In the Ghetto: Difference between revisions

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| released = April 14, 1969
| released = April 14, 1969
| recorded = January 20, 1969
| recorded = January 20, 1969
| studio =[[American Sound Studio]], Memphis
| studio = [[American Sound Studios|American Sound]], [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]]
| venue =
| genre = {{hlist|[[Country rock]]<ref>{{cite book|title=Country Music - A Biographical Dictionary|first=Richard|last=Carlin|date=2014|publisher=Taylor & Francis|page=316}}</ref>|[[pop music|pop]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.commercialappeal.com/entertainment/music/the-50-best-elvis-songs-50-46-in-the-ghetto-stuck-on-you-and-more-ep-1206735534-324102111.html|title=The 50 Best Elvis Songs, 50-46: "In the Ghetto," "Stuck on You" and more|author=Herrington, Chris|newspaper=USA Today|date=August 6, 2015|access-date=September 4, 2019}}</ref>|[[gospel music|gospel]]<ref>[https://www.allmusic.com/song/in-the-ghetto-mt0052397891 In the Ghetto - Elvis Presley] on [[AllMusic]]; " A hauntingly lovely, dirge-like ballad rooted in gospel, "In the Ghetto" ..."</ref>}}
| genre = {{hlist|[[Country rock]]<ref>{{cite book|title=Country Music - A Biographical Dictionary|first=Richard|last=Carlin|date=2014|publisher=Taylor & Francis|page=316}}</ref>|[[pop music|pop]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.commercialappeal.com/entertainment/music/the-50-best-elvis-songs-50-46-in-the-ghetto-stuck-on-you-and-more-ep-1206735534-324102111.html|title=The 50 Best Elvis Songs, 50-46: "In the Ghetto," "Stuck on You" and more|author=Herrington, Chris|newspaper=USA Today|date=August 6, 2015|access-date=September 4, 2019}}</ref>|[[gospel music|gospel]]<ref>[https://www.allmusic.com/song/in-the-ghetto-mt0052397891 In the Ghetto - Elvis Presley] on [[AllMusic]]; " A hauntingly lovely, dirge-like ballad rooted in gospel, "In the Ghetto" ..."</ref>}}
| length = 2:47
| length = 2:47
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| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|FJ-r0bilzhU|"In the Ghetto" (audio)}}}}
| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|FJ-r0bilzhU|"In the Ghetto" (audio)}}}}
}}
}}
"'''In the Ghetto'''" (originally titled "'''The Vicious Circle'''") is a 1969 song recorded by [[Elvis Presley]] and written by [[Mac Davis]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Song info|url=https://www.elvisthemusic.com/music/in-the-ghetto/|access-date=|website=}}</ref> It was a major hit released in [[1969 in music|1969]] as a part of Presley's comeback album, and also on the single release of "[[Any Day Now (Burt Bacharach song)|Any Day Now]]" as the [[A-side and B-side|flip side]].
"'''In the Ghetto'''" (originally titled "'''The Vicious Circle'''") is a 1969 song written by [[Mac Davis]] and recorded by [[Elvis Presley]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Song info|url=https://www.elvisthemusic.com/music/in-the-ghetto/|access-date=|website=}}</ref> It was a major hit released in [[1969 in music|1969]] as a part of Presley's comeback album, and was also available on the single release of "[[Any Day Now (Burt Bacharach song)|Any Day Now]]" as the [[A-side and B-side|flip side]].


== Background ==
== Background ==
The song was written by country music songwriter and singer [[Mac Davis]]. The version recorded by Presley is played in the key of B flat. "In the Ghetto" was recorded during Presley's session in the [[American Sound Studio]] in [[Memphis, Tennessee]]. It was Presley's first creative recording session since the Elvis [['68 Comeback Special]]. Other hits recorded at this session were "[[Suspicious Minds#Elvis Presley recording|Suspicious Minds]]", "[[Kentucky Rain]]", and the Davis-written "[[Don't Cry Daddy]]". The song was published by Gladys Music, Inc., Elvis Presley's publishing company and was Presley's first [[Top 40|Top 10]] hit in the United States in four years, peaking at number 3, and number 2 in Canada. It was his first UK Top 10 hit in three years, also peaking at No. 2. It hit No. 1 on [[Cashbox (magazine)|Cashbox]] and No. 8 Easy Listening.<ref>{{cite book|first= Joel |last= Whitburn |author-link= Joel Whitburn |year= 1993 |title= Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993 |publisher= Record Research |page=192}}</ref> It was a number-one hit in [[West Germany]], [[Ireland]], [[Norway]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]]. As a major international hit, Presley included it in his [[setlist]] during his return to live performances at the [[Westgate Las Vegas|International Hotel]] in [[Las Vegas]] in 1969. It was a staple of his shows in the first two seasons; however, in his third (August/September 1970), he included it only once,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6cBgatJbHQ |title=YouTube |publisher=[[YouTube]] |access-date=2016-10-02}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead Youtube links|date=February 2022}}</ref> at the dinner show on August 13, for the benefit of the [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] cameras filming the documentary ''[[Elvis: That's the Way It Is]]'' (1970). This version started without pause at the end of another hit from 1969, "[[Don't Cry Daddy]]".
The lyrics to the song were written by country music singer-songwriter [[Mac Davis]]. The version recorded by Presley is played in the key of B flat. "In the Ghetto" was recorded during Presley's session in the [[American Sound Studio]] in [[Memphis, Tennessee]]. It was Presley's first creative recording session after his Elvis [['68 Comeback Special]]. Other hits recorded at this session were "[[Suspicious Minds#Elvis Presley recording|Suspicious Minds]]", "[[Kentucky Rain]]", and the Davis-written "[[Don't Cry Daddy]]".


The song was published by Gladys Music, Inc., Elvis Presley's publishing company, and was Presley's first [[Top 40|Top 10]] hit in the United States in four years, peaking at number 3, and number 2 in Canada. It was his first UK Top 10 hit in three years, also peaking at No. 2. It hit No. 1 on [[Cashbox (magazine)|Cashbox]] and No. 8 Easy Listening.<ref>{{cite book|first= Joel |last= Whitburn |author-link= Joel Whitburn |year= 1993 |title= Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993 |publisher= Record Research |page=192}}</ref> It was a number-one hit in West Germany, Ireland, Norway, Australia and New Zealand.
== Lyrics ==

⚫
A boy is born to a [[mother]] who already has more children than she can feed in a [[Chicago]] [[American ghettos|ghetto]]. The boy grows up hungry, learns how to steal and [[fight]], purchases a [[gun]] and steals a [[car]], tries to run, but is killed. The song ends with another child being born the same day in the ghetto, implying that the newborn could meet the same fate, continuing the cycle of poverty and violence.
== Lyrical content ==
⚫
A boy is born to a mother who already has more children than she can support in a [[Chicago]] [[American ghettos|ghetto]]. The boy grows up deprived, and turns to a life of delinquency. He purchases a gun and steals a car to begin a crime spree, but it is not long before he is killed. The song ends with another child being born the same day in the ghetto, implying that the newborn could meet the same fate, continuing the cycle of poverty and violence.


==Charts==
==Charts==
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{{singlechart|Dutch40|4|artist=Elvis Presley|song=In The Ghetto}}
{{singlechart|Dutch40|4|artist=Elvis Presley|song=In The Ghetto}}
|-
|-
|New Zealand (''[[New Zealand Listener|Listener]]'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=NZ+listener+charts&qyear=1969&qmonth=Jul&qweek=18-Jul-1969#n_view_location|title=flavour of new zealand - NZ listener charts|website=Flavourofnz.co.nz|access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref>
|New Zealand (''[[New Zealand Listener|Listener]]'')<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=NZ+listener+charts&qyear=1969&qmonth=Jul&qweek=18-Jul-1969#n_view_location|title=flavour of new zealand - NZ listener charts|website=Flavourofnz.co.nz|access-date=22 April 2021|archive-date=27 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827150727/http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=NZ+listener+charts&qyear=1969&qmonth=Jul&qweek=18-Jul-1969#n_view_location|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|1
|-
|-
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|}
|}


==Certifications==
==Certifications and sales==
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Ireland|nocert=true|salesamount=4,200|salesref=<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qSkEAAAAMBAJ&dq=The+Beatles&pg=RA1-PA73|magazine=Billboard|title=Single Slump Hits Ireland|page=73|date=August 16, 1969|accessdate=August 8, 2023|first=Ken|last=Stewart}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Elvis Presley|title=In the Ghetto|award=Platinum|relyear=2004|certyear=2023|id=14664-2984-1|access-date=February 17, 2023}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Elvis Presley|title=In the Ghetto|award=Platinum|relyear=2004|certyear=2023|id=14664-2984-1|access-date=February 17, 2023}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=single|artist=Elvis Presley|title=In the Ghetto|award=Platinum|relyear=1969|certyear=1992|access-date=March 19, 2021}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=single|artist=Elvis Presley|title=In the Ghetto|award=Platinum|relyear=1969|certyear=1992|access-date=March 19, 2021}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|streaming=true}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|streaming=true}}

== Lisa Marie Presley duet version ==
The song was recorded in 2007 by [[Lisa Marie Presley]] as a duet to raise money for the [[Presley Charitable Foundation]]. The song was released on [[iTunes]].


== Cover versions ==
== Cover versions ==
After Elvis Presley, the song has been performed by many other artists. Among them were [[Sammy Davis Jr.]], [[Marilyn Manson]], [[Natalie Merchant]], [[Tracy Chapman]], [[Susan Cadogan]], [[Wet Wet Wet]], [[Candi Staton]], [[Dolly Parton]], [[Bobby Blue Bland]], [[Bobbie Gentry]], [[Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds]], [[Ian Stuart Donaldson]], [[Weeping Willows]], [[The Cranberries]], [[Merle Haggard]], [[Leatherface (band)|Leatherface]], [[Three Six Mafia]], [[DNX vs. The Voice]], [[Bad Lieutenant (band)|Bad Lieutenant]], [[Fair Warning (band)|Fair Warning]], [[Beats International]], [[Eleanor Shanley]], [[Jim Goad]]<ref>{{cite web |title=S.W.A.T. — ''Deep Inside A Cop's Mind'' |url=https://www.discogs.com/SWAT-Deep-Inside-A-Cops-Mind/release/818687 |website=[[Discogs]] |date=5 August 1994 |access-date=3 May 2020 |language=en}}</ref> and [[Chris Clark (singer)|Chris Clark]]. The Spanish singer and actor Enrique Castellon Vargas, also known as "El Principe Gitano" (The Gypsy Prince), recorded a version of the song, a version sung with such a thick Spanish accent that the English lyrics were almost uninintelligible. In 1990, [[The KLF]] used a sample of the Elvis recording in their ambient DJ album ''[[Chill Out (KLF album)|Chill Out]]'', while a year later Norman Cook issued a dance version with his [[Beats International]] collective, which reached number 44 in the UK charts.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/26166/beats-international/|title=BEATS INTERNATIONAL &#124; full Official Chart History &#124; Official Charts Company|website=Officialcharts.com|access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref> In 1996, a 'Fugees-esque' hip-hop trio called Ghetto People had a top ten hit in the German charts with a version recorded with local singer Detlef Malinkewitz.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.detlef-malinkewitz.de/english/about.html|title=Detlef Malinkewitz - about|website=Detlef-malinkewitz.de|access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref> As Malinkewitz was recording under the pseudonym L-Viz at the time, some broadcasters in the UK credited the record to [[El Vez]] by mistake.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qpg3 |title=BBC Two - TOTP2, Elvis Special |website=www.bbc.co.uk |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201225050603/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qpg3 |archive-date=25 December 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Mac Davis]] recorded a version of the song for a greatest hits album released in 1979. In 2011, [[Chris de Burgh]] covered the song on his album ''[[Footsteps 2]]''.
After Elvis Presley, the song has been performed by many other artists. Songwriter [[Mac Davis]] recorded his own version of the song for his 1970 album ''[[Song Painter]]''. In 1991, [[Norman Cook]] issued a dance version with his [[Beats International]] collective, which reached number 44 in the UK charts.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/26166/beats-international/|title=BEATS INTERNATIONAL &#124; full Official Chart History &#124; Official Charts Company|website=Officialcharts.com|access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref> In 1996, a 'Fugees-esque' hip-hop trio called Ghetto People had a top ten hit in the German charts with a version recorded with local singer {{ill|Detlef Malinkewitz|de}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.detlef-malinkewitz.de/english/about.html|title=Detlef Malinkewitz - about|website=Detlef-malinkewitz.de|access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref> As Malinkewitz was recording under the pseudonym L-Viz at the time, some broadcasters in the UK credited the record to [[El Vez]] by mistake.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qpg3 |title=BBC Two - TOTP2, Elvis Special |website=www.bbc.co.uk |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201225050603/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000qpg3 |archive-date=25 December 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

⚫
Gospel recording artist Reverend [[James Cleveland]] not only recorded a gospel version of the song, but he won his first [[Grammy Award for Best Soul Gospel Performance]] 1975 with the Southern California Community Choir for his 1974 album release, In the Ghetto.{{CN|date=January 2023}}


⚫
Gospel recording artist Reverend [[James Cleveland]] recorded a gospel version of the song, and won his first [[Grammy Award for Best Soul Gospel Performance]] in 1975 with the Southern California Community Choir for his 1974 album release, ''In the Ghetto''.<ref>https://www.grammy.com/artists/james-cleveland/1515 {{bare URL inline|date=March 2024}}</ref>
[[Dancehall]] singer [[Sister Nancy]] used some of the song's lyrics in the song "Coward of the Country", which appeared on her 1982 album ''[[One, Two]]''.


Following the death of the song's writer Mac Davis, [[Reba McEntire]] and [[Darius Rucker]] recorded a duet version of the song to honor him. It was released on November 11, 2020, immediately following a live performance at the [[54th Annual Country Music Association Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.etonline.com/kelsea-ballerini-among-country-music-stars-to-perform-at-2020-cma-awards-155570|title=Kelsea Ballerini Among Country Music Stars to Perform at CMA Awards|website=Entertainment Tonight|date=11 November 2020 |access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref>
Following the death of Mac Davis, [[Reba McEntire]] and [[Darius Rucker]] recorded a duet version of the song to honor him. It was released on November 11, 2020, immediately following a live performance at the [[54th Annual Country Music Association Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.etonline.com/kelsea-ballerini-among-country-music-stars-to-perform-at-2020-cma-awards-155570|title=Kelsea Ballerini Among Country Music Stars to Perform at CMA Awards|website=Entertainment Tonight|date=11 November 2020 |access-date=22 April 2021}}</ref>


=== Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds version ===
=== Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds version ===
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| genre =
| genre =
| length =
| length =
| label = [[Mute Records]]
| label = [[Mute Records|Mute]]
| writer = [[Mac Davis]]
| writer = [[Mac Davis]]
| producer = [[Flood (producer)|Flood]]
| producer = [[Flood (producer)|Flood]]
| prev_title =
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| prev_year =
| next_title = [[Tupelo (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds song)|Tupelo]]
| next_title = [[Tupelo (song)|Tupelo]]
| next_year = 1985
| next_year = 1985
}}
}}
"In the Ghetto" was covered by [[Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds]] and was their debut single. It was recorded at the Trident Studios in [[London]] and released as a 7" on June 18, 1984, with the [[B-side]] "The Moon Is in the Gutter".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fromthearchives.com/nc/discography1.html |title=Nick Cave Discography on "From The Archives" |access-date=2008-06-09 |publisher=From The Archives}}</ref> It reached 84 on the [[UK Singles Chart]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.everyhit.com |title=Everyhit.com |access-date=2008-06-10 |publisher=everyhit.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070217183242/http://www.everyhit.com/ |archive-date=2007-02-17 }}</ref> While originally not present on any album, it was later included on the CD reissue of the band's first album, ''[[From Her to Eternity]]''.
"In the Ghetto" was covered by [[Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds]] and was their debut single. It was recorded at the Trident Studios in [[London]] and released as a 7-inch single on June 18, 1984, with the [[B-side]] "The Moon Is in the Gutter".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fromthearchives.com/nc/discography1.html |title=Nick Cave Discography on "From The Archives" |access-date=2008-06-09 |publisher=From The Archives}}</ref> It reached 84 on the [[UK Singles Chart]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.everyhit.com |title=Everyhit.com |access-date=2008-06-10 |publisher=everyhit.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070217183242/http://www.everyhit.com/ |archive-date=2007-02-17 }}</ref> While originally not present on any album, it was later included on the CD reissue of the band's first album, ''[[From Her to Eternity]]''.


=== Charts ===
=== Charts ===
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| style="text-align:center;"|1
| style="text-align:center;"|1
|}
|}

== Parodies and cultural references ==
In the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "[[Chickenpox (South Park)|Chickenpox]]", [[Eric Cartman]] sings the song on the way to and inside [[Kenny McCormick|Kenny]]'s house, which is located in a bad part of town, most likely poking fun at the environment of Kenny's house.

Rich Banks recorded a parody called "In the Grotto" for ''[[The Adam Carolla Show (radio program)|The Adam Carolla Show]]''.

[[Paul Shanklin]] recorded a parody called "In a [[Yugo]]" for [[Rush Limbaugh]], in which an environmentally-conscious family buys a Yugo to save motor fuel, only to get killed by a truck after swerving to miss a duck.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mfile.akamai.com/5020/wma/rushlimb.download.akamai.com/5020/shanklin_archives/In%20A%20Yugo.asx |title=MP3 file |website=Mfile.akamai.com |access-date=2016-10-02}}</ref> Later, Shanklin updated his parody for a new generation too young to remember the Yugo, replacing it with its perceived equivalent, "In a Hybrid".

[[El Vez]] recorded a version titled "En el Barrio" that mixed humor with details about [[Chicano]] struggles.

The Danish satire duo Strengedrejerne recorded a parody called "Nede I Netto" in 2000 about a boy, who gets lost from his mother in a supermarket and compensates for the lack of attention by stealing a shopping cart full of cod roe. The song follows the original storyline precisely but parodies the rich welfare state of Denmark, where only luxury problems exist.

The Danish radio program ''{{Interlanguage link|Selvsing|da|Selvsing (program)}}'' also recorded a parody called "Ned i NATO", which makes fun of former Danish Prime Minister [[Anders Fogh Rasmussen]]'s path to a leading post at [[NATO]].

The [[BBC]] radio comedy program ''[[Radio Active (radio series)|Radio Active]]'' broadcast a version titled ''Tim the [[gecko]]''.

Dutch television celebrity and comedian [[Paul de Leeuw]], as his alter ego Bob de Rooy, released a Dutch-language translated version in 1992. The first Dutch-language version of the song was recorded by Flemish crooner [[Will Tura]], whose version uses the wrong definite article "de" preceding the word "ghetto".

In the [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] sitcom ''[[New Girl]]'', [[Jessica Day (New Girl)|Jessica Day]] performs the song as an [[Elvis impersonator]] at her roommate Nick's father's funeral.


== References ==
== References ==
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{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:1960s ballads]]
[[Category:1969 songs]]
[[Category:1969 singles]]
[[Category:1969 singles]]
[[Category:1984 singles]]
[[Category:1984 singles]]
[[Category:1969 songs]]
[[Category:1960s ballads]]
[[Category:Cashbox number-one singles]]
[[Category:Cashbox number-one singles]]
[[Category:Charity singles]]
[[Category:Charity singles]]

Latest revision as of 05:33, 14 April 2024

For other uses, see In the Ghetto (disambiguation).
"In the Ghetto"
Single by Elvis Presley
from the album From Elvis in Memphis
B-side"Any Day Now"
ReleasedApril 14, 1969
RecordedJanuary 20, 1969
StudioAmerican Sound, Memphis
Genre
Length2:47
LabelRCA Victor
Songwriter(s)Mac Davis
Producer(s)Chips Moman
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"How Great Thou Art"
(1969) 		"In the Ghetto"
(1969) 		"Clean Up Your Own Backyard"
(1969)
Music video
"In the Ghetto" (audio) on YouTube

"In the Ghetto" (originally titled "The Vicious Circle") is a 1969 song written by Mac Davis and recorded by Elvis Presley.[4] It was a major hit released in 1969 as a part of Presley's comeback album, and was also available on the single release of "Any Day Now" as the flip side.

Background[edit]

The lyrics to the song were written by country music singer-songwriter Mac Davis. The version recorded by Presley is played in the key of B flat. "In the Ghetto" was recorded during Presley's session in the American Sound Studio in Memphis, Tennessee. It was Presley's first creative recording session after his Elvis '68 Comeback Special. Other hits recorded at this session were "Suspicious Minds", "Kentucky Rain", and the Davis-written "Don't Cry Daddy".

The song was published by Gladys Music, Inc., Elvis Presley's publishing company, and was Presley's first Top 10 hit in the United States in four years, peaking at number 3, and number 2 in Canada. It was his first UK Top 10 hit in three years, also peaking at No. 2. It hit No. 1 on Cashbox and No. 8 Easy Listening.[5] It was a number-one hit in West Germany, Ireland, Norway, Australia and New Zealand.

Lyrical content[edit]

A boy is born to a mother who already has more children than she can support in a Chicago ghetto. The boy grows up deprived, and turns to a life of delinquency. He purchases a gun and steals a car to begin a crime spree, but it is not long before he is killed. The song ends with another child being born the same day in the ghetto, implying that the newborn could meet the same fate, continuing the cycle of poverty and violence.

Charts[edit]

Chart (1969) Peak
position
Australia (Go-Set)[6] 1
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[7] 6
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[8] 1
Canada (RPM)[9] 2
Denmark (Hitlisten)[10] 3
Ireland (IRMA)[11] 1
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[12] 4
New Zealand (Listener)[13] 1
Norway (VG-lista)[14] 1
Spain (AFYVE)[15] 1
Sweden (Kvällstoppen)[16] 1
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[17] 2
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 2
US Billboard Hot 100[19] 3
West Germany (Official German Charts)[20] 1

Certifications and sales[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Ireland — 4,200[21]
United Kingdom (BPI)[22] Platinum 600,000‡
United States (RIAA)[23] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions[edit]

After Elvis Presley, the song has been performed by many other artists. Songwriter Mac Davis recorded his own version of the song for his 1970 album Song Painter. In 1991, Norman Cook issued a dance version with his Beats International collective, which reached number 44 in the UK charts.[24] In 1996, a 'Fugees-esque' hip-hop trio called Ghetto People had a top ten hit in the German charts with a version recorded with local singer Detlef Malinkewitz [de].[25] As Malinkewitz was recording under the pseudonym L-Viz at the time, some broadcasters in the UK credited the record to El Vez by mistake.[26]

Gospel recording artist Reverend James Cleveland recorded a gospel version of the song, and won his first Grammy Award for Best Soul Gospel Performance in 1975 with the Southern California Community Choir for his 1974 album release, In the Ghetto.[27]

Following the death of Mac Davis, Reba McEntire and Darius Rucker recorded a duet version of the song to honor him. It was released on November 11, 2020, immediately following a live performance at the 54th Annual Country Music Association Awards.[28]

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds version[edit]

"In the Ghetto"
Single by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
from the album From Her to Eternity
ReleasedJune 18, 1984
RecordedMarch 1984
LabelMute
Songwriter(s)Mac Davis
Producer(s)Flood
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds singles chronology
"In the Ghetto"
(1984) 		"Tupelo"
(1985)

"In the Ghetto" was covered by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and was their debut single. It was recorded at the Trident Studios in London and released as a 7-inch single on June 18, 1984, with the B-side "The Moon Is in the Gutter".[29] It reached 84 on the UK Singles Chart.[30] While originally not present on any album, it was later included on the CD reissue of the band's first album, From Her to Eternity.

Charts[edit]

Chart (1984) Peak
position
UK Indie Chart[31] 1

References[edit]

  1. ^ Carlin, Richard (2014). Country Music - A Biographical Dictionary. Taylor & Francis. p. 316.
  2. ^ Herrington, Chris (August 6, 2015). "The 50 Best Elvis Songs, 50-46: "In the Ghetto," "Stuck on You" and more". USA Today. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  3. ^ In the Ghetto - Elvis Presley on AllMusic; " A hauntingly lovely, dirge-like ballad rooted in gospel, "In the Ghetto" ..."
  4. ^ "Song info".
  5. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 192.
  6. ^ "Go-Set Australian charts - 23 August 1969". www.poparchives.com.au. Archived from the original on 7 September 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  7. ^ "Elvis Presley – In The Ghetto" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  8. ^ "Elvis Presley – In The Ghetto" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  9. ^ "Song artist 2 - Elvis Presley". tsort.info. Archived from the original on 7 November 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  10. ^ "Billboard". 23 August 1969.
  11. ^ "Irish Singles charts 1967-1969". UKMIX Forums. 26 August 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  12. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Elvis Presley" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
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External links[edit]

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