Sonny & Tiny Tim... Wait, What?

In 1965, pop music duo Sonny & Cher took America by storm with their hit single “I Got You Babe,” a song that would soon define the duo for the rest of their careers and become a staple in their performances. The single was a duet between the couple telling each other about their love for one another. The song was created during the psychedelia age and soon became one of the defining singles of that era. The popularity of the song would lead to many covers from a diverse number of artists including David Bowie, Etta James, and Manfred Mann. However, there was one interesting cover that bent the performative roles of gender in music at the time. Just three years after the original release of the hit, Tiny Tim released his cover of the song.

Tiny Tim was an unusual artist who defined his career with his falsetto voice. Tiny Tim would often record in his signature falsetto, but he also had a deep range which he used for lower phrases. This was especially important in his cover recording of Sonny & Cher’s single. In his cover, not only did Tiny sing Sonny Bono’s baritone part of the duo, but he also sang Cher’s higher voice part. This was especially unusual because Tiny Tim had used his falsetto, but he had not been known to sing as a woman, just as a man in the falsetto.

Tiny Tim took this role-bending further when he chose to perform the single with contralto singer Eleanor Barooshian. In this performance, Tiny sang only Cher’s part and Barooshian sang Sonny’s. This performance was recorded by Peter Yarrow for “You Are What You Eat,” his documentary of the folk group Peter, Paul & Mary. Yarrow wanted to include many different musical acts of the time and after seeing both of the performers, he wanted them to be a part of his project. This performance was even more important than Tiny Tim’s first recording because it involved not just one person switching gender roles. This song is also very intriguing because it was recorded in a time where many new social movements, such as Civil Rights, were becoming prominent. This song may have appealed to those experiencing confusion in gender identity or those promoting gender equality.

The song shows obvious changing of roles between the performers and this could have been a very effective way of showing equality between them. Personally, I've found that the typical love song shows the woman in lower stature when compared to their male counterpart. I've observed this especially in female-performed music because it seems that when men write love songs, they are never submitting to the woman, just confessing their love. I feel that this creates the idea that men have control of the relationship, although they share just as much emotion as the woman. By changing the performance roles, Tiny Tim and Eleanor have created a sense of equality. They show that it is okay for either to assume the role of the other. There is no role more important than the other.

This was in a time when gender roles were changing and his song shows an equating of gender through musical performance. The feminist movement was pushing through with new ideas and thoughts about their role in society. This performance could have spawned the same idea in the heads of many feminists. But what other things could it have been?

Tiny Tim was not always seen as an accomplished and “skilled” artist. Many people in his time just saw him as another actor, as if he was just performing not only music, but a stage persona. Many found comedy in his music rather than taking him seriously. This could have been noted by Tiny Tim as he recorded some of his light-hearted tunes. Does that mean his original recording of “I Got You Babe” was not meant to be a statement of gender? This is a possibility as Tiny Tim would push the envelope on male voice performances and that recording especially pushed it.

Although Tiny Tim’s intentions could have been completely for comedy, the societal impact is what is truly important. Did the public view Tiny Tim’s recording as a joke or did they actually see this a positive event in gender equality? I actually believe that a majority of the public saw this cover as comedic. I don’t see many people at the time taking him seriously at all or finding any double meaning behind his actions. Although it is disappointing that the motives behind the recording are not for gender equality, one can still see something important in the release of the song.

Tiny Tim’s recording gives us an idea of what gender views were at time. In a more modern setting, a single like this may be taken differently as there are so many social movements occurring at this time with a focus on gender. It may be offensive to record something like this with intent of mockery of the other sex, although that may not have been the case even back then for Tiny Tim.

The purpose of recording the single may be foggy, but after observing the social situations of the time analyzing the artist’s history, one can assume that comedy was the true intent. Interpretation can still be done on this single in the modern era, allowing it to be viewed from a different viewpoint. This ability shows how as society changes, so does the world and music around us.