Sharon Myers adopted the name Jackie DeShannon, believed to be an Irish ancestor. Record company executives at Liberty Records thought the name Sharon Myers wouldn't sell records. (She once reported that record executives added "Shannon" to "Jackie Dee," one of the names under which she recorded, to create her name.)
Life and early career:
DeShannon was born the daughter of musically inclined farming parents, Sandra Jean and James Erwin Myers, DeShannon was introduced to singing country tunes on a local radio show at the age of six. By the age of eleven, DeShannon was already hosting her own radio program. When life on the farm became too difficult, the family moved to Aurora, Illinois, her mother's home town, and her father resumed his other career as a barber. After a year, they moved up the Fox River to Batavia, Illinois, where Sharon attended high school.
Recording under various names such as Sherry Lee, Jackie Dee, and Jackie Shannon, she had little success. However, her interpretations of country songs "Buddy" and "Trouble" gained the attention of Eddie Cochran who arranged for her to travel to California and meet singer-songwriter Sharon Sheeley, who formed a writing partnership with DeShannon in 1960. The partnership produced hits such as "Dum Dum" for Brenda Lee and "I Love Anastasia" for The Fleetwoods. The latter was named after one of her good friends in high school.
In 1960, DeShannon signed with Liberty Records. She made the WLS Chicago survey with "Lonely Girl" in late 1960. A string of mostly flop singles followed, although "The Prince" bubbled under at #108 in the United States in early 1962, and "Faded Love" (#97 in February 1963) became her first U.S. Hot 100 hit, albeit just barely .
She broke through a little more solidly singing "Needles and Pins" and "When You Walk in the Room" later in 1963. Both reached the lower rungs of the U.S. pop charts, but were substantial top 40 hits in Canada, where "Needles and Pins" made it all the way to #1. "Needles and Pins" and "When You Walk in the Room" later became U.S. and UK hits for The Searchers.
DeShannon recorded many other singles that encompassed teen pop, country ballads, rockabilly, gospel, and Ray Charles-style soul that didn't fare as well on the charts. During these years it was her songwriting and public profile rather than her recording career that kept her contracted to Liberty Records. DeShannon dated Elvis Presley and formed friendships with The Everly Brothers and Ricky Nelson. She also co-starred and sang with Bobby Vinton in the teen surf movie Surf Party.
DeShannon's biggest break came in February 1964, when she supported The Beatles on their first U.S. tour, and formed a touring band with guitarist Ry Cooder. DeShannon also wrote "Don't Doubt Yourself Babe" for debut album by The Byrds. Her music at this stage was heavily influenced by the American West Coast sounds and folk music. Staying briefly in England in 1965, DeShannon formed a songwriting partnership with Jimmy Page, which resulted in the hit singles "Dream Boy" and "Don't Turn Your Back On Me". Page and DeShannon also wrote material for singer Marianne Faithfull, including her Top Ten UK and U.S. hit "Come and Stay With Me". DeShannon also appeared on the television show Ready Steady Go!
Hit love songs:
Moving to New York, DeShannon co-wrote with Randy Newman, producing such songs as "She Don't Understand Him" and "Did He Call Today Mama?", as well as writing "You Have No Choice" for Delaney Bramlett. In March 1965, DeShannon recorded Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "What the World Needs Now Is Love," which provided her first Number 1 hit and regular appearances on television shows and club tours. (DeShannon's recording of the song was subsequently used in the 1969 film Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice.) She appeared in the 1967 film C'mon Let's Live a Little, with Bobby Vee, as a folk singer. DeShannon continued writing and recording but it was not until 1969 that she scored her next biggest smash single and album, both entitled "Put a Little Love in Your Heart". The single "Love Will Find A Way" from the same album was also a moderate hit. Switching to Atlantic Records in 1970 and moving to Los Angeles, DeShannon recorded the critically acclaimed albums Jackie and Your Baby Is A Lady, but they failed to produce the same commercial success as previous releases. In 1973, she was invited by Van Morrison to sing on his Hard Nose the Highway album.
"Put A Little Love In Your Heart" was performed as the closing number at the Music for UNICEF Concert, broadcast worldwide from the United Nations General Assembly in 1979.
Later career:
While DeShannon has not produced any further Top Ten singles of her own, her songs have been covered by other artists who have in turn converted them into hits. In 1974, with Donna Weiss, she composed "Queen Of The Rodeo" and "Bette Davis Eyes" for her album New Arrangement. The song "Bette Davis Eyes" later became a world-wide Number 1 single for singer Kim Carnes in 1981. It earned DeShannon the 1982 Grammy Award for Song of the Year.
The songs "Breakaway", recorded by Tracey Ullman in 1983, and "Put A Little Love In Your Heart", recorded by Annie Lennox and Al Green in 1988, also became huge hits, the latter of which Dolly Parton also covered in 1993. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and Stevie Nicks had a Top 40 U.S. hit in 1986 with a cover of "Needles And Pins", which was a song DeShannon originally recorded, although not one she wrote. A version of "When You Walk In The Room" by Pam Tillis in 1994 topped the country charts. Another recent cover of "When You Walk In The Room" was by ex-ABBA vocalist Agnetha Fältskog, both in her comeback album My Colouring Book and as a UK and European hit single.
Jackie was portrayed by singer Liz Phair in an episode of the NBC period drama American Dreams.
Personal life:
DeShannon is married to singer/songwriter and film music composer Randy Edelman, who is her third husband. Her first husband was Liberty Records executive Irving "Bud" Dain, whom she married on January 29, 1966. She has also dated Jimmy Page and Love guitarist Bryan MacLean. It is likely that Jimmy Page wrote the song "Tangerine" (which appeared on the third Led Zeppelin album) after the breakup of his relationship with DeShannon in early 1965.
Hellos and goodbyes
Jackie DeShannon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Love is full of hellos and goodbyes
So little girl, don't you cry
One night you think you're through
First you break up
Ah, turn right around then you make up
So little girl dry those tears from your eyes
'Cause love is full of hellos and goodbyes
So if he's out with someone new
Don't you let it bother you
Deep inside you know
You're the one he loves so, whoa, oh
Oh, love is full of hellos and goodbyes
'Cause that's the way it is all through life
Love is like a merry-go-round
At first you're up and then you're down
Many a tear's gonna fall
I bet you know it's worth it all, whoa
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh-oh, oh, oh
Love is full of
Yeah, love is full of
Whoa, love is full of
Let me tell you about love
Oh, what love
Love is full of
Let me tell you about love
Whoa, love is full of
Let me tell you about love
The lyrics to Jackie DeShannon's song Hellos And Goodbyes talk about the ups and downs of love. The song encourages a little girl not to cry because love is full of hellos and goodbyes. It acknowledges that sometimes, you may break up with someone, but the next day, they come back to you. The song also talks about the merry-go-round of love, where you are up one minute and down the next, and that it is all worth it, even if many tears will fall.
The lyrics suggest that love is not always easy but has its share of challenges. It implies that love requires work and commitment, and even though it might involve some hardships and goodbye scenes, it will be worth the investment. She encourages the little girl to be strong, confident and keep her faith in true love.
Line by Line Meaning
Love is full of hellos and goodbyes
Love is constantly changing and can involve both happy and sad moments, including breakups and reunions.
So little girl, don't you cry
Don't worry or be sad, everything will be okay.
One night you think you're through
Sometimes you may feel like the relationship is over.
The next day he comes back to you
But then the next day, he might show up and want to try again.
First you break up
The relationship may hit a rough patch and come to an end.
Ah, turn right around then you make up
But then you might reconcile and get back together.
So little girl dry those tears from your eyes
Don't cry or be sad, everything will be okay.
'Cause love is full of hellos and goodbyes
Relationships have ups and downs, so we should expect changes.
So if he's out with someone new
If he's seen with someone else, don't be upset.
Don't you let it bother you
Don't get upset or sad about it.
Deep inside you know
You have a feeling or intuition about your relationship.
You're the one he loves so, whoa, oh
You know that he loves you more than anyone else.
'Cause that's the way it is all through life
Life is full of changes and goodbyes, not just relationships.
Love is like a merry-go-round
Love can feel like a ride that goes up and down, and sometimes in circles.
At first you're up and then you're down
Your relationship can be happy, then sad or uncertain.
Many a tear's gonna fall
You might cry over the course of the relationship.
I bet you know it's worth it all, whoa
But you know that it's all worth it in the end, despite the difficult times.
Let me tell you about love
The song is about love and its ups and downs.
Writer(s): Jackie de Shannon, Shari K. Sheeley
Contributed by Connor Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.