"Mamy Blue" is a 1970 song by French songwriter

Hubert Giraud Hubert Yves Adrian Giraud (3 March 1920 – 16 January 2016) was a French composer and lyricist. Career Giraud began his career playing the harmonica with Django Reinhardt's jazz group, the Quintette du Hot Club de France. In 1941, he was recr ...

. Originally written with French lyrics, the song was rendered in English in 1971 to become an international hit for the

Pop-Tops Pop Tops (or Los Pop-Tops) were a vocal/instrumental band, formed in 1967 in Madrid, Spain, with Phil Trim from Trinidad and Tobago as lead singer. Their sound was a blend of baroque pop with the soulful vocals of Trim. Members Original set- ...

, Joël Daydé ( fr) and

Roger Whittaker Roger Henry Brough Whittaker (born 22 March 1936) is a British singer-songwriter and musician, who was born in Nairobi to English parents. His music is an eclectic mix of folk music and popular songs in addition to radio airplay hits. He is bes ...

. A hit in Italy with Italian lyrics for

Dalida Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti (; 17 January 1933 – 3 May 1987), professionally known as Dalida, was an Italian-French singer and actress born in Egypt. She sang in eleven languages and sold millions of records internationally. Her best known son ...

and in France in its original French for

Nicoletta Nicoletta is a surname and feminine given name derived from the Greek ''Nikolaos'', most often used in Italy, Sweden, Denmark and Norway. Nicoletta is also a surname. Given name * Nicoletta (singer), full name Nicoletta Grisoni, French singer, ...

, "Mamy Blue" was also rendered in a number of other languages in

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s recorded by a good number of local recording artists across continental Europe, while a "local cover" of the English-language version by Charisma reached #1 in South Africa. The song's title is generally spelled "Mammy Blue" in the English-speaking world.

Composition/ first recordings

The song was originally written with French lyrics in 1970 by veteran French songwriter

; he conceived the song in his car waiting out a Parisian traffic jam and had completed its

demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film *Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...

within a few days. After four months the first recorded version of "Mamy Blue" was made - with Italian lyrics - by

Ivana Spagna Ivana Spagna (born 16 December 1954), also known simply as Spagna (), is an Italian singer and songwriter. She is best known for her worldwide hit song " Call Me" released in 1987. Career Spagna started her career singing in English and in the ...

marking that singer's recording debut. In May 1971, Alain Milhaud, a Swiss record producer based in Spain, acquired the song for

, a Spanish group he managed. Milhaud produced the Pop-Tops' recording of "Mamy Blue" in a session in London after the group's frontman Phil Trim wrote English lyrics for the song. The French Barclay label expediently had the song covered by both Joël Daydé and

: the Daydé version - featuring Phil Trim's English lyric - was recorded at Olympic Sound Studio in London and the Decca Studio in Paris with

Wally Stott Angela Morley (10 March 192414 January 2009) was an English composer and conductor who became a familiar household name to BBC Radio listeners in the 1950s. She attributed her entry into composing and arranging largely to the influence and en ...

as arranger, while Nicoletta's version was produced by Hubert Giraud and was the first recording of the song with Giraud's French lyrics.

Charting versions

Continental Europe

The

and Joël Daydé both reached #1 on the French charts with "Mamy Blue" while the

version rose as high as #4, affording the singer her career record. Both the Pop-Tops and Daydé versions became concurrent major hits in several other territories including Belgium where the Pop-Tops and Dayde's versions reached #1 on respectively the Dutch and French chart with Pop-Tops reaching #3 on the latter, the Netherlands where Pop-Tops reached #3 and Daydé #13, Norway where Pop-Tops reached #1 and Daydé #3 and Sweden where Pop-Tops reached #1 and Daydé #6. In Spain Daydé's English version of "Mamy Blue" reached #2 while the Pop-Tops reached #1 with a specially recorded version of the song in Spanish. In the same year, Watchpocket recorded the song in USA. In Germany the Pop-Tops spent ten weeks at #1 while the Daydé version only charted peripherally at #40: a German rendering recorded by Ricky Shayne would afford Shayne his best ever German chart showing with a #7 peak. The Pop-Tops also rendered "Mamy Blue" in Italian with a resultant #1 in Italy where a local cover by

would chart with a #19 peak: another Italian cover by

Johnny Dorelli Johnny Dorelli (real name Giorgio Guidi; born 20 February 1937) is an Italian actor, singer and television host. Early life Dorelli was born in Meda, Italy. In 1946 he moved to New York City with his family, where his father, Nino D'Aurelio ...

failed to chart as did the English version by Ricky Shayne in its Italian release. Ricky Shayne's English version did appear in the French Top Ten (peak: #8) with the Daydé, Nicoletta and Pop-Tops versions: Shayne's English-language version also charted in Belgium's French Region (Top Ten). The Pop-Tops English version also reached #1 in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland, and was a hit in Greece with sales of 50,000 units; in Denmark and Finland the song also reached the Top Ten via an English-language cover by

- #4 in Finland - while in both territories local translated covers of the song also charted - in Denmark, Eric Aae's version reached #5; in Finland, the cover by

Kirka Kirill "Kirka" Babitzin (22 September 1950 – 31 January 2007) was one of the most commercially successful Finnish musicians. His career spanned from the late 1960s until his death in 2007. Previously associated with Ilkka Lipsanen's The Islan ...

reached #2 beneath the Pop Tops' #1 ranking.

Asia

"Mamy Blue" afforded the

a hit in both Israel and Japan with chart peaks of respectively #1 and #2. In addition the Ricky Shayne version was a hit in Japan with sales there of 500,000 units.

Latin America

"Mammy Blue" topped the Argentine hit parade with a tandem #1 ranking for five versions, being those by

James Darren James William Ercolani (born June 8, 1936) known by his stage name James Darren, is an American television and film actor, television director, and singer. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had notable starring and supporting roles in fi ...

, Ricky Shayne,

plus a cover by the American male/ female vocal quartet Punch and a local cover by Apocalyptis. The Ricky Shayne version was a #1 hit in Brazil, while the cover by the Bob Crewe Generation was the first version to chart in Uruguay. In Mexico both the Joël Daydé and

versions ranked in the Top Ten.

English-speaking territories

1971–72

The Joël Daydé version of "Mamy Blue" reached #3 in Australia, the only evident territory where Daydé did not have to vie with the

, although the cover by

(as "Mamy Blue") and another by

(as "Mammy Blue") did well enough regionally to register on Australia's national chart with respective peaks of #53 and #47. In South Africa "Mammy Blue" was recorded by the session group Charisma featuring vocalists Paddy Powell and Stevie Vann: produced by Graeme Beggs, this version spent twelve weeks at #1, making it the second longest running South African #1 hit, and the longest running #1 hit by a local artist. In the UK the Pop Tops vied with the

cover with neither version reaching the Top 30, the respective chart peaks being #35 and #31. In the US the Pop Tops was the sole version to reach the '' Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at #57, while the Easy Listening chart in ''Billboard'' afforded the Pop-Tops' "Mammy Blue" a #28 peak. However the James Darren cover of "Mammy Blue" - which "bubbled under the Hot 100" in ''Billboard'' with a #107 peak - charted on the singles charts in both ''Record World'' and ''Cashbox'' with respective peaks of #66 and #77. Also ''Record World'' afforded the Pop Tops' "Mammy Blue" a higher ranking than that of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the single's ''Record World'' peak being #44, although its ''Cashbox'' chart peak was only #68. ''Record World'' also featured a cover by the Bob Crewe Generation, which peaked there at #109. In Canada the Pop-Tops vied with a "Mammy Blue" cover by session group Oak Island Treasury Department - these versions respectively peaking at #42 and #68 - while a cover by Roger Whittaker in the original French was a hit on Canada's French charts, reaching #2.

The Stories version (1973)

The Stories recorded "Mammy Blue" in 1973 as the followup to their #1 hit " Brother Louie". According to group frontman Ian Lloyd, "The record company was desperate to follow up '...Louie' with similarly-styled tune. 'Mammy...' fit the bill." Faring well enough regionally - notably ranking in the Top Ten in Chicago - to reach a Hot 100 peak of #50, the Stories' version of "Mammy Blue" was afforded significantly higher peak positions on the singles charts compiled by both '' Record World'' (#38)''Record World'' Vol 29 #1382 (15 December 1973) p.23 and '' Cashbox'' (#21). The Stories also charted with "Mammy Blue" in both Canada and Australia with respective chart peaks of #47 and #46.

Other covers

The English version of "Mammy Blue" has also been recorded by Horace Andy,

Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer, songwriter and former professional footballer. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful Spanish singer in the world and one of the top record ...

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, Pascalis Arvanitidis the

Les Humphries Singers The Les Humphries Singers was a 1970s pop group formed in Hamburg, Germany in 1969 by the English-born Les Humphries. The group had several chart hits in Germany and in other European countries. The Les Humphries Singers dissolved at the end ...

, Cherry Laine,

Vicky Leandros Vasiliki Papathanasiou ( el, Βασιλική Παπαθανασίου; born 23 August 1949), generally known as Vicky Leandros ( el, Βίκυ Λέανδρος, links=no), is a Greek singer living in Germany. She is the daughter of singer, music ...

, Eivind Løberg ( no), Muslim Magomayev,

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Demis Roussos Artemios "Demis" Ventouris-Roussos ( ; el, Αρτέμιος "Ντέμης" Βεντούρης-Ρούσσος, ; 15 June 1946 – 25 January 2015) was a Greek singer, songwriter and musician. As a band member he is best remembered for his work in ...

, Laima Vaikule;

, and

Nancy Sit Nancy Sit Ka-yin ( zh, 薛家燕; born 30 March 1950) is a Hong Kong actress on the TVB network. Her acting career dated back to the 1960s, when she was a popular teen idol alongside Connie Chan Po-chu, and Josephine Siao. Sit recorded many ...

, besides introducing the song in its original French, also recorded the English version.

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

and

Lara Fabian Lara Sophie Katy Crokaert (born January 9, 1970), better known as Lara Fabian, is a Belgian-Canadian pop singer and songwriter. She has sold over 20 million records worldwide as of 2021Broadway World (2017)"Lara Fabian annule finalement sa tourn ...

have both made recordings of the original French version of "Mamy Blue", which was remade in 2004 by Neje to reach #75 on the French charts.

Jacques Desrosiers Jacques Desrosiers (July 8, 1938 – June 11, 1996) was a Québécois Canadian singer and actor. Desrosiers was best known for playing the clown Patof in the Canadian television series ''Patofville''. He was born in Montreal, Quebec. Early car ...

(

Patof ''Patof'' is a character in the highly successful Canadian children's television series ''Patofville''. He was portrayed by actor-comedian Jacques Desrosiers. Television, performances, and comics In January 1972, the clown Patof made his appea ...

) made a cover in French with different lyrics, as "Patof Blue". The Spanish version has also been recorded by

José Mercé José Mercé (born José Soto Soto in 1955 in Jerez de la Frontera) is a Spanish flamenco singer. As a 12-year-old he performed at flamenco festivals. Later he moved to Madrid where he recorded his first album in 1968. Family He is the great- ...

Daniel Diges Daniel Diges García (; born 17 January 1981) is a Spanish singer, pianist, composer and actor. Although born in Madrid proper, he has spent all his youth in the neighbouring city of Alcalá de Henares. Life and career Diges began his acting car ...

and

Twiggy Dame Lesley Lawson (''née'' Hornby; born 19 September 1949) is an English model, actress, and singer, widely known by the nickname Twiggy. She was a British cultural icon and a prominent teenaged model during the swinging '60s in London. ...

( es) while

Roberto Blanco Roberto Blanco (legal name: Roberto Zerquera Blanco), was born 7 June 1937 in Tunis, Tunisia. Of Afro-Cuban origin, Blanco is a German Schlager singer, actor, and entertainer. Early life Blanco is the son of Cuban folklorist and artist Alfonso ...

( de),

Frank Farian Frank Farian (born Franz Reuther; 18 July 1941) is a German record producer, musician, singer and songwriter, who founded the 1970s disco-pop group Boney M., the Latin pop band No Mercy and the pop band Milli Vanilli. He frequently created voc ...

and Bata Ilic ( de) have each made recordings of the German version. The Finnish version of "Mamy Blue" was also recorded by

Fredi Fredi may refer to: * Fredi (Valencian pilota) (born 1957), retired Valencian pilota professional player * Fredi Bobic (born 1971), German football striker * Fredi González (born 1964), Cuban current manager of the Atlanta Braves * Fredi Walker, ...

in 1972 and by

in 1974 Translated renderings of "Mamy Blue" have also been recorded by Anda Călugăreanu ( ro) (as "O, Mamă, Tu") Romanian, Crazy Boys (as "Dla mamy blues") ( pl) Polish, Laércio de Freitas ( pt) Portuguese,

Kjerstin Dellert Kjerstin Dellert (4 November 1925 – 5 March 2018) was a Swedish opera singer and theater manager. Life Early life Born in Stockholm, Dellert made her opera debut at Stora teatern (the old Gothenburg Opera stage) in Gothenburg in the 1950s. ...

Swedish,

Yehoram Gaon Yehoram Gaon ( he, יהורם גאון, born December 28, 1939) is an Israeli singer, actor, director, comedian, producer, TV and radio host, and public figure. He has also written and edited books on Israeli culture. The son of Sephardic Jewish ...

Hebrew,

Karel Gott ) Sinatra of the East( cs, Sinatra Východu, link=no)Divine CharlieCzech, Mjöll Holm Icelandic,

Kati Kovács Kati Kovács (born Katalin Anna Sarolta Kovács 25 October 1944), is a Ferenc Liszt and Kossuth Award-winning Hungarian pop-rock singer, performer, lyricist and actress. She is one of the most famous singers of Hungary with dozens of recorde ...

Hungarian, Marcela Laiferová ( sk) (as "Mami-Blue") Slovak, Anne-Karine Strøm Norwegian, Miro Ungar ( hr) Croatian, Vivi Flemish, Lilya Vavrin Ukrainian and

Emil Dimitrov Emil Dimitrov ( bg, Емил Димитров) (December 23, 1940 in Pleven – March 30, 2005 in Sofia) was a Bulgarian singer, musician and composer. He was popular for his songs ''"Ако си дал" ('If you have given')'', ''"Моя ст� ...

Bulgarian. French singer Ricky Shayne recorded both English and German versions of "Mamy Blue", which ranked #7 in the German Top Ten for 20 weeks in 1971. German guitarist

Ricky King Ricky may refer to: Places *Říčky (Brno-Country District), a village and municipality in the Czech Republic *Říčky v Orlických horách, a village in the north of the Czech Republic *Rickmansworth, a town in England sometimes called "Ricky" ...

recorded an instrumental version.

Sampling

The 2011 rap song "Mamy" by Joeystarr sampled the Nicoletta version of "Mamy Blue" as its backing track. The song appeared on the rapper's album ''Egomaniac''.

Charts

Pop-Tops version

Charisma Version

Dalida version

References

* ''Billboard'' magazine: Hits of the World

External links

*
Mamy Blue charts worldwide
{{Authority control 1971 singles Pop standards Number-one singles in France Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Germany Number-one singles in Austria Songs written by Hubert Giraud Roger Whittaker songs Kama Sutra Records singles