Bette Davis Eyes

“Bette Davis Eyes” was written in 1974 by Donna Weiss and Jackie DeShannon, the latter of whom recorded the song that same year on her album New Arrangement. However, it was not until March 1981, when Kim Carnes recorded her version of the song in a radically different synthesizer-based arrangement, that “Bette Davis Eyes” became a commercial success. Carnes’ version of the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1981 and held it for nine weeks. It was also ranked the biggest song of the year and the second biggest song of the decade in the US. Internationally, it topped the charts in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, South Africa, Spain and Switzerland.

The song won the Grammy Awards for “Song of the Year” and “Record of the Year,” and it also ranked at No. 12 on Billboard‘s list of the “Top 100 Songs in the First 50 Years of the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.”

Actress Bette Davis was 73 years old when Kim Carnes’s version became a hit. She wrote letters to Carnes, Weiss, and DeShannon to thank all three of them for making her “a part of modern times” and stated that her grandson now looked up to her. After their Grammy wins, Davis sent them roses as well.