Fancy
by Reba McEntire

Album: Rumor Has It (1990)
Play Video
  • She said Fancy was my name
    She said Fancy was my name
    She said Fancy was my name
    She said Fancy was my name

    I remember it all very well, lookin' back
    It was the summer I turned eighteen
    We lived in a one room, rundown shack
    On the outskirts of New Orleans
    We didn't have money for food or rent
    To say the least, we were hard pressed
    Then mama spent every last penny we had
    To buy me a dancin' dress

    My mama washed and combed and curled my hair
    And then she painted my eyes and lips (lips), then I stepped into a satin
    Dancin' dress that had a split from the side clean up to my hip
    It was red velvet trim and it fit me good
    Standin' back from the lookin' glass
    There stood a woman where a half gown kid had stood

    She said, "Here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down"
    She said, "Here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down"

    Mama dabbed a little bit of perfume on my neck
    Then she kissed my cheek
    And then I saw the tears wellin' up in her troubled eyes
    As she started to speak
    She looked at our pitiful shack
    And then she looked at me and took a ragged breath
    She said, "Your pa's runned off and I'm real sick
    And the baby's gonna starve to death"

    She handed me a heart shaped locket that said
    "To thine own self be true"
    And I shivered as I watched a roach crawl across
    The toe of my high heel shoe
    It sounded like somebody else, it was talkin'
    Askin', "Mama, what do I do?"
    She said, "Just be nice to the gentlemen, Fancy
    They'll be nice to you"

    She said, "Here's your one-chance, Fancy, don't let me down
    Here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down
    Lord, forgive me for what I do
    But if you want out, well, it's up to you
    Now don't let me down now, your mama's gonna move you uptown"

    Well, that was the last time I saw my ma
    The night I left that rickety shack
    The welfare people came and took the baby
    Mama died and I ain't been back

    But the wheels of fate had started to turn
    And for me there was no way out
    It wasn't very long 'til I knew exactly
    What my mama been talkin' about

    I knew what I had to do and I made myself this solemn vow
    That I's gonna be a lady someday
    Though I don't know when or how
    But I couldn't see spending the rest of my life
    With my head hung down in shame
    You know I might have been born just plain white trash
    But Fancy was my name

    She said, "Here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down"
    She said, "Here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down"

    It wasn't long after a benevolent man
    Took me in off the streets
    One week later, I was pourin' his tea
    In a five room hotel suite (yes she was)

    I charmed a king, a congressman and an occasional aristocrat
    And then I got me a Georgia mansion
    And an elegant New York townhouse flat
    And I ain't done bad (she ain't done bad)

    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name
    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name (and I ain't done bad, she ain't done bad)
    She said, she said Fancy was my name
    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name

    Now in this world, there's a lot of self-righteous hypocrites
    That'd call me bad (bad)
    And criticize mama for turning me out, no matter how little we had

    But though I ain't had to worry 'bout nothin'
    For nigh on fifteen years
    Well, I can still hear the desperation
    In my poor mama's voice ringin' in my ears

    "Here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down
    Oh, here's your one chance, Fancy, don't let me down
    Lord, forgive me for what I do
    But if you want out, well, it's up to you
    Now don't let me down hun, your mama's gonna move you uptown"
    Oh and I guess she did

    She said, she said Fancy was my name
    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name (oh and I guess she did)
    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name
    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name (oh and I guess she did)
    She said, she said Fancy was my name
    She said, she said, she said Fancy was my name (oh and I guess she did)
    She said, she said Fancy was my name
    She said, she said she said Fancy was my name Writer/s: Bobbie Gentry
    Publisher: Universal Music Publishing Group
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 9

  • Hepsheba from IowaIn the original lyrics was Fancy 18? It seems she was younger?
  • Alyssa Ferrera from Louisiana Just watched the video for the first time in a long time. When she visits the graveyard there are two graves, the mama and someone else. The dad had run off, so it’s not him. The welfare people had taken the baby, so it’s not the baby. Who is it??
  • William Lee from DixieIs that a 53 ford in the video?
  • Brenda L Johnson from Shorewood, IlReba McEntire performs "Fancy" superbly!! Listening to Reba sing it never gets old!!
  • Camille from Toronto, OhIn the telling of this fictional autobiography, incredibly rhythmic lyrics are chosen and placed like strands of silk, woven together to create the finest pictorial tapestry. The sung words sound exactly as though a real life Fancy was reminiscing right beside you. The subject matter could be discussed and dissected endlessly; much is divulged in a few short minutes in the telling of this tale. The songwriter, Bobby Jo Gentry, crafted a compelling story so rich in description and perfect in delivery we are immediately transported to the run down, rickety shack outside of New Orleans. Fancy's mother is desperate to propel her daughter out of a life of abject poverty, but at what cost? Are the mother's actions justified? Exactly what is the mother's background? Does her mother truly see her daughter's potential, or is it merely desperate thinking? Fancy is excited to see the red satin dress in all its finery--something so colorful, luxurious and frivolous would be a striking contrast to her dreary surroundings. She witnesses her own striking transformation as she struggles to comprehend the ramifications of her mother's instructions on how to break free from the oppression she's lived in. The listener wants Fancy to rise above her circumstances and is glad to find out that she does, but it means being glad that she found success as a prostitute or kept woman. A part of us wants to believe that being in the presence of powerful men and amassing personal wealth via this profession is better than living in poverty and is a happy existence, even if it meant selling her body. Is that something to be happy about? There is room for discussion because as iconic as the song is, most young women who turn to this lifestyle have no power and live a miserable, bleak existence. The listener struggles with these issues. Fancy sums her success up with the words: "And I ain't done bad." Does that mean she has done well for herself? Or does it mean that she sees nothing morally wrong with the way she survived and thrived? In the end, Fancy's driving force remains the memory of desperation in her mama's voice telling her she's got one chance to make it out of hell.
  • Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn November 16th 1969, the original version of "Fancy" by Bobbi Gentry entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #94; and on February 1st, 1970 it peaked at #31 {for 2 weeks} and spent 14 weeks on the Top 100...
    And on February 8th, 1970 it reached #1 {for 2 weeks} on the Canadian RPM Top Country Singles chart...
    Between 1967 and 1976 she entered the Top 100 eleven* different times; three of those times with the same song, "Ode to Billie Joe", it reached #1 {for 4 weeks} in 1967, re-entered the chart in 1976 & peaked at #54, then she re-recorded it for the Warner Bros. movie of the same name, and that version reached #65...
    * Also three of those eleven entries were duets with Glen Campbell; "Mornin' Glory" {#74 in 1968}, "Let It Be Me" {#36 in 1969}, and "All I Have to Do Is Dream" {#27 in 1970}...
    Ms. Gentry, born Roberta Lee Streeter, will celebrated her 71st birthday come next July 27th {2015} and may God bless and watch over Mr. Campbell.
  • Betty from Dayton, OhI sung this song for karaoke back in 94' when karaoke was not big like it is now....i still love it to this day!
  • Daniel from Toledo, OhThis song was a big hit for Bobbie Gentry in 1969-1970. Despite being banned on many radio station, it had a four month run on the Billboard hot 100 pop singles chart going #31 pop for two weeks. It also went #26 country and #8 adult contemporary. It earned Bobbie both an acm and grammy nomination for top female vocal of 1970. In Canada, the song went #1 country and #26 pop for Bobbie.
  • Brit from Nashville, TnThis song never became a #1 hit for Ms. McEntire. Although, she still considers it her "career" song.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Bass Player Scott Edwards

Bass Player Scott EdwardsSong Writing

Scott was Stevie Wonder's bass player before becoming a top session player. Hits he played on include "I Will Survive," "Being With You" and "Sara Smile."

Stan Ridgway

Stan RidgwaySongwriter Interviews

Go beyond the Wall of Voodoo with this cinematic songwriter.

dUg Pinnick of King's X

dUg Pinnick of King's XSongwriter Interviews

dUg dIgs into his King's X metal classics and his many side projects, including the one with Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam.

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy and Black Star RidersSongwriter Interviews

Writing with Phil Lynott, Scott saw their ill-fated frontman move to a darker place in his life and lyrics.

Scott Stapp

Scott StappSongwriter Interviews

The Creed lead singer reveals the "ego and self-fulfillment" he now sees in one of the band's biggest hits.

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TV

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TVSong Writing

Shows like Dawson's Creek, Grey's Anatomy and Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the way songs were heard on TV, and produced some hits in the process.

Songfacts® Newsletter

A monthly update on our latest interviews, stories and added songs

Information

Follow Us

Contribution

©2026 Songfacts, LLC