Don’t Cry for Me Argentina

“Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” is the iconic song record by English singer and actress Julie Covington for the 1976 concept album “Evita” (and eventually musical) created by composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Tim Rice. The song was also produced by both Lloyd Webber and Rice, with David Land credited as well.

“Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” was written by Lloyd Webber and Rice when they were researching the life of Argentine leader Eva Perón. After the song was fully composed, Rice and Lloyd Weber found it difficult to find the right musical actress to perform the songs from “Evita”. Their first choice had been Yvonne Elliman, but she had moved to the United States. Lloyd Weber and Rice discovered Julie Covington form watching a musical television show “Rock Follies”. However, soon after the album had been completed, Covington became uninterested in the project and refused to take part in any promotions, and the original version of the song has never been performed live.

There is no official music video for the song, however a fan made music video by YouTube user “MrHaggis64”, featuring black and white photos of Eva Perón. As of May 2020, the video has 1.3 million views since its upload in June 2010.

Release Date: 12th November 1976

Songwriter/s: Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice

Producer/s: Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice & David Land

Label: MCA

Chart Rankings & Certifications: The original version of “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” hit #1 on Australian charts, Belgium charts, in Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the UK. It also charted at #14 in Austria, #4 in Germany, #10 in Norway, #2 in Sweden and #3 in Switzerland. The song is certified Gold in the UK.

The lyrics to “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” can be found here: LINK