Tracey Ullman in 1984
Tracey Ullman (b.1959) is a British-American actor, singer, writer, producer and director. She first became known through her participation in BBC comedy shows A Kick Up the Eighties and Three of a Kind, and later in Girls on Top with Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders.
Ullman enjoyed a brief career as a solo recording artist in 1983-84 with five Top 30 hits including They Don't Know (written by Kirsty MacColl), Move Over Darling (originally recorded by Doris Day) and Sunglasses (originally released by Skeeter Davis in 1965). Her debut solo album album You Broke My Heart in Seventeen Places (1983) reached no. 14 on the UK Albums chart and No. 34 the Billboard 200 in the United States in 1984. The album's title track was also written and produced by MacColl. All Ullman's releases were on indie label Stiff Records.
Links to Peel[]
Aside from being BBC 'collegaues' during the 1980s, Peel does not seem to have played any of Ullman's music. During the Top of the Pops chart countdown on 28 April 1983, when her debut hit Breakaway was at no.10, he described her as "the multi-talented Tracey Ullman". His only presentation of the artist herself was on the show in 1984 when she opened the show with Sunglasses, her final Top 40 hit and studio appearance for the programme.
Peel had played the original version of Ullman's hit They Don't Know, by Kirsty MacColl on its release in 1979. The promo video for Ullman's cover version famously featured a cameo appearance by Paul McCartney. Ullman also recorded her own version of Madness' My Girl, re-purposed as 'My Guy', a single which had been heavily featured by Peel on its original release in late 1979 and into early 1980. Both covered artists were also signed to Stiff.
Ullman's debut album You Broke My Heart In 17 Places (1983) featured cover versions of songs first made famous by artists such as Sandie Shaw (Long Live Love) and Blondie ((I'm Always Touched By Your) Presence Dear). Album opening track and debut hit Breakaway had originally been recorded by Irma Thomas in 1964. A 1983 compilation of Thomas' best known songs, including Breakaway, entitled Time Is On My Side was featured by Peel that year. The release of the album, on Kent Records, may well have been triggered by Ullman's hit.
In November 2000 Peel played Little By Little from the The Rolling Stones' debut album initially at 45rpm, deliberately to test the opposite of the hypotheses that Tracey Ullman sounded like Mick Jagger when slowed to 33rpm.
Sessions[]
- none
Shows Played[]
- 09 August 1984 (TOTP) - Sunglasses