The song, “Somethin’ Stupid”, was originally recorded by Carson Parks and Gaile Foote in 1966
“And then I went and spoilt it all by saying somethin’ stupid like I love you” was written by Clarence Carson Parks (1936-2005) in 1963, originally for his band The Easy Riders, but was eventually recorded by himself and fellow band mate, Gaile Foote (1943-2018) in 1966. The song was not released commercially but did attract some attention…
…from Ol’ Blue Eyes himself, Mr. Frank Sinatra. It was after he sang the song on his TV show that producers Jimmy Bowen (b.1937) and Lee Hazlewood (1929-2007), suggested he record it and not only that, but with his own daughter Nancy, who had just topped the charts with “These Boots Are Made For Walking”. Their version became the first to chart, topping the US singles chart for four weeks and claiming the top spot in Australia, Canada and the UK.
UB40 singer Ali Campbell and his daughter Kibibi recorded a version in 1995 and took it to No.30 in the UK, but the next and other significant version of “Somethin’ Stupid” came from former Take That star Robbie Williams, who recorded his version for the album, “Swing When You’re Winning”, in 2001. Not only that, he ropped in Australian actress Nicole Kidman to join him and, voila, the UK’s Christmas number one of 2001!
But whose version is the best? PARKS/FOOTE’s original, SINATRA x2’s hit or WILLIAMS/KIDMAN’s Christmas number one?
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