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.
Never on Sunday
Ann-Margret Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A Monday, a Monday is very, very good
Or you can kiss me on a Tuesday
A Tuesday, a Tuesday, in fact I wish you would
Or you can kiss me on a Wednesday
A Thursday, a Friday and Saturday is best
But never, never on a Sunday
A Sunday, a Sunday, 'cause that's my day of rest
Most any day you can be my guest
Any day you say, but my day of rest
Just name the day that you like the best
Only stay away on my day of rest
Oh, you can kiss me on a cool day, a hot day
A wet day, which everyone you choose
Or try to kiss me on a gray day, a May day
A pay day, and see if I refuse
And if you make it on a bleak day
A freak day, a week day, why you can be my guest
But never, never on a Sunday
Ann-Margret's song "Never On Sunday" speaks to the importance of having a day of rest. The singer offers a range of days on which she is open to kisses, but adamantly refuses any attention on Sundays because it is her day of rest. She suggests that any other day of the week would be a good option, and even lists off different weather conditions and holidays on which she would be open to love. However, she circles back to the importance of keeping Sunday sacred, and not tarnishing it with such worldly desires.
This song is a perfect snapshot of mid-century Western society, where religion and morality played a large role in people's everyday lives. It reflects a time when Sundays were largely reserved as a day of worship and rest, and when it was considered taboo to engage in frivolous or non-religious activities on that day. By framing this discussion around a romantic relationship, the song emphasizes that even when it comes to love, there are boundaries and moral codes that must be respected.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, you can kiss me on a Monday
I am willing to receive your affection any day of the week
A Monday, a Monday is very, very good
I am particularly fond of receiving affection on a Monday
Or you can kiss me on a Tuesday
If Monday doesn't work for you, I am open to receiving your affection on a Tuesday
A Tuesday, a Tuesday, in fact I wish you would
In fact, I welcome your affection on a Tuesday and would like to receive it then
Or you can kiss me on a Wednesday
I am flexible in my schedule and can accommodate your affection on a range of days
A Thursday, a Friday and Saturday is best
Of all the days of the week, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday are the most ideal for receiving your affection
But never, never on a Sunday
There is one day of the week that is off limits for receiving your affection, and that day is Sunday
A Sunday, a Sunday, 'cause that's my day of rest
Sunday is a day of rest for me, and I would prefer to not receive any affection on that day
Most any day you can be my guest
In general, I am open to receiving your affection on most days of the week
Any day you say, but my day of rest
You can choose any day of the week to show me affection, except for Sunday, which is my day of rest
Just name the day that you like the best
Feel free to choose the day of the week that works best for you to show me affection
Only stay away on my day of rest
Please avoid showing me affection on Sunday, as it is my day of rest
Oh, you can kiss me on a cool day, a hot day
It doesn't matter what the weather is like, I am open to receiving your affection
A wet day, which everyone you choose
Even if it's raining, you can still show me affection if you wish
Or try to kiss me on a gray day, a May day
Whether it's a gloomy day or a spring day in May, I am open to receiving your affection
A pay day, and see if I refuse
If you want to try showing me affection on payday, I won't refuse
And if you make it on a bleak day
Even on a sad or bleak day, I am willing to receive your affection
A freak day, a week day, why you can be my guest
Even on an unusual or unexpected day of the week, I am open to receiving your affection
But never, never on a Sunday
Just to reiterate, Sunday is the one day of the week that is off limits for showing me affection
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Manos Hadjidakis, Billy Towne
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind