"Walking in Memphis" is a song written and originally recorded by American singer-songwriter Marc Cohn and released as a single in March 1991 by Atlantic Records.
The song's lyrics are autobiographical. They chronicle a trip that Cohn, then a struggling songwriter and singer, took to Memphis to overcome a bout of writer's block. After visiting the church where former soul singer Al Green was preaching, Elvis Presley's former home of Graceland, and a small nightclub in nearby Mississippi, he returned to New York and began composing the song.
"Walking in Memphis" reached number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1991. The song reached number three in Canada, number seven in Ireland, and number 11 in Australia. It received a Song of the Year nomination at the 34th Annual Grammy Awards in 1992, the same year that the 32-year-old Cohn won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. "Walking in Memphis" is Cohn's signature song. The song has been covered several times, notably in 1995 by Cher and in 2003 by Lonestar.
Inspiration Cohn has said that "Walking in Memphis" is "100 percent autobiographical". He has described it as a song about "a Jewish gospel-music-lover", and added that "the song is about more than just a place; it's about a kind of spiritual awakening, one of those trips where you're different when you leave." He was inspired to write "Walking in Memphis" by a 1985 visit to the Memphis, Tennessee, area. At the time, he was working as a session singer in New York City while pursuing a recording contract. In 2014, he recalled:One night while listening to all of my demos, I came to the realization that I shouldn't be signed, because I didn't have any great songs yet. ... I was 28 years old and not in love with my songs. James Taylor had written 'Fire and Rain' when he was 18, and Jackson Browne wrote 'These Days' when he was only 17. I thought: 'I'm already ten years older than these geniuses. It's never going to happen for me.' So it was a pretty desperate time, and I went to Memphis with that struggle at the forefront of my mind. After reading that James Taylor overcame writer's block by going to a place he had never been, Cohn visited Memphis.
A friend had told him "there were two things in particular that I had to do [in Memphis], things that would forever change me. They later became the centerpieces of 'Walking in Memphis'." Cohn added: "The first thing was go to the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church on a Sunday morning to hear the Reverend Al Green preach. ... I [soon] had chills running up and down my spine. The service was so deeply moving that I found myself with sweat running down my face and tears in my eyes, totally enveloped by everything I was seeing and hearing [...] Al Green's service was one of the great experiences of my life."
The second piece of advice was that Cohn visit the Hollywood Café in Robinsonville, Mississippi (present-day Tunica Resorts, 35 miles south of Memphis), to see Muriel Davis Wilkins, a retired schoolteacher who performed at the cafe on Friday nights. Cohn remembered: When I arrived, Muriel, who ... was in her 60s, was onstage playing a beat-up old upright piano and singing gospel standards ... I felt an immediate connection to her voice, her spirit, her face, and her smile. I was totally transfixed by her music. While many of the patrons were busy eating and not paying close attention to Muriel, I couldn't take my eyes off her. During her breaks, the two of us would talk. Cohn also described his conversations with Wilkins that evening, including discussion of his mother's death during his childhood, an event he had emotionally grappled with his entire life. Wilkins invited Cohn to sing a few songs, including the traditional hymn "Amazing Grace", an event he found deeply moving.
Composition Soon after returning to New York City, Cohn began constructing the melody for "Walking in Memphis" on his guitar:The music for 'Walking in Memphis', except for the bridge, is really just the same thing over and over again. It's an attempt to keep things simple so that the narrative is what the listener focuses on. The story keeps changing; it goes from one scenario to another, all following the thread of my elation, described in the lyric 'Walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale'. What's being expressed is my love of music and the spiritual transformation I've always felt through it.
Cohn did not think the song worked on the guitar and so switched to his piano, at which point the process started to flow. In an interview with Songwriting Magazine, Cohn said while working on "Walking in Memphis" he felt as if he'd "turned a corner as a songwriter" and was confident in the song's structure beginning with vocals and piano and slowly adding the full band before returning to vocals and piano for the conclusion.
Cohn mentions Muriel Wilkins: Now Muriel plays piano every Friday at the Hollywood And they brought me down to see her and they asked me if I would Do a little number, and I sang with all my might She said "Tell me are you a Christian child?" I said "Ma’am I am tonight." In 2014, Cohn noted: The line: 'Tell me are you a Christian child, and I said 'Ma'am I am tonight' – even in the moment I wrote it down, I knew I was getting closer to finding my songwriting voice. To this day, people still ask me if I am a Christian. While I have to admit that I enjoy the confusion the lyric brings, the thing that makes that line work is the fact that I'm a Jew. So many great artists over the years needed to hide the fact that they were Jewish to protect themselves and their families from anti-Semitism, so I'm proud of the fact that I could come right out and practically announce my religion on the first song I ever released.
In 1986, Cohn returned to the Hollywood Café to play "Walking in Memphis" and the other songs from his new album for Wilkins. After he finished, Wilkins said, "'You know the one where you mention me at the end? That's the best one you got!'" She died in October 1990, just before Cohn released "Walking in Memphis".
Critical reception Pan-European magazine Music & Media described "Walking in Memphis" as "an inspiring song about the capitol of rock & roll, by this promising American singer/songwriter who is backed by an impressive gospel choir." Bobby Surf from NME said the song is "the Tennessee Tourist Board's wettest dream come true". He added, "To conclude that 'Walking in Memphis' is a mite similar to fellow pop hagiographers Danny Wilson's "Mary's Prayer" is to do Cohn a serious disservice. Firstly, he has a fine, grown up voice and a manner at the piano that mercifully skirts the morbid pomposity composing at that instrument so often engenders."
Commercial performance Released as the first single from Cohn's self-titled debut album in March 1991, "Walking in Memphis" debuted at number 87 on the US Hot 100 in Billboard magazine dated March 30, 1991, with a subsequent two-month gradual chart ascent to the top 40. The single's number 38 ranking on the Hot 100 dated May 25, 1991, inaugurated a ten-week top 40 tenure with a peak of number 13 for two weeks in July 1991. Overall, "Walking in Memphis" spent 23 weeks on the Hot 100. "Walking in Memphis" was also a hit on Billboards Adult Contemporary chart (number 12) and crossed-over to the magazine's Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart (number 74). In Canada, the song peaked at number three on the week dated July 13, 1991.
During its original release, "Walking in Memphis" reached number seven in Ireland but stalled at number 66 in the UK singles chart; its September 1991 re-release returned "Walking in Memphis" to the Irish top 20 at number 16 and introduced the single to the UK top 30 with a peak of number 22. (The re-release of "Walking in Memphis" replaced the original B-side, "Dig Down Deep", with a live version of "Silver Thunderbird" recorded July 17, 1991.) "Walking in Memphis" was also a top-twenty hit in both Australia and New Zealand, with chart peaks of number 11 and 18. In Europe, the single charted in France (number 45), Germany (number 25), the Netherlands (number 54), and Sweden (number 36).
At the 34th Grammy Awards in February 1992, "Walking in Memphis" was nominated for Song of the Year. Also, Cohn was nominated for the Best Pop Male Vocalist award for his vocals in "Walking in Memphis". Cohn did not win either award, although he did win the Grammy for Best New Artist.
"Walking in Memphis" is Cohn's signature song.
Track listings and formats 7-inch single (first UK release) "Walking in Memphis" – 4:18 "Dig Down Deep" – 5:08
7-inch single (second UK release) "Walking in Memphis" – 4:18 "Silver Thunderbird" (live) – 5:26
CD maxi "Walking in Memphis" – 4:18 "Dig Down Deep" – 5:08 "Saving the Best for Last" – 5:31
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1991–1992)PeakpositionEurope (Eurochart Hot 100)35Europe (European Hit Radio)19Luxembourg (Radio Luxembourg)5UK Airplay (Music Week)8US Billboard Hot 10013US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)12US Album Rock Tracks (Billboard)7US Hot Country Singles & Tracks (Billboard)74US Cash Box Top 10011
Year-end charts Chart (1991)PositionAustralia (ARIA)82Canada Top Singles (RPM)35Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)23Germany (Media Control)86US Album Rock Tracks (Billboard)42
Certifications
Cher version
Background "Walking in Memphis" was remade by American singer and actress Cher for her 21st studio album, It's a Man's World (1995). It was produced by Christopher Neil and released as the album's lead single in the United Kingdom on October 16, 1995, by WEA. Her version debuted at number 11 on the UK Singles chart for the week ending October 28, 1995, with this ultimately proving its peak position.
Although largely faithful to the original, Cher's version replaces the female piano player referenced, Muriel, with a male player, Gabriel, with the line "Ma'am, I am [a Christian] tonight" amended to "Man, I am tonight" accordingly. Additionally, Cohn's repetition of the first verse is largely omitted, being replaced with a repetition of the first line, "Put on my blue suede shoes", only.
"Walking in Memphis" was included in the set list for Cher's 1999–2000 Do You Believe? Tour, the first Cher tour subsequent to her recording of the song. In introducing the number, Cher would overstate how unsuccessful her version of "Walking in Memphis" was, citing Cohn's original as "a huge hit" and calling her own version "a huge bomb". Her cover was used on The X-Files in the final scene of the fifth-season episode "The Post-Modern Prometheus".
Critical reception AllMusic described Cher's cover version of "Walking in Memphis" as "rousing". Jim Farber from Entertainment Weekly stated that it "must be heard to be believed." Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote, "The regular version of Marc Cohn's low key ballad doesn't do much justice to Cher's throaty voice, which needs more drama."
Live performances Do You Believe? Tour The Farewell Tour (sung on the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and the ninth leg of the tour) Cher at the Colosseum Dressed to Kill Tour Classic Cher Here We Go Again Tour
Track listings European cassette and 7-inch single "Walking in Memphis" – 3:55 "Angels Running" – 4:35
European CD single "Walking in Memphis" – 3:55 "Angels Running" – 4:35 "Walking in Memphis" (Shut Up & Dance Instrumental) – 5:16
European remix CD and 12-inch single''' "Walking in Memphis" (Shut Up & Dance Vocal) – 5:04 "Walking in Memphis" (Shut Up & Dance Instrumental) – 5:10 "Walking in Memphis" (Rated P.G. Mix) – 7:25 "Walking in Memphis" (Baby Doc Mix) – 7:11
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1995–1996)PeakpositionAustralia (ARIA) N.B. The HP column displays the highest peak reached.65Denmark (Tjeklisten)19Estonia (Eesti Top 20)5Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)36Europe (European AC Radio)9Europe (European Hit Radio)16Italy Airplay (Music & Media)10Poland Airplay (Music & Media)2UK Radio Airplay (OCC)8
Year-end charts