In addition to her many album releases, Vikki Carr has played concerts for fans around the world, as well as appeared on stage, and television. She has starred in productions of South Pacific, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, and I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking It on the Road. In 2002 she starred in the Reprise production of Steven Sondheim's beloved musical Follies in Los Angeles, garnering glowing reviews from the LA Times, Hollywood Reporter, and Variety. Two years later, Los Angeles PBS affiliate, KCET, filmed a special Vikki Carr: Memories, Memorias: a salute to the English-language hits of the 1940s and 1950s originally composed by Latinos, and featuring guest appearances by Jack Jones, Pepe Aguilar and Arturo Sandoval. PBS again tapped Vikki to host and star in a production celebrating the music of Mexico, Fiesta Mexicana, which was featured on all PBS stations for their June 2008 pledge drive.
Born in El Paso, Texas, and raised in the San Gabriel Valley of California, Vikki Carr, the eldest of seven children, began performing at the tender age of four singing "Adeste Fidelis" in Latin at a Christmas program. She was signed to a contract with Liberty Records in 1961. She recorded "He's a Rebel", which first became a hit in Australia. That title was soon followed by the unforgettable release, It Must Be Him, which charged up the charts in England. A year later, the single was released in the United States and earned Carr three Grammy Award nominations. The international hit emerged again when she and the song were featured in the storyline of the Academy Award winning movie Moonstruck. After "It Must Be Him" came a string of hits, including With Pen in Hand, for which she received her fourth Grammy Award nomination, The Lesson, Can't Take My Eyes Off You, and For Once in My Life.
Her international appeal was so great that she was invited to perform at a Royal Command Performance for Queen Elizabeth II, followed by sold-out shows throughout Europe. In the States, Carr became a darling of the White House, performing regularly at State Dinners and at President Richard Nixon's 1973 Inaugural celebration. President Gerald Ford called her his "favorite Mexican dish". She also performed for Presidents Ronald Reagan, George Bush, and at the 1992 Presidential Summit hosted by President Bill Clinton.
A frequent musical guest on major network variety shows of celebrities like Dean Martin, Ed Sullivan, Perry Como, and Carol Burnett, Carr also taped six specials for London Weekend TV. As an actor, she appeared on the Bing Crosby Show, Mod Squad, Fantasy Island, and co-hosted the Mrs. America and Mrs. World of the World pageants. She was the first woman to regularly guest host for Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show. She was also a visitor and guest host on Michael Jackson's ABC radio show.
The diversity of her rich voice is impressive. She can belt out the blues or touch the heart with a soft romantic ballad. Frank Sinatra once said, "She possesses my kind of voice", Dean Martin called her "the best girl singer in the business", and Bing Crosby and Ella Fitzgerald named her among their three favorite female singers of all time. Elvis Presley was also very fond of her and even remarked on stage in Las Vegas many times that Vikki Carr was one of his favorite singers and that he liked her because "she sang from the gut" and introduced her at many of his personal appearances in which she attended.
Vikki Carr has received numerous prestigious awards, including:
- Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2008)
- National Hispanic Media Coalition Impact Lifetime Achievement Award (2005)
- Latino Spirit Award (2003)
- Tito Guizar Award (2003)
- Trefoil Award (2002)
- Inductee of the Latino Legends Hall of Fame (2000)
- Imagen Foundation "Humanitarian Award (1998)
- Hispanic Heritage Award (1996)
- Nosotros Golden Eagle Award (1988)
- Hispanic Woman of the Year (1984)
- Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1981)
- Doctorate in Law from San Diego University (1974)
- Doctorate in Fine Arts from St. Edwards University (1974)
- American Guild of Variety Artists' "Entertainer of the Year" (1972), and
- The Los Angeles Times' highly respected "Woman of the Year" (1970)
She has also earned the career achievement award of the Association of Hispanic Critics, Chicago's Ovation Award, the YWCA Silver Achievement Award, and was honored in 1990 by the City of Hope with the Founder of Hope Award. In 1991, she was presented the Girl Scouts of America Award.
Respected both as an artist and a humanitarian, Carr devotes time to many charities including The United Way, The American Lung Association, Cancer Therapy and Research Center, The Muscular Dystrophy Association, and St Jude's Hospital. For 22 years she held benefit concerts to support Holy Cross High School in San Antonio. In 1971 she established the Vikki Carr Scholarship Foundation, dedicated to offering college scholarships to Latino students in California and Texas. To date, the Foundation has awarded more than 280 scholarships totaling over a quarter of a million dollars.
"My voice is a gift and a gift is nothing unless you can share it. The Foundation is one of the ways that I am able to share my gift", said Carr. "The Foundation seeks to help young Mexican-American students achieve their goals through a college education, something I myself was never able to do."
Official website: http://www.vikkicarr.com/
Grande
Vikki Carr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Quién te puede aguantar
Y tus defectos son ya tantos que ni tú
Los puedes ya contar
Pareces un chiquillo caprichoso
Quieres siempre conquistar
Un hombre egoísta y arrogante
Mas es lo bueno que al momento justo
Sabes convertirte en otro
Y en un instante
Eres grande, grande, grande
Y mis penas no las puedo recordar
Yo veo como mis amigas
Viven más tranquilas con su amor
No viven amargándose la vida
Como hacemos tú y yo
Reciben un regalo y rosas rojas
Para su aniversario
Creen que todos son así
No tienen ni un problema
Convencidas que la vida es así
Y mira tú a nuestra vida
Mira tú la vida que me das
Peleando cada día a tu lado
Sin poderte complacer
Te odio y luego te amo
Y te amo y luego te odio
Luego te amo
No me dejes jamás
Sé grande, grande, grande
Como sólo grande
Puedes serlo tú
Te odio y luego te amo
Y te amo y luego te odio
Luego te amo
No me dejes jamás
Sé grande, grande, grande
Como sólo grande
Puedes serlo tú
No me dejes jamás
These lyrics are from Vikki Carr's song "Grande", which is a Spanish language cover of the Italian song "Grande, Grande, Grande" by Mina. The lyrics speak about a tumultuous relationship where the singer is expressing her frustrations with her partner's many flaws, including his selfishness and arrogance. Despite these flaws, the singer is drawn to her partner because he is able to change his behavior when it matters most and become a "great" person. The singer sees her friends living much easier lives with their partners, who are attentive and shower them with gifts and affection, but she cannot help but feel drawn to the passion and intensity of her own relationship. The song ends with the singer expressing her love for her partner and pleading with him not to leave her.
The lyrics to "Grande" are incredibly powerful and emotionally charged. The song speaks to the complexity of human relationships and how we can be both drawn to and repelled by someone at the same time. The singer's frustration with her partner's flaws is palpable, yet she still loves him and wants him to be the best version of himself. The way that Carr delivers the lyrics with such passion and intensity further enhances the emotional impact of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
A ti debía yo de combatir pues
I should have fought against you
Quién te puede aguantar
Who can tolerate you
Y tus defectos son ya tantos que ni tú
Los puedes ya contar
You have so many flaws that you can't even count them
Pareces un chiquillo caprichoso
You seem like a spoiled child
Quieres siempre conquistar
You always want to conquer
Un hombre egoísta y arrogante
Que no sabe razonar
You're a selfish and arrogant man who doesn't know how to reason
Mas es lo bueno que al momento justo
Sabes convertirte en otro
Y en un instante
Eres grande, grande, grande
Y mis penas no las puedo recordar
But the good thing is that at the right moment, you know how to become someone else and in an instant, you become great, great, great, and I can't remember my sorrows
Yo veo como mis amigas
Viven más tranquilas con su amor
No viven amargándose la vida
Como hacemos tú y yo
I see how my friends live more peacefully with their love, they don't make their life bitter like you and I do
Reciben un regalo y rosas rojas
Para su aniversario
Creen que todos son así
No tienen ni un problema
Convencidas que la vida es así
They receive gifts and red roses for their anniversary, they think everyone is like that, they don't have any problems and they are convinced that life is like that
Y mira tú a nuestra vida
Mira tú la vida que me das
Peleando cada día a tu lado
Sin poderte complacer
Look at our life, look at the life you give me, fighting every day by your side without being able to please you
Te odio y luego te amo
Y te amo y luego te odio
Luego te amo
I hate you and then I love you, and I love you and then I hate you, and then I love you
No me dejes jamás
Sé grande, grande, grande
Como sólo grande
Puedes serlo tú
Don't ever leave me and be great, great, great because only greatness can come from you
Te odio y luego te amo
Y te amo y luego te odio
Luego te amo
I hate you and then I love you, and I love you and then I hate you, and then I love you
No me dejes jamás
Sé grande, grande, grande
Como sólo grande
Puedes serlo tú
Don't ever leave me and be great, great, great because only greatness can come from you
No me dejes jamás
Don't ever leave me
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Alberto Testa, Catalina Friedman, Tony Renis
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Karina Arvizu
Se la dedico a mi papá. Y la relación tormentosa con mi mamá.Te extraño mucho.
Fabiola Vazquez
Dedicada a mi esposo definitivamente 👍como anillo al dedo
Armando Lara
Una hermosa mujer...su voz...su interpretacion es padrisima...mi papa la amaba y mas esta GRANDE. GRANDE...CANCION...DONDE ESTAS VIKKI CARR..???
Linda Burns
Lovely!!! Vikki is beautiful with her angel voice. 💖💞💓🌷💐🎵⚘🎶🌹❤🦋
Luis Lozano Cisneros
Grande grande solo V I K K Y C A R R E INMENSAMENTE ADORABLE Gracias por ser.
pepelukas160
Se me enchina la piel,nomás de escuchar a esta mujer.
Violeta Adiamantina
De lo que salvé. 💜
Rudolph Mad
Esta me la dedico ella
gilberto leal cavazos
Chiquillo travieso y caprichoso, te amo. R
javichote 90
Esta es la original pero la escuche con los babys y me gusto más con ellos