Endless Sleep

1958 single by Jody Reynolds

"Endless Sleep"

Single by Jody Reynolds
B-side| "Tight Capris"
Released| March 1958
Recorded| 1957
Genre| Pop, rockabilly
Label| Demon FF-1507
Songwriter(s)| Jody Reynolds, Dolores Nance

"Endless Sleep" is a "teenage tragedy" pop song written and originally recorded by rockabilly singer Jody Reynolds in 1957.

## Background

[edit]

Reynolds wrote the song in 1956, after listening to Elvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel", and first performed it soon afterwards at a performance in Yuma, Arizona.[1] The song told the story of a teenager whose girlfriend had gone missing after a row:

> The night was black, rain fallin' down
> Looked for my baby, she's nowhere around
> Traced her footsteps down to the shore
> Afraid she's gone for ever more

Although record companies initially rejected the song as too depressing, Reynolds eventually had a demo accepted by Demon Records in Los Angeles, who agreed that Reynolds record it provided that he changed the song's ending so that the protagonist saved the girl from drowning.:[2]

> I looked at the sea and it seemed to say
> “You took your baby from me away"
> My heart cried out “She's mine to keep"
> I saved my baby from an endless sleep.

The song was recorded with echo-drenched vocals, and with Al Casey and Howard Roberts on guitars.[2] The record label credited the songwriting to Reynolds and the fictitious "Dolores Nance", in order to make it appear to have been written by a 'professional' songwriting team.[1]

## Chart performance

[edit]

Reynolds' recording reached the number 5 position on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart on July 7, 1958, sold over one million copies, and inspired a trend of "teen tragedy" songs.[2] The song was reissued in 1979 reaching number 66 on the UK singles chart.[3] Reynolds' recording also went to number 5 on the Most Played R&B By Jockeys chart.[4] A re-recorded version by Reynolds appears the 1984 Rhino compilation LP Teenage Tragedies.

## Other versions

[edit]

* British act Marty Wilde and His Wildcats covered the song in 1958 and reached #4 on the UK singles chart, becoming their first chart hit.[5]
* Hank Williams, Jr. covered the song in 1964, an early-career release that was his third charting single.[2] It peaked at #46 on the Country chart[6] and #90 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[7]
* Marc Bolan performed a glam version on his short-lived eponymous show Marc in 1977[8] and recorded it as a b-side to ″Sing Me A Song″ in 1981.[9]
* American country music duo The Judds recorded a cover in 1984, which was released on their first album, Why Not Me in 1984. It was not released as a single.
* In 1990, English punk/rocker Billy Idol recorded a cover that was true to Reynolds's rockabilly original. It was released on his Platinum record, Charmed Life.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Jody Reynolds". Rockabillyhall.com. Archived from the original on 2009-03-08. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
2. ^ a b c d "Rockabilly". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
3. ^ Betts, Graham (2004). Complete UK Hit Singles 1952-2004 (1st ed.). London: Collins. p. 545\. ISBN 0-00-717931-6.
4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 490.
5. ^ Betts, Graham (2004). Complete UK Hit Singles 1952-2004 (1st ed.). London: Collins. p. 847\. ISBN 0-00-717931-6.
6. ^ Betts, Stephen L. "Flashback: See Hank Williams Jr.'s Chilling 'Endless Sleep' From 1964". Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
7. ^ "Billboard Hot 100 - Week of December 19, 1964". Billboard. Billboard. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
8. ^ "Marc Bolan Endless Sleep Live 1977". YouTube. YouTube. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
9. ^ "Endless Sleep by Marc Bolan (Cover)". Second Hand Songs. secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 21 April 2025.

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* The Shakin' Stevens EP

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* "Treat Her Right"
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