You Never Can Tell (song)

You Never Can Tell (song)

"You Never Can Tell" is a famous song written by Chuck Berry. He created it in the early 1960s. The song came out in 1964 on an album called St. Louis to Liverpool. It became very popular and reached number 14 on the music charts.

The song also did well in Canada and the Top 40 in the United Kingdom. A special part of the recording is a piano part played by Johnnie Johnson. The song is also known as "C'est La Vie" and "Teenage Wedding."

Description

The song is about two teenagers who get married and their life after that. They live in a small apartment with furniture from a store named Sears. The young man finds a job, and things go well for them. Later, they buy a nice car and visit New Orleans to celebrate their wedding day. Each part of the song ends with the line, "'C'est la vie,' say the old folks, 'it goes to show you never can tell.'" The piano tune was inspired by a song from 1953 called "Caribbean."

Chart performance

Certifications

Other versions

Emmylou Harris recorded "You Never Can Tell" and called it "(You Never Can Tell) C'est La Vie." This was the first song on her 1977 album Luxury Liner. Her version became very popular and did well on music charts.

Many other artists have also recorded or performed this song over the years. They include John Prine, Loggins and Messina, Daddy Cool, Aaron Neville, Bob Seger, Coldplay, and the Jerry Garcia Band, among others.

Pulp Fiction

The song became popular again after it was used in the 1994 film Pulp Fiction, directed by Quentin Tarantino. In the movie, the music played during a "Twist contest" where two characters, Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman), danced together. The song added a special sound to the story.

In other media

The song has been performed live by artists like Emmylou Harris. The Pelicans shared their version on their YouTube channel. It was planned to be in the dance video game Just Dance 2015 but was removed for an unknown reason. The song later appeared in Just Dance 2016.

In an episode of The Big Bang Theory, the character Leonard dances to the song when he and Penny are alone in their apartment after Sheldon moves out.