"Somethin' Stupid", or "Something Stupid", is a song written by C. Carson Parks. It was originally recorded in 1966 by Parks and his wife Gaile Foote, as Carson and Gaile. A 1967 version by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

and his daughter

Nancy Sinatra Nancy Sandra Sinatra (born June 8, 1940) is an American singer, actress, film producer and author. She is the elder daughter of Frank Sinatra and Nancy Sinatra ( Barbato) and is known for her 1965 signature hit " These Boots Are Made for Walki ...

became a major international hit, reaching number one on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and the UK Singles Chart. In 2001, a cover version by British vocalist

Robbie Williams Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, launching a solo career in 1996. His debut studio album, ''Life thru a Lens'', was re ...

and Australian actress

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an Australian and American actress and producer. Known for Nicole Kidman on screen and stage, her work in film and television productions across many genres, she has consistently ranked among the world ...

reached number one in the UK Singles Chart.

Carson and Gaile version

In the early 1960s, Carson Parks was a folk singer in Los Angeles. He was an occasional member of The Easy Riders, and also performed with The Steeltown Three, which included his younger brother

Van Dyke Parks Van Dyke Parks (born January 3, 1943) is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, arranger, record producer, singer, and former Warner Bros. Records executive whose work encompasses orchestral pop, elaborate recording experiments, Ame ...

. In 1963, he formed the Greenwood County Singers, later known as The Greenwoods, who had two minor hits and included singer Gaile Foote. Before the Greenwoods disbanded, Parks and Foote married and, as Carson and Gaile, recorded an album in 1966 for

Kapp Records Kapp Records was an independent record label started in 1954 by David Kapp, brother of Jack Kapp (who set up American Decca Records in 1934). David Kapp founded his own label after stints with Decca and RCA Victor. Kapp licensed its records to L ...

, ''San Antonio Rose'', which included the song "Something Stupid". The recording was then brought to the attention of Frank Sinatra.Rob Finnis and Tony Rounce, ''Booklet with CD "You Heard It Here First"'', Ace Records CDCHD1204, 2008

Frank and Nancy Sinatra version

The most successful and best-known version of "Somethin' Stupid" was issued in 1967 as a single by

and

and subsequently appeared on Frank's album '' The World We Knew''. Frank had played Parks's recording to his daughter's producer,

Lee Hazlewood Barton Lee Hazlewood (July 9, 1929 – August 4, 2007) was an American country and pop singer, songwriter, and record producer, most widely known for his work with guitarist Duane Eddy during the late 1950s and singer Nancy Sinatra in the 1960s ...

, who recalled, "He asked me, 'Do you like it?' and I said, 'I love it, and if you don't sing it with Nancy, I will.' He said, 'We're gonna do it, book a studio. Their rendition was recorded on February 1, 1967, after Frank had finished his

collaboration Collaboration (from Latin ''com-'' "with" + ''laborare'' "to labor", "to work") is the process of two or more people, entities or organizations working together to complete a task or achieve a goal. Collaboration is similar to cooperation. The ...

with

Antonio Carlos Jobim Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language–speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular ...

earlier in the day. Al Casey played guitar on the recording and

Hal Blaine Hal Blaine (born Harold Simon Belsky; February 5, 1929 – March 11, 2019) was an American drummer and session musician, thought to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. ...

was the drummer. Hazlewood and Jimmy Bowen were listed as the producers of the single, with the arrangement by

Billy Strange William Everett Strange (September 29, 1930 – February 22, 2012) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist, and actor. He began as a session musician with The Wrecking Crew, a famous session band of the 1960s and 1970s, and was i ...

. As performers, Nancy's full name was listed on the label first, with the billing "Nancy Sinatra and Frank Sinatra." The single spent four weeks at number 1 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and nine weeks atop the

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

(now adult contemporary) chart, becoming Frank's second gold single as certified by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

and Nancy's third. In Norway the single qualified for silver disc. It was the first and only instance of a father-daughter number-one song in America. Nancy Sinatra was quoted as sarcastically saying, "Some people call (Something Stupid) the Incest Song, which I think is, well, very sweet!". The single also reached number 1 on the UK Singles Chart the same year. It was also nominated for the

Record Of The Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...

at the 10th Grammy Awards, losing to

the 5th Dimension The 5th Dimension is an American vocal group. Their music encompasses sunshine pop, pop soul, and psychedelic soul. They were an important crossover music act of the 1960s and 1970s, although both praised and derided for their particular music ...

's upbeat hit song " Up, Up And Away".

Personnel

Vocalists

– vocals *

– vocalsAlbin, Steve. “Frank Sinatra Sessionography”. Jazz Discography. http://www.jazzdiscography.com/Artists/Sinatra/reprise.php

Leaders

* Claus Ogerman – conductor *

– arranger, conductor

Instrumentalists

– drums *

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

– guitar * Alvin Casey – guitar * Roy Caton – trumpet * Victor Feldman – percussion *

Carol Kaye Carol Kaye (née Smith; born March 24, 1935) is an American musician. She is one of the most prolific recorded bass guitarists in rock and pop music, playing on an estimated 10,000 recordings in a career spanning over 65 years. Kaye began play ...

– electric bass * Bill Miller – piano * Oliver Mitchell – trumpet * Donald Owens – piano * Ralph Peña – string bass * Orchestra includes 10 violins

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Ali Campbell and Kibibi Campbell version

In 1995, Ali Campbell and his then 7-year-old daughter Kibibi Campbell covered the hit as a duet. After its release on the studio album ''

Big Love ''Big Love'' is an American drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer that aired on HBO from 2006 to 2011. It stars Bill Paxton as the patriarch of a Mormon fundamentalism, fundamentalist Mor ...

'', it can also be found on the compilation ''Silhouette''.

Music video

The music video was shot in New York City. Ali Campbell and his daughter spend an afternoon in the city. They relax on the bench in the park, also walk through the city center, look through a sightseeing telescope, watch jugglers and fire breathers in a circus, figure skaters and stroll.

Charts

Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman version

English singer

recorded a cover version of "Somethin' Stupid" as a duet with Australian actress

. The song appeared on Williams' 2001 album, '' Swing When You're Winning'', and was released as the album's

lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...

on December 10, 2001, topping the UK Singles Chart at the end of the year. The song was Christmas number one in the United Kingdom, and Williams' fifth number one overall. The single sold 400,000 copies to earn a gold certification from the

British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...

. The accompanying music video was directed by Vaughan Arnell. The song was the 30th-best-selling single of 2001 in the UK. It also gave Williams another number-one hit in New Zealand, earning a gold certification, and charted inside the top 10 in several European countries. In Australia, it became Williams' fourth top-10 single, earning a gold certification for over 35,000 copies sold.

Track listings

UK and Australian CD single # "Somethin' Stupid" – 2:51 # "

Eternity Eternity, in common parlance, is an Infinity, infinite amount of time that never ends or the quality, condition or fact of being everlasting or eternal. Classical philosophy, however, defines eternity as what is timeless or exists outside tim ...

" (orchestral version) – 5:32 # "My Way" (live at the Albert Hall) – 7:00 # "Somethin' Stupid" (video) UK cassette single # "Somethin' Stupid" – 2:51 # "Eternity" (orchestral version) – 5:32 # "My Way" (live at the Albert Hall) – 7:00 UK DVD single # "Somethin' Stupid" (video) – 3:08 # "Let's Face the Music and Dance" (audio) – 2:36 # "That's Life" (audio) – 3:07 European CD single # "Somethin' Stupid" – 2:51 # "My Way" (live at the Albert Hall) – 7:00

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the '' Swing When You're Winning'' album booklet. Studios * Recorded at various studios * Mixed at Capitol Recording Studios (Los Angeles) and Air Lyndhurst Studios (London, England) * Mastered at The Mastering Lab (Los Angeles) and Metropolis Mastering (London, England) Personnel * C. Carson Parks – writing *

– vocals *

– vocals * Mitch Dalton – guitars * Dave Catlin-Birch – bass * Ralph Salmins – drums * Frank Ricotti – percussion * Steve Sidwell – trumpet, arrangement, conducting * Simon Gardner – trumpet * Paul Spong – trumpet * The London Session Orchestra – orchestra * Gavyn Wright –

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German language, German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (UK) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (clarinet or oboe in a concert band). After the Conducting, conductor, the concertma ...

Guy Chambers Guy Antony Chambers (born 12 January 1963) is an English songwriter, musician and record producer, best known for his work with Robbie Williams. Education Chambers attended Quarry Bank Comprehensive School sixth form in Liverpool. From 18, ...

– production *

Steve Power Steve Power (born in Liverpool) is an English record producer best known for his work with Robbie Williams. He has produced and mixed for a wide variety of artists over the years, including Blur, Busted, Andrea Bocelli, Feeder, Joe Cocker,Pe ...

– production * Al Schmitt – vocal recording * Charlie Paakkari – assistant engineering * Steve Genewick – assistant engineering * Steve Price – assistant engineering * Rupert Coulson – assistant mix engineering * Ricky Graham – assistant mix engineering * Mike Ross-Trevor – orchestral engineering * Richard Flack –

Pro Tools Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed and released by Avid Technology (formerly Digidesign) for Microsoft Windows and macOS. It is used for music creation and production, sound for picture (sound design, audio post-productio ...

Doug Sax Doug Sax (April 26, 1936 – April 2, 2015) was an American mastering engineer from Los Angeles, California. He mastered three The Doors' albums, including their 1967 debut; six Pink Floyd's albums, including '' The Wall''; Ray Charles' multiple ...

– mastering (The Mastering Lab) * Tony Cousins – mastering (Metropolis)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Usage in popular culture

In episode 21 of the third season of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

'',

Sideshow Bob Robert Underdunk "Bob" Terwilliger Jr., Doctor of Philosophy, PhD, better known as Sideshow Bob, is a recurring antagonist in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and first appeared in the episode "The ...

and

Selma Bouvier Patricia Maleficent "Patty" Bouvier and Selma Bouvier-Terwilliger-Hutz-McClure-Discotheque-Simpson ( ) are fictional characters in the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons''. They are twin sisters and are voiced by Julie Kavner, who also vo ...

(voiced by

Kelsey Grammer Allen Kelsey Grammer (born February 21, 1955) is an American actor and producer. He gained fame for his role as the psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'' (1984–1993) and its spin-off ''Frasier'' (1993–2004, and again F ...

and

Julie Kavner Julie Deborah Kavner (born September 7, 1950) is an American actress. Before becoming well known for her voice role as Marge Simpson on the animated television series ''The Simpsons'', Kavner attracted notice for her role as Brenda Morgenstern, ...

, respectively) perform the Frank and Nancy Sinatra version as a karaoke. " Something Stupid", the seventh episode of the fourth season of

Better Call Saul ''Better Call Saul'' is an American legal crime drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould for AMC. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–201 ...

, is named after the song, and opens with a

split screen Split screen may refer to: * Split screen (computing), dividing graphics into adjacent parts * Split screen (video production), the visible division of the screen * ''Split Screen'' (TV series), 1997–2001 * Split screen, a focusing screen in a ...

montage showing the separate but connected lives of Kim on the left and

Jimmy Jimmy may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Jimmy'' (2008 film), a 2008 Hindi thriller directed by Raj N. Sippy * ''Jimmy'' (1979 film), a 1979 Indian Malayalam film directed by Melattoor Ravi Varma * ''Jimmy'' (2013 f ...

on the right, scored by an original rendition performed by Lola Marsh, which correspondingly has a female voice panned to the left and a male to the right. A hummed, lyricless rendition is later also used in the opening of season five, episode nine, " Bad Choice Road", over another split screen montage, this time of Jimmy and Mike walking stranded through the desert on one side, and Kim fretting at home on the other — only to be abruptly cut off when Jimmy regains cellular signal. In the movie ''

Joy Joy is the state of being that allows one to experience feelings of intense, long-lasting happiness and contentment of life. It is closely related to, and often evoked by, well-being, success, or good fortune. Happiness, pleasure, and gratitu ...

'', in a flashback scene,

Jennifer Lawrence Jennifer Shrader Lawrence (born August 15, 1990) is an American actress and producer. She is known for starring in both action film franchises and independent dramas, and her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide. The List of high ...

's title character sings the duet with her soon-to-be husband played by

Édgar Ramírez Édgar Filiberto Ramírez Arellano (, born 25 March 1977) is a Venezuelan actor. After studying communications at the Andrés Bello Catholic University, Ramírez worked in media and considered becoming a diplomat. When filmmaker Guillermo ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1967 singles 1995 singles 2001 singles Frank Sinatra songs Nancy Sinatra songs Andy Williams songs Robbie Williams songs Nicole Kidman songs European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Italy Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Poland Number-one singles in Portugal RPM Top Singles number-one singles Number-one singles in South Africa UK singles chart number-one singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Male–female vocal duets Pop ballads 1966 songs Reprise Records singles Chrysalis Records singles Virgin Records singles Music videos directed by Vaughan Arnell Number-one singles in Scotland Christmas number-one singles in the United Kingdom Songs written by Carson Parks 1960s ballads Jazz ballads