“Empty Arms”
Sonny James
Written by Ivory Joe Hunter
Billboard
#1 (4 weeks)
April 10 – May 1, 1971
I’ve been mildly critical of R&B/early rock era covers by middle-aged country artists throughout this series, as it was a dominant and tiresome element throughout most of the eighties.
Sonny James is actually from the early rock era, so he can approach these covers with more credibility than some of the artists who would take the same approach down the road. It hasn’t always worked perfectly when he has strayed from his own wheelhouse, but it’s pretty effective on “Empty Arms,” which sounds so much like a mid-fifties pop hit that I double and triple checked that I wasn’t listening to some pre-hit version that was recorded back in the day.
He does well revisiting these classic sounds, demonstrating a theatricality that reminds us of James’ remarkable versatility as a singer. It doesn’t reach the dizzying heights of what the new generation of superstars were cooking up, but it still sounds great.
“Empty Arms” gets a B+.
Every No. 1 Single of the Seventies
Previous: Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn, “After the Fire is Gone”|
A bit out of place from this era of country but a pretty good song. A solid “B”.
I saw an interview with the songwriter, Ivory Joe Hunter, shortly after Sonny recorded one of his songs (“Since I Met You Baby” a #1 for Sonny in 1969) and he apparently considered Sonny a friend of long standing. Apparently, Sonny sang some of Hunter’s songs on stage long before he recorded any of them (I suspect that by 1968 Sonny had become enough of a hit making machine that ken nelson let him record anything he wanted to record).
Anyway, this a great song but I’m afraid that Ivory Joe Hunter has been largely, and undeservedly, forgotten. Here is a good article on Ivory Joe
https://www.goldminemag.com/articles/the-happiest-man-alive-ivory-joe-hunter
May need to reexamine Sonny James. Didn’t really get much from his greatest hits packages or albums when I first listened in my 20’s.
I would say it’s a nice performance B
Bonus Beats:
Reba McEntire recorded a version of “Empty Arms” during her Mercury days in the early 80s. It was not released initially, but it ended up on her 1986 compilation album Reba Nell McEntire. Here’s that version:
https://youtu.be/J41625lXKuM
James’ consistency and success has largely been overlooked today. Even Willie’s Roadhouse on satellite radio doesn’t due his run of number one hits justice. Sonny James’ was a beast on the charts and a major player in country music history. It would be easy to think of him as a one hit wonder with “Young Love.”
I think we will find ourselves continuing to observe James sounds great on whatever he puts his voice to.
Sonny was a veritable hit making machine – in addition to the 23 Billboard #1s (which spent 66 weeks at the top) he had 3 more songs that hit #1 on Cash Box and/or Record World. He had a voice that could handle any kind of music and he was an excellent musician.
As for Sonny’s place among the all-time great male country singers, I would have Sonny well within my top thirty.
Unlike most of the artists of his generation, when he retired, he really meant it, hanging up his guitar in 1983, which means that he has definitely been ‘out of sight – out of mind’ as far his video and radio presence was concerned. When radio went digital very virtually none of Sonny’s music was available in any digital format, so country radio wouldn’t (or couldn’t) honor requests for his music.
It’s the first time I’ve heard this one, and I quite enjoyed it! As someone who also enjoys 50s and early 60s era rock & roll and R&B, this is right up my alley. It’s pretty neat that songs of this style could be heard on the radio in 1971. As others have said, it’s a shame that so many of Sonny James’ hits seem to have vanished into thin air as far as recurrent play goes. “Young Love” and his version of “It’s Just A Matter Of Time” are the only ones I recall ever getting played on any classic country program/channel. I really like his voice and think he deserves more recognition and respect, imo.
Btw, I actually enjoy a lot of the 50s rock/R&B covers from the 80s in country, as well. Ones from Mickey Gilley and Ronnie Milsap come to mind, at the moment. Since my mom has always loved the music from that era, I’ll always have a soft spot for those golden oldies, even when covered by country artists.