Ann-Margret started recording for RCA in 1961, but her recording career was not as successful as her concurrent movie career. She had a sexy, throaty singing voice comparable to Eartha Kitt or Nancy Sinatra, and RCA attempted to capitalize on her "Female Elvis" comparison by her recording a version of Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel" and other songs stylistically similar to Presley. She scored one minor hit, "I Just Don't Understand" (which entered the Billboard Top 40 in the third week of August 1961 and stayed 6 weeks, peaking at #17.) Her only charting album is The Beauty and the Beard (1964), on which she was accompanied by trumpeter Al Hirt. The contract with RCA ended in 1966.
Years later, she returned to music at the end of Disco era. Her 1980 album, "Ann-Margret" became a success with both singles, "Midnight Message" and "Love Rush" reaching the Top 10 of the Hot Dance Club Songs chart. In the early 1980s, the album was followed up with the single, "Everybody Needs Somebody Sometimes" and the B-Side "Hold Me/Squeeze Me." Ann Margret has continued to record music sporatically since then.
[edit]Film career
In 1961 she also made her film début for in Pocketful of Miracles, starring Bette Davis, Glenn Ford, and Hope Lange, a remake of the Oscar-winning 1933 film Lady for a Day; both versions were directed by the great Frank Capra. She followed that role with the successful remake of Rodgers' and Hammerstein's musical State Fair in 1962. Her next starring role, as the all-American teenager in Bye Bye Birdie, made her a major star. When she filmed Viva Las Vegas with Elvis Presley the two began an affair that received considerable attention from the gossip columnists in various media. The reports led to a showdown with a very worried Priscilla Beaulieu, which she recounts in her 1985 book, Elvis and Me, including Ann-Margret's attempt to "cut her off at the pass" with a press announcement that Ann-Margret and Elvis were engaged to be married. Although he ended the affair, Presley remained a friend and continued to send her flowers at the opening of each of her stage appearances until he died. Of all the Hollywood starlets he had worked with or had a relationship with, Ann-Margret was the only one to attend his funeral.
In 1963, Ann-Margret was featured and guest-starred, in animated form, in an episode of Hanna-Barbera's The Flintstones as "Ann-Margrock." Decades later, she recorded the theme song to the live-action film The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas in character as Ann-Margrock. The song she recorded was a modified version of the "Viva Las Vegas" theme.\
In March 1966, Ann-Margret and entertainers Chuck Day and Mickey Jones teamed up for a USO tour to entertain U.S. servicemen in remote parts of Vietnam and other parts of Southeast Asia. She still has great affection for the veterans and refers to them as "my gentlemen". [1] Ann-Margret, Day and Jones reunited for an encore of this tour for veterans and troops at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada in November 2005. [2]
In 1971, she starred in Mike Nichols's Carnal Knowledge, marking a change from her sex-kitten musical roles, garnering a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. The following year, while performing at Lake Tahoe, Nevada, she fell 22 feet from the stage and suffered injuries that put her out of commission for several months. Throughout the 1970s, Ann-Margret balanced her live performances with a string of critically acclaimed dramatic film performances that played against her glamorous image, including Tommy in 1975, for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. In addition, she has been nominated for ten Golden Globe Awards, winning five times including Best Actress for Tommy. She also did a string of successful TV specials, starting with The Ann-Margret Show for NBC in 1968. Now in her mid-60s, she continues to act in movies.
In 1994, she published an autobiography titled Ann Margret: My Story (ISBN 0-399-13891-9). She has been married to actor Roger Smith since 1967. Smith suffers from myasthenia gravis, and Ann-Margret has devoted much of her life to caring for him.
In 2001 Ann-Margret made her first appearance in a stage musical, playing the character of Mona Stangley in a new touring production of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.
She has also filmed the movie "Mem-o-re", where she stars with Billy Zane and Dennis Hopper.
I Just Don't Understand
Ann-Margret Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When you're holdin' my hand
Mm, how you can hurt me
I just don't understand
Well you say that you need me
Like the ocean needs sand
But the way you mistreat me
Well you know that I love you
More than anyone can
But a one-sided love
I just don't understand (don't understand)
Well you know that I love you
More than anyone can
But a one-sided love
I just don't understand (don't understand)
Well you call me your baby
And you hold my hand
Ah, honey, you hurt me
And I just don't understand (don't understand)
In Ann-Margret's song, "I Just Don't Understand," she talks about the confusing and contradictory nature of her relationship with her lover. The song starts with her lover calling her "baby" and holding her hand, but she also experiences pain and hurt from them. She doesn't understand this dichotomy, and it seems as though her lover's treatment of her is not in line with the things they say they want and need from her. Despite loving them deeply, she cannot comprehend why they would mistreat her like this, as it doesn't align with the actions of someone who genuinely loves and cares for another person.
The lyrics reflect the complexity and confusion that often come with interpersonal relationships. While we may feel love for someone, it's not always easy to understand or articulate why we put up with less-than-ideal treatment. Ann-Margret's song captures this sentiment and shows how it can be difficult to reconcile our feelings with someone's actions or lack thereof.
Line by Line Meaning
Well you call me your baby
You address me as your loved one
When you're holdin' my hand
Whenever our hands are intertwined
Mm, how you can hurt me
The way you cause me pain
I just don't understand
I cannot comprehend
Well you say that you need me
You claim that you require me
Like the ocean needs sand
Similar to how the sea requires the shore
But the way you mistreat me
However you abuse and neglect me
I just don't understand
I cannot fathom it
Well you know that I love you
You are aware that my love for you
More than anyone can
Surpasses anyone else's
But a one-sided love
However, it's unrequited
I just don't understand (don't understand)
I cannot grasp it (cannot grasp it)
Well you call me your baby
You address me as your loved one
And you hold my hand
And you grasp my hand
Ah, honey, you hurt me
Ah, darling, you cause me pain
And I just don't understand (don't understand)
And I cannot comprehend it (cannot comprehend it)
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: NELSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@alee2ja75
Well you call me your baby
When you're holdin' my hand
Mm, how you can hurt me
I just don't understand
Well you say that you need me
Like the ocean needs sand
But the way you mistreat me
I just don't understand
Well you know that I love you
More than anyone can
But a one-sided love
I just don't understand (don't understand)
Well you know that I love you
More than anyone can
But a one-sided love
I just don't understand (don't understand)
Well you call me your baby
And you hold my hand
Ah, honey, you hurt me
And I just don't understand (don't understand)
@toomanyhobbies2011
A very well-rounded entertainer. Light years beyond the garbage of the present.
@muse7746
She debuted this song on American Bandstand. No one had seen anyone like her back then. Catchy tune. Like it.❤
@tommyl.dayandtherunaways820
John Lennon liked this song so much that the Beatles did a cover of it live at the BBC with him singing the lead vocal. I can see why he liked it, it has that bluesy tone he was really into in the early days.
@mathmusic1490
First song to use a fuzz box on a guitar.
@hankesplain6593
The BEST...
@emailbecky
This is a killer track!
@clarkewi
I was 10 when this came on LA radio. Listening to it now, this is a very well produced record. And then there is lovely Ann-Margret is performing it. A masterpiece for my money.
@dodgelandesman9473
Just heard this on 50s Gold Sirius XM. Boy was I surprised and impressed. Novel use of fuzz guitar, only Marty Robbins did it the year before. Sultry amd soulful vocals. Cool bluesy vibe. Classic but ahead of its time
@done-hr1rp
This could be a hit today!
@dadetim
a song that sounds ahead of its time...... love the fuzz guitar