When I first heard the top-ten hit,"They Don't Know" by Tracey Ullman back in 1983, I just thought she was simply some new British singer. She would later quickly become much more than that.
After her short-lived singing career, Ullman turned her attention to acting, particularly comedy and found great success on several English skit shows. The next time I heard about Tracey Ullman, she was premiering an American variety program, "The Tracey Ullman Show" that hit the airwaves in 1987. It became a popular show, winning several Emmys and introduced the animated characters, "The Simpsons" to the world (which spun-off to their own show in 1989 and now celebrating twenty-five years on the air). The talented Ullman would move on to films and HBO comedy specials and never looked back on her brief moment in music.
Today's tune was actually a cover of a song written and performed by Kirsty MacColl. Her version was also a hit, reaching number two on the U.K pop chart in 1979. There isn't a major difference between the two songs although Ullman's take has a more fun, poppy feel. MacColl passed away in 2000 during a freak boating accident in Mexico.
"They Don't Know" - Tracey Ullman (1983)
Here is a bonus of Kirsty MacColl's performance of the same tune:
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