Jackie DeShannon ~ August 21, 1944: Song Lyric Sunday

Written for Song Lyric Sunday –
“The First Emperor”

This week at Jim Adams’ Song Lyric Sunday, the theme is “The First Emperor” and our challenge is to write about a song written or performed by someone born in August. Let’s take a look at what’s featured this week.

As one of the top composers of the 1960s, Jackie DeShannon provided hits for many other artists. The evolution of her music from a blend of gospel, country, and blues into pop made her songs enduring classics long after her heyday as a performer. With a career spanning four decades, more than two dozen albums, several film soundtracks and many songs made famous by other artists, DeShannon is best known for composing and singing “What the World Needs Now Is Love” (1965), “Put a Little Love in Your Heart” (1969), and for composing the Grammy-winning “Bette Davis Eyes” (1981).

Born Sharon Myers on August 21, 1944, in Hazel, Kentucky, Jackie DeShannon was raised in the Bible Belt. Music was an important part of her upbringing; her parents were both amateur musicians, and her grandmother played English folk tunes on guitar. At age six Jackie sang hymns on the local radio station. DeShannon moved to California in 1960 after a record company showed interest in her homemade demo tape; while in California, she joined a group called the Nighthawks, which eventually evolved into the Crusaders.

DeShannon composed four hit songs for vocalist Brenda Lee and recorded with backup talent including Ry Cooder, Leon Russell, and Glen Campbell while she was still a teenager. She wrote two hits recorded by The Searchers in 1964: “Needles and Pins” and “When You Walk into the Room” …. a collaboration with composer Jack Nitzsche. While in London, she wrote songs with Jimmy Page which were recorded by Marianne Faithfull. Other British artists who recorded her songs included Helen Shapiro, the Byrds, and the Critters. DeShannon scored a hit with her recording of Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” but her career really took off with the 1965 Burt Bacharach–Hal David smash “What the World Needs Now Is Love” …. a song with an impactful message that will always be relevant.

Throughout the 1970s, DeShannon continued to release albums, though her record sales were sluggish. She sang background vocals for Van Morrison; he, in turn, later produced some of her sessions. Her songs were performed by many famous female artists, including Rita Coolidge and Anne Murray. Her music continues to be recorded by established and new artists alike.

Inspired by the classic 1942 Bette Davis film Now, Voyager, “Bette Davis Eyes” became a massive global hit in March 1981 when Kim Carnes recorded a raspy, synth-driven pop-rock version that spent nine weeks at #1 and won two Grammy Awards. The lyrics describe a cunning, untamable femme fatale who uses her intense charm, physical beauty, and sharp wit to manipulate and dominate the men around her. Rather than being a biography of the actress Bette Davis, the song treats her name as a metaphor for a piercing, hypnotic gaze that can see right through someone. Bette Davis was 73 years old when the song became a hit. She publicly embraced the track, writing thank-you letters to Carnes, DeShannon, and Weiss for making her a part of modern pop culture.

This is “Bette Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes

LYRICS

Her hair is Harlow gold
Her lips a sweet surprise
Her hands are never cold
She’s got Bette Davis eyes
She’ll turn her music on you
You won’t have to think twice
She’s pure as New York snow
She got Bette Davis eyes

And she’ll tease you, she’ll unease you
All the better just to please you
She’s precocious, and she knows just what it
Takes to make a pro blush
She got Greta Garbo’s standoff sighs, she’s got Bette Davis eyes

She’ll let you take her home
It whets her appetite
She’ll lay you on a throne
She got Bette Davis eyes
She’ll take a tumble on you
Roll you like you were dice
Until you come out blue
She’s got Bette Davis eyes

She’ll expose you, when she snows you
Offer feed with the crumbs she throws you
She’s ferocious and she knows just what it
Takes to make a pro blush
All the boys think she’s a spy, she’s got Bette Davis eyes

She’ll tease you, she’ll unease you
All the better just to please you
She’s precocious, and she knows just what it
Takes to make a pro blush
All the boys think she’s a spy, she’s got Bette Davis eyes

She’ll tease you
She’ll unease you
Just to please you
She’s got Bette Davis eyes
She’ll expose you
When she snows you
‘Cause she knows you, she’s got Bette Davis Eyes
She’ll tease you

^{Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Jackie DeShannon/Donna Weiss
Bette Davis Eyes lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Karen Schauben Publishing Administration, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC}

Released in January 1964, The Searchers’ cover of “Needles and Pins” shot to #1 on the UK Singles Chart and became a defining track of the British Invasion. Jackie DeShannon released the original version, which was a modest hit; when The Searchers (from Liverpool) heard British singer Cliff Bennett perform it live in Hamburg, Germany, they rushed to record their own upbeat, folk-rock take. “Needles and Pins” peaked at #13 on the US Billboard Hot 100, helping lead the charge of 1960s bands crossing the Atlantic. The song tells the story of a man trying to hide his deep heartbreak and jealousy after seeing his ex-partner with someone else. He feels the sharp, stinging emotional sensation of “needles and pins” caused by his lingering love and the physical pain he feels whenever he sees her so happy to be with another man.

This is “Needles and Pins” by The Searchers

LYRICS

I saw her today, I saw her face
It was a face I loved, and I knew
I had to run away
And get down on my knees and pray
That they’d go away

But still they begin
Those needles and pins
Because of all my pride
The tears I gotta hide

Hey, I thought I was smart, I won her heart
I didn’t think I do, but now I see
She’s worse to him than me
Let her go ahead, take his love instead
One day she will see

Just how to say please
And get down on her knees
Yeah, that’s how it begins
She’ll feel those needles and pins
Hurtin’ her, hurtin’ her

Why can’t I stop and tell myself I’m wrong
I’m wrong, so wrong?
Why can’t I stand up
And tell myself I’m strong? Whoo!

Because I saw her today, I saw her face
It was a face I loved, and I knew
I had to run away
And get down on my knees and pray

But still they begin
Those needles and pins
Because of all my pride
The tears I gotta hide

Needles and pins
Needles and pins
Needles and pins
Those needles and pins

Why can’t I stop and tell myself I’m wrong
I’m wrong, so wrong?
Why can’t I stand up
And tell myself I’m strong?

Oh, let it begins
Won’t you hear what I say?
Somebody’s takin’ her away
Stop those needles, stop those pins
Needles and pins
You know that where they begins
Needles and pins

Needles and pins
Needles and pins
Needles and pins

^{Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Jackie de Shannon/Jack Nitzsche
Needles and Pins lyrics © Emi Unart Catalog Inc., Chris Marc Music}

Crafted by the team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, “What the World Needs Now Is Love” was initially offered to Dionne Warwick, who passed on it. Jackie DeShannon recorded the iconic 1965 track and had a huge hit with it, peaking at number #7 on the US Hot 100 and #1 in Canada. “What the World Needs Now Is Love” is a universal anthem about peace and shared humanity. The lyrics deliver a direct, simple message: love is the only thing missing from the world, and it is needed urgently. The song is structured as a conversational prayer addressed directly to “Lord.” The singer explicitly states that the world does not need more physical or material things …. the only necessity is love. “What the World Needs Now Is Love” has received prestigious recognition and numerous awards, and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

This is “What the World Needs Now Is Love” by Jackie DeShannon

LYRICS

What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
No, not just for some, but for everyone

Look, we don’t need another mountain
There are oceans and rivers
Enough to cross, enough to last
Until the end of time

What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
No, not just for some, but for everyone

Lord we don’t need another meadow
There are corn fields and wheat fields enough to grow
There are sun beams and moon beams enough to shine
This I know, if you want to know

What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
What the world needs right about now
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love

What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
No, not just for some, just for everyone

It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of
What the world needs now
Is love, sweet love
No, not just for some, but for everyone

^{Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Burt Bacharach/Hal David
What the World Needs Now lyrics © BMG Rights Management, CONSALAD CO., Ltd, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Third Side Music Inc.}

The First Emperor

Big thanks to Jim Adams for hosting another great Song Lyric Sunday this week and every week. Be sure to follow his link and check out his site.

Thanks for stopping by and listening to some great music. I hope you enjoyed the theme for this week as well as the information and music I featured.

That’s all she wrote, kids. See you on the flip side. 😎

NAR©2026

^{Everything on The Elephant’s Trunk was created by me, unless otherwise indicated. Thank you for your consideration. NAR©2017-present.}