound she wanted.  No extreme digital manipulation in those days – it was 1966.

I've always loved this song.  To listen to the incomparable Dusty Springfield singing this great song – just click on this YouTube link.

Dusty in Memphis – a Fantabulous Album!

The album Dusty in Memphis was not a big commercial success and was made in difficult circumstances.  But for me this was a great album.  It's tracks included:

Just a Little Lovin' – YouTube clip

Son of a Preacher Man – YouTube clip

I Don't Want to Hear It Anymore – YouTube clip

Breakfast in Bed – YouTube clip

If you would like to remind yourself of just how great a singer Dusty was, there would be nothing better for doing that than listening to this album – which was recorded in 1969.

A Girl Called Dusty – what an album!

In 1964 a very clean cut looking Dusty Springfield released the album A Girl Called Dusty.  This was her first album and had many soul songs on it.

The album contained covers as well as other songs.

My favourite tracks from the album include:

You Don't Own Me (YouTube clip)

Anyone Who Had a Heart (YouTube clip)

Wishin' and Hopin' (YouTube clip)

You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me – Dusty Springfield – born on 16 April 1939

You Don't Have to Say You Love Me was originally an Italian song discovered by Dusty Springfield.  She asked someone to write an English lyric for it.  It was a completely new lyric rather than a translation.

Part of it was recording in the stairwell of a building because Dusty wanted more echo.  She took 47 takes to record it.  That’s real perfectionism.  A great pop performance sung with great emotional intensity by someone who was always insecure about her talent.  It reached #1 in the UK in 1966.

My top 25 (actually 43) favourite tracks of all time in alpha order

No doubt this list of favourite tracks says a lot about me inadvertently!  I started out thinking I would only list 25 but that proved much too hard.  The list does demonstrate how you can get stuck in a time warp with music.  I wish there was an easy way to find great new music – it must be out there surely?

(Everything I do) I do it for you – Bryan Adams

1972 – Josh Rouse

5.01am – Roger Waters

Ain’t No Cure for Love – Leonard Cohen

April Sun in Cuba – Dragon

Big Spender – Peggy Lee

Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen

Boogie Street – Leonard Cohen

Desperado - the Eagles

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood – The Animals

Forgiveness – Christine McVie

Funeral for a Friend – Elton John

Go Your Own Way – Fleetwood Mac

Hallelujah – Leonard Cohen

Home Again – Carole King

Honky Tonk Women – Rolling Stones

House of the Rising Sun – The Animals

I Got You Babe – Cher

I’ve Never Been to Me – Charlene

It Doesn’t Matter Any More – Buddy Holly

Keep Me In Your Heart – Warren Zevon

Lay Down Sally – Eric Clapton

Love Hurts – Gram Parsons w Emmy Lou Harris

Mustang Sally – The Commitments

Night and Day – Ella Fitzgerald

Nine Million Bicycles – Katie Melua

Northern Lights – Goldenhorse

Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps – Doris Day

Postcards from Paraguay – Mark Knopfler

That Don’t Impress Me Much – Shania Twain

The End of the Innocence – Don Henley

The Gnu Song – Flanders & Swan

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance – Gene Pitney

Those Three Days – Lucinda Williams

Trav’lin Light – Billie Holliday

Under the Boardwalk – the Drifters

Volare – Dean Martin

We Don’t Need Another Hero – Tina Turner

Why Worry – Dire Straits

Willie and Laura Mae Jones – Dusty Springfield

Words – The Bee Gees

Yesterday – The Beatles

You Can Leave Your Hat On – Joe Cocker

It would be great to get suggestions about what other tracks I should consider adding to this list.

Dusty Springfield – did you know?

She was born Mary O’Brien in West Hampstead, London.  She was part of a folk group “The Springfields” with her brother and adopted that surname when she went solo.

By 1966 he was the best selling female pop vocalist in the world.  Her best album is “Dusty in Memphis”, 1969.  Her voice is incredibly distinctive.

Like many other artists, she battled alcohol and drug dependency.  She was probably borderline manic depressive.

She was adopted as an icon by the gay community.  She died in 1999 of cancer.  A real loss to music.