Kim Carnes

Kim Carnes possessed a raspy, throaty vocal timbre that defined one of the era’s dominant singles, the Grammy-winning “Bette Davis Eyes,” which held the top position on the Billboard charts for nine weeks in 1981. Born in Los Angeles on July 20, 1945, she spent the 1960s crafting material for other performers while singing in neighborhood clubs and serving as a session vocalist. In 1966 she spent a period with the popular folk ensemble the New Christy Minstrels before departing, together with husband and songwriting partner Dave Ellingson, to create the duo Kim & Dave. Her background in folk music helped secure an acting part in the 1967 film C'Mon, Let's Live a Little, a folk-themed musical that advanced a firmly anti-radical perspective.

Carnes’ composition “Sing Out for Jesus” was cut by blues legend Big Mama Thornton for the 1971 soundtrack of Vanishing Point, which also included Kim & Dave’s version of “Nobody Knows.” The exposure yielded a solo contract with Amos, the label that had released the soundtrack. Her debut album, Rest On Me, appeared in 1972 yet failed to register commercially; dissatisfied with the prevalence of outside material, Carnes left and eventually signed with A&M. The self-titled A&M album arrived in 1975 and supplied her first chart entry, the self-penned duet with Gene Cotton titled “You're a Part of Me.” Sailin' (1976) and St. Vincent's Court (1979), her initial project for EMI, each produced modest singles, but a decisive opportunity arrived in 1980 when former New Christy Minstrels colleague Kenny Rogers invited her to share vocals on “Don't Fall in Love With a Dreamer.” The duet became a hit, and the accompanying concept album Gideon contained solely Carnes and Ellingson compositions. The resulting visibility brought Carnes her first solo Top Ten placement later that year with a cover of the Miracles’ “More Love,” featured on Romance Dance.

Poised for broader recognition, Carnes devoted extra care to her next release, Mistaken Identity. One selection was “Bette Davis Eyes,” co-written in 1974 by Donna Weiss and former folk-rocker Jackie DeShannon, who had appeared with Carnes in C'Mon, Let's Live a Little. Urged to record the song with a fresh atmospheric arrangement, Carnes guided “Bette Davis Eyes” to nine weeks at number one; it ranked as the year’s biggest hit and later earned Grammys for Song of the Year and Record of the Year. Despite the breakthrough, Carnes could not sustain momentum, as later singles from Mistaken Identity never reached the Top 20. She notched minor successes with tracks from 1982’s Voyeur and 1983’s Cafe Racers, then in 1985 became the first artist to occupy the charts simultaneously with a solo single (“Invitation to Dance”), a duo (“Make No Mistake, He's Mine,” recorded with Barbra Streisand), and a trio performance (“What About Me,” with Kenny Rogers and James Ingram). That same year she achieved her final Top 20 hit, “Crazy in the Night,” drawn from Barking at Airplanes. Light House (1986) met with little response, prompting a return to the folk and country leanings of her earlier work on 1988’s View from the House. With modest interest in her continued performing career, Carnes concentrated increasingly on songwriting, maintaining frequent collaborations with Ellingson. She placed growing amounts of material with major-label country artists and relocated to Nashville in 1994 to be closer to that activity.