贝蒂·戴维斯之眼 (1974)

"Bette Davis Eyes" is a song written and composed by Donna Weiss and Jackie DeShannon in 1974. It was recorded by DeShannon that year but made popular by Kim Carnes in 1981 when it spent nine non-consecutive weeks at the top of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It won the 1982 Grammy Awards for Song of the Year and Record of the Year. The music video was directed by Australian film director Russell Mulcahy.

On the Billboard Hot 100, the song was No. 1 for five weeks, interrupted for just one week by "Stars on 45" before it returned to the top spot for another four weeks, becoming Billboard's biggest hit of the year. The single also reached No. 5 on Billboard's Top Tracks charts and No. 26 on the Dance charts. It reached No. 2 in Canada for twelve consecutive weeks, and was 1981's No. 2 hit in that country, after "Stars on 45". It peaked at No. 10 in the United Kingdom, to date Carnes's only Top 40 hit in that country. Additionally, it ranked No. 12 on Billboard's list of the top 100 songs in the first 50 years of the magazine's Hot 100. "Bette Davis Eyes" was a No. 1 hit in 21 countries.

Background

"Bette Davis Eyes" was written in 1974 by Donna Weiss and Jackie DeShannon, the latter of whom recorded the song that same year for her album New Arrangement. Weiss had traveled to DeShannon's house with a set of lyrics, including several additional verses that were ultimately scrapped. DeShannon refined some of the lyrics and also developed the song's music. In this original incarnation, the track is performed in an "R&B lite" arrangement, featuring a prominent uptempo piano part, as well as flourishes of pedal steel guitar and horns. However, it was not until March 1981, when Carnes recorded her version of the song in a radically different synthesizer-based arrangement, that it became a commercial success.

According to producer Val Garay, the original demo of the tune that was brought to him sounded like "a Leon Russell track, with this beer-barrel polka piano part." Carnes initially rejected the song based on the demo's arrangement, until keyboardist Bill Cuomo, using the Prophet-5 synthesizer, came up with the signature riff that defines Carnes's version. In an interview with Dick Clark on the National Music Survey, Carnes credited Cuomo with the song's new arrangement, saying that "the minute he came up with that, then it fell into place. Everybody went, 'That's it!'"

Only three takes were recorded, the first of which was used with no overdubbing. Craig Krampf insisted on incorporating a Synare electronic drum into the song, although Garay objected to the instrument's inclusion on the grounds that it was "the most annoying thing I'd ever heard in my life." However, Garay changed his mind once Krampf hit the Synare on the chorus and found the instrument to be a great addition to the song. The drums were miked at close proximity using a Sennheiser MD 421 on the bass drum, a Shure 56 and Sennheiser MD 441 on the snare drum, Telefunken 251s on the toms, and an AKG 452 on the hi-hat. Carnes sang her vocals through a Neumann U67 microphone situated next to the mixing console.

Actress Bette Davis was 73 when Carnes's version became a hit. She wrote letters to Carnes, Weiss, and DeShannon to thank them for making her "a part of modern times" and said that her grandson now looked up to her. After their Grammy wins, Davis sent them roses and happily accepted the gift of gold and platinum records from Carnes, hanging them on her wall. The opening line, "Her hair is Harlow gold" is a tribute to starlet Jean Harlow, the leading sex symbol of early 1930s films, often nicknamed the "Blonde Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde", whose look inspired Marilyn Monroe, Madonna, and others.

Critical reception

Record World called it a "haunting pop-rocker" and said that Carnes's "earthy vocal rasp and guitar chimes are unforgettable." Joe Viglione of AllMusic believed that "Bette Davis Eyes" was superior to all other tracks on Mistaken Identity.

Other versions

Gwyneth Paltrow version

American actress Gwyneth Paltrow covered "Bette Davis Eyes" for the soundtrack for the 2000 road trip film Duets. This version was released as a single in Australia on March 26, 2001, debuting and peaking at No. 3 on the ARIA Singles Chart on April 8, 2001. It spent nine weeks in the top 10, and came in at No. 35 on Australia's year-end chart for 2001. It earned a platinum certification from the Australian Recording Industry Association for shipping more than 70,000 units.

Taylor Swift live performance

American singer Taylor Swift included a live performance cover of "Bette Davis Eyes" on her 2011 Speak Now World Tour – Live album.

Ethel Cain homage

American singer Ethel Cain performed the song at a concert in Paris as a tribute to old Hollywood in June 2024. Cain released the single "Fuck Me Eyes," which has been interpreted as a spiritual "sequel" to the original, which she called one of her favorite songs ever.