Breakaway (Irma Thomas song)

Infobox Single
Name = Breakaway


Artist = Irma Thomas, Tracey Ullman
from Album = You Broke my Heart in 17 Places (Ullman)
Released = 1964 (Thomas)
1983 (Ullman)
Format = 45 RPM
Recorded =
Genre = Pop R&B
Length =
Label =
Writer = Jackie DeShannon, Sharon Sheeley
Producer =
Certification =

"Breakaway" (spelled "Break-a-Way" on the original 45 RPM label, and spelled "Breakaway" on most subsequent releases and compilations) is a song written by Jackie DeShannon and Sharon Sheeley. It was originally recorded by Irma Thomas in 1964 and released as the B-Side of her biggest hit, the US #17 hit single "Wish Someone Would Care".

The original version of "Breakaway" was never a hit -- it did not make the Billboard Hot 100, nor the Bubbling Under charts, and the extensive chart archive at ARSA [http://www.las-solanas.com/arsa] does not record a single instance of any radio station anywhere in North America placing the track on its playlist. Nevertheless, "Breakaway" is today generally considered a better-remembered song than the A-Side of Thomas' record [http://www.kolumbus.fi/soulexpr/irmathomas.htm] [http://www.offbeat.com/artman/publish/printer_1285.shtml] , a situation that may be partly due to Tracey Ullman's hit 1980s cover.

"Breakaway" was Tracey Ullman's 1983 debut single in the UK, and reached #4 in the UK charts. The track then appeared on Ullman's album "You Broke My Heart in 17 Places", which was released in 1984.

In North America, "Breakaway" was actually Ullman's "second" single, being released after her hit "They Don't Know". It charted at a modest #70 in the US in 1984, although the video for Ullman's version received significant play on the then-fledgling MTV and Canada's MuchMusic.

The songs lyrics speak of the singer's inability to find the strength to leave an abusive relationship and describe a situation where the song's first person protagonist is repeatedly on the verge of running away from the bad situation only to find at the last moment she does not have the strength of will to follow through.

It is sometimes assumed that the song's lyrics and message were inspired by Irma Thomas' real marriage at the time which ended in 1966. [http://www.kolumbus.fi/soulexpr/irmathomas.htm] [http://www.helsinki.fi/~ilva/irma.html] However, as Thomas had no part in writing the song, this seems unlikely.

The song, as performed both by Thomas and Ullman has a fast tempo and a perky happy-sounding beat that stands out in stark irony to the song's gloomy lyrics.

This song should not be confused with a song of the same title recorded by Kelly Clarkson.

References

* [http://www.offbeat.com/artman/publish/printer_1285.shtml Article from OffBeat Magazine]
* [http://www.kolumbus.fi/soulexpr/irmathomas.htm Bio from "Soul Express"]
* [http://www.helsinki.fi/~ilva/irma.html Bio with song origin and inspiration]