"Detroit City" is a song written by Danny Dill and Mel Tillis, made famous by Billy Grammer (as "I Wanna Go Home"),[2] country music singer Bobby Bare and Tom Jones. Bare's version was released in 1963 and was featured on his album "Detroit City" and Other Hits by Bobby Bare. The song — sometimes known as "I Wanna Go Home" (from the opening line to the refrain) — was Bare's first Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart that summer, and became a country music standard.

"Detroit City"
Single by Bobby Bare
from the album "Detroit City" and Other Hits by Bobby Bare
B-side"Heart of Ice"
ReleasedMay 1963 (U.S.)
RecordedApril 18, 1963
Nashville, Tennessee
GenreCountrypolitan[1]
Length2:47
LabelRCA Victor
Songwriter(s)Danny Dill and Mel Tillis
Producer(s)Chet Atkins
Bobby Bare singles chronology
"Shame on Me"
(1962)
"Detroit City"
(1963)
"500 Miles Away from Home"
(1963)
"Detroit City"
Single by Tom Jones
from the album Green, Green Grass of Home
B-side"If I Had You"
ReleasedFebruary 1967
LabelDecca
Songwriter(s)Danny Dill and Mel Tillis
Producer(s)Peter Sullivan
Tom Jones singles chronology
"Green, Green Grass of Home"
(1966)
"Detroit City"
(1967)
"Funny Familiar Forgotten Feelings"
(1967)
"Detroit City"
Single by Arthur Alexander
A-side"You Don't Care"
ReleasedApril 1965
GenreSoul
Length2:40
LabelDot Records
Songwriter(s)Danny Dill and Mel Tillis
Producer(s)Noel Ball
Norman Petty
"I Wanna Go Home"
Single by Billy Grammer
B-side"The Bottom of the Glass"
Released1962
LabelDecca
Songwriter(s)Danny Dill and Mel Tillis
Billy Grammer singles chronology
"I'd Like to Know Why"
(1961)
"I Wanna Go Home"
(1962)
"I'll Leave The Porch Lights A-Burning"
(1963)

About the song

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Prior to Bobby Bare's success with "Detroit City," country singer Billy Grammer released his version of the Danny Dill-Mel Tillis penned song.[3] His version was known as "I Wanna Go Home" and peaked at #18 on the Billboard country charts in 1963.[4]

The song is the working man's complaint, and "with its melody reminiscent of the 'Sloop John B,' describes the alienation felt by many rural southerners in the mid North," wrote country music historian Bill Malone. "Here, [Bare's] earnest and plaintive interpretation lends great believability to this mournful song."[5] Bob Dylan describes the song as "...not so much the song of a dreamer, but the song of someone who is caught up in a fantasy of the way things used to be. But the listener knows that it just doesn't exist."[6] Bare's version begins in the key of E, until after the repeat of the refrain, he makes a transition to the key of B for the second verse and refrain. He makes a transition back to the key of E as the song fades out. Bare's version also features a spoken recitation following half of the second verse, before singing the refrain before the song's fade.

The song's peak in popularity during the summer of 1963 came during a time when Tillis was still experiencing most of his success as a songwriter. He had previously written hits for Webb Pierce, Brenda Lee, Stonewall Jackson, and others, but this was one of his earliest major hits as a songwriter outside of those artists.

The song won Bobby Bare a Grammy for the Best Country & Western Recording at the 6th Annual Grammy Awards in 1963.[7]

Chart performance

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Billy Grammer's "I Wanna Go Home" reached #18 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in early 1963. That summer, Bobby Bare's re-titled version peaked at #6 on the Billboard country chart (it spent total of 18 weeks on this chart) and #16 on the Billboard Hot 100.[8]

Billy Grammer

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Chart (1963) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles 18

Bobby Bare

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Chart (1963) Peak
position
Australian Kent Music Report 93
Danish Singles Chart 7
German Singles Chart 40
Norwegian Singles Chart 1
Sweden (Kvällstoppen)[9] 1
Sweden (Tio i Topp)[10] 1
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary 4
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles[11] 6
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 16

Tom Jones

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Chart (1967) Peak
position
U.K. Singles Chart 8
Austrian Top 40 14
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[12] 27
German Singles Chart 35
Canadian Singles Chart[13] 16

Dean Martin

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Chart (1970) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under-Hot 100 1
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary 36
Canadian RPM Top Singles [14] 93

Other Covers

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References

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  1. ^ Marsh, Dave (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. Plume. p. 235. ISBN 0-452-26305-0.
  2. ^ "Discography". The Grammer Guitar. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
  3. ^ "BMI repertoire search". BMI. Archived from the original on 2012-07-15. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  4. ^ Billy Grammer's "I Wanna Go Home" Chart Position Retrieved June 17, 2012.
  5. ^ Malone, Bill, "Classic Country Music: A Smithsonian Collection" ((booklet included with Classic Country Music: A Smithsonian Collection 4-disc set). Smithsonian Institution, 1990).
  6. ^ Dylan, Bob (2022). The Philosophy of Modern Song. New York. p. 5. ISBN 978-1-4516-4870-6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ^ "Bobby Bare's Grammy history". Grammy Award. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  8. ^ "Bobby Bare's Billboard chart history". billboard. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  9. ^ Hallberg, Eric (1993). Eric Hallberg presenterar Kvällstoppen i P 3: Sveriges radios topplista över veckans 20 mest sålda skivor 10. 7. 1962 - 19. 8. 1975. Drift Musik. p. 243. ISBN 9163021404.
  10. ^ Hallberg, Eric; Henningsson, Ulf (1998). Eric Hallberg, Ulf Henningsson presenterar Tio i topp med de utslagna på försök: 1961 - 74. Premium Publishing. p. 313. ISBN 919727125X.
  11. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 39.
  12. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 446.
  13. ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - April 29, 1967" (PDF).
  14. ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - November 7, 1970" (PDF).
  15. ^ a b Younger, Richard (2000). Get a shot of rhythm and blues: the Arthur Alexander story. University of Alabama Press. pp. 104–105. ISBN 9780817310233.
  16. ^ Hentoff, Nat (2009). American Music Is. Da Capo Press. p. 211. ISBN 9780786728541.
  17. ^ Unterberger, Richie; et al. (1999). Music USA: A Rough Guide. Rough Guides. p. 114. ISBN 9781858284217.
  18. ^ No Depression Issues 13-16. 1998. p. 106. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  19. ^ Jerry Lee Lewis, Country Songs for City Folks Retrieved June 17, 2012.
  20. ^ "Country Charley Pride -- "Just Between You and Me" (1967, Single)". Discogs. 1966. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  21. ^ "The Pride of Country Music: Charley Pride: Songs, Reviews, Credits". Allmusic. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  22. ^ "Official Charts Company". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  23. ^ "RPM Top 30 Soul - January 27, 1968" (PDF).
  24. ^ "www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved May 23, 2022.