Silver Threads and Golden Needles
Wanda Jackson / The Springfields / Linda Ronstadt

Song Lyrics / Chart History / Artist Information

  • Written by Jack Rhodes and Dick Reynolds in 1956
  • Originally performed by Wanda Jackson (born Wanda Jean Jackson on 10/20/37 in Maud, Oklahoma)
  • Twice nominated for a Grammy award, Jackson has had 6 songs in the Hot 100 during her ongoing career, and has reached the US country charts chart a whopping 26 times
  • One of (if not the first) great female rock & roll performers, her styles have ranged from rockabilly to country to gospel
  • She is still extremely popular overseas as well as in the US, having had #1 hits in Japan, Germany, and Scandinavia
  • As of 2008 she continues to perform her unique mix of country, rockabilly, and gospel
  • Jackson has been inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and there is a growing push to get her into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
  • While her 1956 recording of Silver Threads and Golden Needles did not make the US charts, it is still popular on her concert appearances
  • In 1962 the British pop/folk group The Springfields recorded the song and reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart
  • The Springfields consisted of:
    • Dusty Springfield (born Mary Isabel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien 4/16/39 in West Hampstead England, died of breast cancer 3/2/99 at the age of 59)
    • Tom Springfield, (born Dion O'Brien, 7/2/34 in Hampstead England).  He is Dusty's older brother
    • Mike Hurst (born Michael John Longhurst-Pickworth 9/19/41 in Kilburn, England. He joined The Springfields just before they recorded Silver Threads and Golden Needles
  • The Springfields' cover version of Silver Threads and Golden Needles made them the first UK based vocal group to reach the Top 20 on the Billboard magazine Hot 100 singles chart
  • The Springfields officially disbanded in 1963, although Dusty Springfield went on to a very successful solo career that continued up until her untimely death from breast cancer in 1999
  • The song has also been recorded by Janice Joplin, Jody Miller, Roy Clark, Jean Shepard, The Cowsills, Brenda Lee, Sandy Denny, Holly Foster, and The Grateful Dead, but none of these versions cracked the Billboard Top 40 charts
  • The most popular and best known cover version in the US was done by Linda Ronstadt (born 7/15/46 in Tuscon Arizona)in 1974, but this version also failed to crack the Top 40
  • Her version reached #67 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #20 on the Country Singles chart
  • Ronstadt scored 21 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 between 1967 and 1990
  • Yet another cover version of the song was recorded by Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Tammy Wynette for the movie Honky Tonk Angels

Other songs by Linda Ronstadt also performed by Oracle Band:

Other songs by Dusty Springfield also performed by Oracle Band:

  • You Don't Have To Say You Love Me

MP3 Downloads

Download an MP3 of the song Silver Threads and Golden Needles for under $1.00 from Amazon.com

Wanda Jackson

Silver Threads And Golden Needles (2002 Digital Remaster)

Linda Ronstadt Silver Threads And Golden Needles (2006 Digital Remaster)
Brenda Lee Silver Threads And Golden Needles
Holly Foster Silver Threads and Golden Needles
Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette Silver Threads And Golden Needles (Album Version)
   

Song Lyrics -
Silver Threads & Golden Needles

I don't want your lonely mansion
With a tear in every room
All I want's the love you've promised
Beneath the halo moon
But you think I should be happy
With your money and your name
Sit alone and hide my sorrows
While you play your cheatin' game

Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot
mend this heart of mine
And I dare drown my sorrow
In
the warm glow of your mind
You can't buy my love with money
'Cause
I ain't never been that kind
Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot
mend this heart of mine

Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot
mend this heart of mine
And I dare drown my sorrow
In
the warm glow of your mind
You can't buy my love with money
'Cause
I ain't never been that kind
Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot
mend this heart of mine


Note that the lyrics posted here are those as interpreted and performed by The Oracle Band.  Their use here is intended as an aid for people in selecting music for their wedding reception or private party, and may not be reproduced for any commercial, for-profit use.

Wanda Jackson
Vintage Collectors Series

Here's a great collection of songs from the worlds first female rock & roller, Wanda Jackson.

In addition to Silver Threads and Golden Needles, you get her classic hit song "Let's Have A  Party", plus 18 more rockabilly and country tunes from this wonderful artist.


Dusty Springfield
The Ultimate Collection

This collection of Dusty Springfield's hits goes all the way from Silver Threads and Golden Needles with The Springfields all the way up to her last hit "What Have I Done To Deserve This" with the Pet Shop Boys in 1987

Other highlights include:

Wishin' and Hopin
You Don't Have to Say You Love Me
The Look of Love
I Only Want To Be With You
...and 15 more




Chicken Soup For The Country Soul

If you like great country music collections, here a good one to have on hand.  It includes Silver Threads and Golden Needles by Linda Ronstadt, plus songs from Alabama, Shenandoah, Holly Dunn, Restless Heart, Randy Travis, and Dolly Parton, including:

Forever and Ever Amen
I Will Always Love You
Daddy's Hands
I'll Still Be Loving You
...and 9 more

This is a great album at a reasonable price.  Order today from Amazon.com



Heroes of Country Music Volume 5

This album is no longer in print but is available from a number of CD dealers both new and used.  The collection of songs is an interesting eclectic mix of well known and less well known songs.  For example, in addition to Linda Ronstadt's Silver Threads & Golden Needles, you get:

Amie
(Pure Prairie League)
Fire on The Mountain
(Marshall Tucker Band)
Glendale Train
(New Riders from the Purple Sage)
Orange Blossom Special
(Seatrain)
Sin City
(Flying Burrito Brothers)
...and 12 more tracks!

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