Jean (song)

"Jean"
Single by Oliver
from the album Good Morning Starshine
B-side "The Arrangement"
Released August 1969
Format 7" single (45 rpm)
Recorded 1969
Genre Pop
Length 3:22
Label Crewe Records 334
Writer(s) Rod McKuen
Producer(s) Bob Crewe
Certification Gold (RIAA)
Oliver singles chronology
"Good Morning Starshine"
(1969)
"Jean"
(1969)
"Sunday Mornin'"
(1969)

"Jean" is a popular song from 1969. It was written by the American poet and composer Rod McKuen who also recorded a version of the song.

The song was the theme to the film adaptation of Muriel Spark's The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, which starred noted British film actress Maggie Smith. Smith won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of the lead character in the film, Jean Brodie. The song was performed by songwriter McKuen, who was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Original Song. Although released as a single in the summer of 1969, McKuen's version of the song failed to reach the American music charts. Sergio Franchi performed the song on the January 3, 1971, broadcast of The Ed Sullivan Show, subsequently released on a rare Franchi DVD.[1]

"Jean" was also recorded by the American singer Oliver. Earlier in 1969, Oliver had reached #3 on the Billboard pop and easy listening charts with his version of "Good Morning Starshine," a song from the musical Hair. While working on an album with producer Bob Crewe (which would also be called Good Morning Starshine), "Jean" was selected as a song for the record and subsequently chosen as the follow-up single. It became another hit for the singer, reaching #2 on the pop chart and spending four weeks at #1 on the adult contemporary chart. Oliver would later describe his cover version of the song: "We had no idea it would be a single. It was a 3/4 ballad in the psychedelic era...it was a beautiful arrangement."[2]

See also

Preceded by
"I'll Never Fall in Love Again"
by Tom Jones
Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single
by Oliver

September 20, 1969 (4 weeks)
Succeeded by
"Is That All There Is?"
by Peggy Lee

References

  1. The Official Ed Sullivan Site
  2. Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, January 15, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.