Sorrow (The McCoys song)

"Sorrow"
"Sorrow"
Single by David Bowie
from the album Pin Ups
B-side	"Amsterdam" (Brel, Shuman)
Released	28 September 1973
Recorded	July 1973
Studio	Château d'Hérouville, Hérouville, France
Genre	Folk rock; glam rock;
Length	2:53
Label	RCA; 2424
Songwriter(s)	Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer
Producer(s)	Ken Scott, David Bowie
David Bowie singles chronology

"Sorrow"
"Sorrow"
Single by The Merseys
B-side	"Some Other Day"
Released	April 1966
Genre	Pop rock
Length	2:12
Label	Fontana 694
Songwriter(s)	Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer
Producer(s)	Kit Lambert
The Merseys singles chronology

"Sorrow"
"Sorrow"
Single by The McCoys
from the album Hang On Sloopy
A-side	"Fever"
Released	October 1965
Genre	Folk rock
Length	2:02
Label	Bang 511
Songwriter(s)	Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer
Producer(s)	Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer
The McCoys singles chronology

"Sorrow" is a song first recorded by the McCoys in 1965 and released as the B-side to their cover of "Fever". It became a big hit in the United Kingdom in a version by the Merseys, reaching number 4 on the UK chart on 28 April 1966.^[1] A version by David Bowie charted worldwide in 1973.

A line from the song – "With your long blonde hair and your eyes of blue" – is used in the Beatles song "It's All Too Much" which was featured on their 1969 album Yellow Submarine.

The Merseys version[]

The Merseys' version is more up-tempo than the McCoys' folk-rock original. Propelled by Clem Cattini's drumming it features a powerful horn arrangement (most probably the work of John Paul Jones^{[citation needed]}). The horns also take the solo which, on the McCoys version, is performed on harmonica. As the number and quality of subsequent covers demonstrate, the Merseys' single was highly regarded among British musicians.

David Bowie version[]

David Bowie's remake of "Sorrow", recorded in July 1973 at Château d'Hérouville, Hérouville, France, was the only single released in the UK from his Pin Ups covers album, reaching No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, and staying in the charts for 15 weeks.^[2] It was also Bowie's first number one hit single in Australia, where it topped the charts for two weeks in February 1974.^[3]

The B-side, “Amsterdam”, was a cover of a Jacques Brel song, that had been performed live by Bowie since 1968. The song may have been recorded by Bowie in the summer 1973 sessions for Pin Ups^[4] or in late 1971^[5] for the album Ziggy Stardust. Never selected as an album track, it was used as the single B-side as it fitted with "Sorrow". In France, it was billed as the A-side of the single.

"Sorrow" was featured in the 2008 John Cusack film War, Inc. In 2017 Paul Shaffer and Jenny Lewis released a cover version based mainly on Bowie's version.^[6]

Track listing[]

"Sorrow" (Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, Richard Gottehrer) – 2:53
"Amsterdam" (Jacques Brel, Mort Shuman) – 2:39

The Spanish release of the single had "Lady Grinning Soul" as the B-side.

Production credits[]

Producers:
- Ken Scott and David Bowie
Musicians:
- David Bowie: vocals, guitar, saxophone on "Sorrow"
- Mick Ronson: guitar and string arrangement on "Sorrow"
- Trevor Bolder: bass on "Sorrow"
- Mike Garson: piano on "Sorrow"
- Aynsley Dunbar: drums on "Sorrow"

Charts[]

Chart (1973)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart^{[citation needed]}	1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)^[7]	7
Canadian Singles Chart	77
French Singles Chart^{[citation needed]}	7
Ireland (IRMA)^[8]	2
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[9]	29
New Zealand Singles Chart^{[citation needed]}	1
South African Singles Chart^{[citation needed]}	1
UK Singles (OCC)^[10]	3
West Germany (Official German Charts)^[11]	39

Other releases[]

The song appeared on the following Bowie compilations:
- Chameleon (Australia/New Zealand 1979)
- The Best of Bowie (1980)
- Sound + Vision box set (1989)
- The Singles Collection (1993)
- The Best of David Bowie 1969/1974 (1997)
- Best of Bowie (2002)
- The Platinum Collection (2006)
- Nothing Has Changed (2014)
- Bowie Legacy (2-CD version) (2016)
It also appeared on the following Bowie live albums:
- Serious Moonlight (Live '83) (recorded September 1983, released 2019)
- I'm Only Dancing (The Soul Tour 74) (recorded October 1974, released 2020)

References[]

^ The Merseys, "Sorrow" chart position Retrieved 20 June 2015
^ David Bowie, "Sorrow" chart position Retrieved 20 June 2015
^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
^ Kevin Cann (2010). Any Day Now – David Bowie: The London Years: 1947–1974: p. 311
^ Chris O'Leary (2015). Rebel Rebel: p.496
^ "New Music: Jenny Lewis and Paul Shaffer Cover David Bowie’s Version of the McCoys’ 'Sorrow'", Spin, 6 January 2017.
^ "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – Sorrow" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Sorrow". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
^ "Dutchcharts.nl – David Bowie – Sorrow" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
^ "David Bowie: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – David Bowie – Sorrow". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 12 September 2020.

Pegg, Nicholas, The Complete David Bowie, Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, 2000, ISBN 1-903111-14-5

External links[]

Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics

[1] The Merseys, "Sorrow" chart position Retrieved 20 June 2015

[2] David Bowie, "Sorrow" chart position Retrieved 20 June 2015

[auchart-3] Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

[Any_Day_Now-4] Kevin Cann (2010). Any Day Now – David Bowie: The London Years: 1947–1974: p. 311

[Rebel_Rebel-5] Chris O'Leary (2015). Rebel Rebel: p.496

[6] "New Music: Jenny Lewis and Paul Shaffer Cover David Bowie’s Version of the McCoys’ 'Sorrow'", Spin, 6 January 2017.

[sc_Wallonia_David_Bowie-7] "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – Sorrow" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 12 September 2020.

[sc_Ireland2_David_Bowie-8] "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Sorrow". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 12 September 2020.

[sc_Dutch100_David_Bowie-9] "Dutchcharts.nl – David Bowie – Sorrow" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 12 September 2020.

[sc_UKsinglesbyname_David_Bowie-10] "David Bowie: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 September 2020.

[sc_West_Germany_David_Bowie-11] "Offiziellecharts.de – David Bowie – Sorrow". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 12 September 2020.

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Discography Songs
1960s	"Liza Jane" "I Pity the Fool" "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" "Can't Help Thinking About Me" "Do Anything You Say" "I Dig Everything" "Rubber Band" "The Laughing Gnome" "Love You till Tuesday" "Space Oddity" "Ragazzo solo, ragazza sola"
1970s	"The Prettiest Star" "Memory of a Free Festival" "Holy Holy" "Moonage Daydream" "Hang On to Yourself" "Changes" "Starman" "John, I'm Only Dancing" "The Jean Genie" "Drive-In Saturday" "Time" "Life on Mars" "Let's Spend the Night Together" "Sorrow" "Rebel Rebel" "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" "Diamond Dogs" "1984" "Knock on Wood" "Rock 'n' Roll with Me" "Young Americans" "Fame" "Golden Years" "Station to Station" (French promo) "TVC 15" "Suffragette City" "Stay" "Sound and Vision" "Be My Wife" "'Heroes'" "Beauty and the Beast" "Breaking Glass" "Boys Keep Swinging" "DJ" "Yassassin" "Look Back in Anger" "John, I'm Only Dancing (Again)"
1980s	"Alabama Song" "Crystal Japan" "Ashes to Ashes" "Fashion" "Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)" "Up the Hill Backwards" "Under Pressure" "Wild Is the Wind" "The Drowned Girl" "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" "Let's Dance" "China Girl" "Modern Love" "Without You" "White Light/White Heat" "Blue Jean" "Tonight" "This Is Not America" "Loving the Alien" "Dancing in the Street" "Absolute Beginners" "Underground" "When the Wind Blows" "Magic Dance" "Day-In Day-Out" "Time Will Crawl" "Never Let Me Down" "Under the God" "Heaven's in Here" "Tin Machine" / "Maggie's Farm (live)" "Prisoner of Love"
1990s	"Fame '90" "You Belong in Rock n' Roll" "Baby Universal" "One Shot" "Real Cool World" "Jump They Say" "Black Tie White Noise" "Miracle Goodnight" "The Buddha of Suburbia" "Ziggy Stardust" "The Hearts Filthy Lesson" "Strangers When We Meet" / "The Man Who Sold the World (live)" "Hallo Spaceboy" "Telling Lies" "Little Wonder" "Dead Man Walking" "Seven Years in Tibet" "Pallas Athena" "I'm Afraid of Americans" "I Can't Read" "Without You I'm Nothing" "Thursday's Child" "The Pretty Things Are Going to Hell"
2000s	"Survive" "Seven" "Slow Burn" "Everyone Says 'Hi'" "I've Been Waiting for You" "Shadow Man" "New Killer Star" "Just for One Day (Heroes)" "Rebel Never Gets Old"
2010s	"Where Are We Now?" "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)" "The Next Day" "Valentine's Day" "Love Is Lost" "'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore" "Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)" "Blackstar" "Lazarus" "I Can't Give Everything Away"
Other songs	"Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed" "Cygnet Committee" "Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud" "The Width of a Circle" "All the Madmen" "Black Country Rock" "After All" "She Shook Me Cold" "The Man Who Sold the World" "The Supermen" "Oh! You Pretty Things" "Kooks" "Quicksand" "Andy Warhol" "Song for Bob Dylan" "Queen Bitch" "The Bewlay Brothers" "Bombers" "Five Years" "Soul Love" "Lady Stardust" "Velvet Goldmine" "Sweet Head" "Amsterdam" "Round and Round" "Watch That Man" "Aladdin Sane" "Panic in Detroit" "Cracked Actor" "Lady Grinning Soul" "All the Young Dudes" "Future Legend" "Sweet Thing" "Big Brother" "Can You Hear Me?" "Right" "Fascination" "Word on a Wing" "Speed of Life" "What in the World" "Always Crashing in the Same Car" "Warszawa" "Art Decade" "Weeping Wall" "Subterraneans" "Joe the Lion" "Sons of the Silent Age" "Blackout" "V-2 Schneider" "Sense of Doubt" "Neuköln" "Fantastic Voyage" "It's No Game" "Teenage Wildlife" "Scream Like a Baby" "Criminal World" "As The World Falls Down" "Girls" "Nite Flights" "I'm Deranged" "Nature Boy" "Cactus" "The Loneliest Guy" "Fall Dog Bombs the Moon" "Bring Me the Disco King" "Girl Loves Me" "Dollar Days"