Delta Dawn
"Delta Dawn" is a song written by former child rockabilly star Larry Collins and songwriter Alex Harvey, best known as a 1972 top ten country hit for Tanya Tucker and a number one hit for Helen Reddy in 1973.
Content
The title character is a faded former Southern belle from Brownsville, Tennessee who, at forty-one, is obsessed to unreason with the long-ago memory of a suitor who her. The lyrics describe how the woman regularly "walks downtown with a suitcase in her hand / looking for a mysterious dark haired man" who she says will be taking her "to his mansion in the sky".Reddy's recording in particular includes choir-like inspirational overtones.
Recording history
The first recording of "Delta Dawn" was made by Harvey for his eponymous album released in November 1971. Harvey had performed as the opening act for Helen Reddy at the Troubadour, in January 1972, but at that time Reddy made no connection with any of Harvey's compositions.Dianne Davidson sang backup for Harvey's recording. She was the first singer after Harvey to record the song and chart in 1971–1972.
Tracy Nelson also sang backup on Harvey's recording, and performed "Delta Dawn" in her live act.
Bette Midler
After hearing Tracy Nelson sing "Delta Dawn" at the Bottom Line in New York City, Bette Midler added the song to her repertoire.During the time Tanya Tucker’s and Helen Reddy’s recordings of the song were being produced, Bette Midler recorded "Delta Dawn" for her The Divine Miss M debut album, for which her bluesy version was planned as the lead single. Reddy's single was released June 1973, two days before Midler's. The preemption required a marketing change for Midler, so the original B-side "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" was shopped to radio, itself becoming a Top Ten hit.
Tanya Tucker
Before Bette Midler’s recording, Nashville-based producer Billy Sherrill heard her sing "Delta Dawn" on The Tonight Show and wanted to sign Midler to Epic Records and have her record it. Upon finding that Midler was already signed to Atlantic Records, Sherrill cut the song with Tanya Tucker, who was newly signed to Epic, and Tucker's version was released in April 1972; it reached #6 in C&W that spring.Helen Reddy
Record producer Tom Catalano created an instrumental track of "Delta Dawn". Catalano first offered the vocal track to Barbra Streisand, but she refused; after this he gave the vocal to Reddy.Reddy's version, with upward modulation added to the mimicking of Tucker's cold intro and nonstop vocals throughout, entered the Top Ten on 18 August 1973, on its way to its lone week at #1, on 15 September 1973. "Delta Dawn" was the first of Reddy's six consecutive — and eight overall — #1 hits on the Billboard Easy Listening chart.
Reddy had reached #2 with both "I Don't Know How to Love Him" and "I Am Woman" in her native Australia; "Delta Dawn" became her first #1 hit there, spending five weeks at the top of the Kent Music Report in August and September 1973. "Delta Dawn" also marked Reddy's only chart appearance in South Africa, reaching #13 in the autumn of 1973.
Other recordings
- Waylon Jennings on his 1972 album, Ladies Love Outlaws
- Loretta Lynn on her 1972 album, Here I Am Again
- Other 1972 covers included those by Kitty Wells, Jody Miller, Bob Luman, and Nat Stuckey.
- The Statler Brothers on their 1973 Mercury album, The Statler Brothers Sing Country Symphonies in E Major
- Other 1973 covers included those by Sonny James, Dottie West, Teresa Brewer, and Ray Conniff.
- Scott Walker in 1974
- Me First and the Gimme Gimmes on their album, Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah
- Debbie Rule on her 2015 album, Texas Girls
- Hellbound Glory on their 2017 album, Pinball, although the location in the song was changed to the Sacramento River Delta.
Chart performance
Weekly charts
Tanya Tucker version
Helen Reddy version
| Chart | Peak position |
| Australia | 1 |
| Canada RPM Top Singles | 1 |
| Canada RPM Adult Contemporary | 1 |
| New Zealand | 20 |
| South Africa | 13 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| US Billboard Easy Listening | 1 |
| US Cash Box Top 100 | 1 |
Year-end charts
All-time charts
Use in popular media
- On Friends, Monica Geller sang it at a piano bar where Mike Hannigan worked.
- Stone Cold Steve Austin gave the first verse his take on an episode of WWE Raw – notable for his failure to hit the high notes.
- Sonny and Cher performed it on their The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour on CBS.
- Appeared in the movie Big Fan, starring Patton Oswalt.