Songs About Actors and Actresses

The entertainment world has not always glorified the rebel, but that trend changed during the last half of the twentieth century. The first successful film to glorify the rebel appeared in the 1950s, with James Dean as the star. The film, Rebel Without a Cause, helped launch Dean into an idol. His death in a car accident shortly before the release of the film caused his legend to skyrocket.

Rock music began that same decade, and has glorified the rebel ever since. Many songs have even been recorded about James Dean himself, from artists as varied as Phil Ochs and the Eagles. Morrissey, lead singer of the Smiths, used to make frequent pilgrimages to Dean's grave. No other actor embodies rock music as much or for as long as has James Dean.

Others have had songs written to them, such as Elton John's Candle in the Wind to Marilyn Monroe or Bob Seger's Watch Her Strut to Jane Fonda. Some actors have even been honored by having their names in the titles of songs, as The Eagles did with James Dean and Phil Ochs did with Jim Dean of Indiana. Here is a list of the best ten songs to contain an actor or actress in the title.

10.Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Carnes: The raspy voice of Carnes seems perfect for a song about the actress who often played a villainous female.

9.Bela Lugosi's Dead by Bauhaus: I first heard the song in the film The Hunger starring David Bowie. Its lyrics about bats and coffins make it a perfect song for a film about vampires and the legendary actor who portrayed the world's most famous one.

8.Vincent Price's Blues by ZZ Top: The celebrated actor appeared in several rock recordings, most notably Alice Cooper's Devil's Food and Michael Jackson's Thriller, so it seems appropriate that he should have a song titled in his honor.

7.Steve McQueen by Sheryl Crow: With words like "I'm an All-American rebel, Makin' my big getaway" and lines about driving fast, Crow's song could almost be about James Dean.

6.Ann Margaret by The Dismukes: This song appeared on the Turn 2 collection, and on it the indie band pays homage to the beautiful actress who once played Roger Daltrey's mom in Tommy.

5.Hats Off (Dennis Hopper) by The Streamliners: Kris Kristofferson mentions Hopper in The Pilgrim's Chapter, but the rock band honors him in this entire track from Signs.

4.Ron Howard's Brother by Antsy McLain and the Trailers: The song from Trailercana tells about meeting the brother of the famed producer who early in his life played Opie and later portrayed Richie Cunningham.

3.Liza by Loudon Wainwright: The folk singer on this track from Attempted Mustache reminisces about growing up next door to Liza Minelli, Judy Garland's daughter, who grew up to be a star actress in her own right.

2.Grace Kelly Blues by The Eels: When Mark Everett mumbles, "The actress gave up all her old dreams, And traded up now she's a queen," it is hard to know if he is sincere or satiric. The bulk of the work by The Eels, including the album Daisies of the Galaxy, suggests the latter.

1.The Late John Garfield Blues by John Prine: Garfield was the rebel long before James Dean. Unfortunately, his career was ruined by the Red Scare after he was blacklisted as sympathetic to communists. His personality and fate made him a fitting subject for this John Prine song, one of the many gems found on the Souvenirs album.