"Mr. Lee" by The Bobbettes.

OK, girls and boys, back to the 50s: Originally named The Harlem Queens, this R&B girl quintet penned and recorded their first hit in '57. A girl's crush on her teacher (whom they didn't particularly care for in real life). It topped the R&B charts and crossed over to peak at #6 Pop, the first girl group ever to accomplish that. Group? Song? Answer: "Mr. Lee" by The Bobbettes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ0eoH4l4us

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"All I Want Is You" ("The Little Farmer") from the Lay's 2025 Super Bowl commercial. (Posted on FB 6/24/25).

OK, girls and boys, coming at ya from farm (hint, hint!) country: Children's music singer/songwriter Barry Louis Polisar composed and first recorded recorded this catchy, lilting 1977 tune. Featured in the opening credits of the 2007 film "Juno". It was "rediscovered" and recorded under a new title by Caroline Says, becoming the background music for a 2025 Lay's Potato Chips Super Bowl commercial that captured the hearts of the nation and placed the spotlight on agriculture. Speaks of the deep-rooted traditions and noble hard work of the American farming family. Inspired by real-life 5th generation Wisconsin potato farmer Jeremie Pavelski and his kin, especially his 7-year-old daughter. Killer acoustic guitar work on the commercial evocative of the late-great John Prine's trademark fingerstyle picking. Original song? Lay's commercial version? Answer: "All I Want Is You" by Barry Louis Polisar. "The Little Farmer" by Car...
Read more

"Libre" (Free) by Nino Bravo.

Ok, boys and girls, back to the 70s (this one goes to my dear "mature" Spanish-speaking family and friends inspired by an article sent to me by my sister Gina): Spaniards Jose Luis Armenteros and Pablo Herrero penned this heavily political 1972 anthem about a young dreamer yearning for freedom during the Franco regime. Many thought that it was based on Peter Fetcher, the 18-year-old who was the first person who tried to cross the recently-built Berlin Wall in 1962, losing his life doing so. Herrero contradicted that theory, even though he admitted that it is indeed a parallel story. Spanish pop balladeer Luis Manuel Ferri Llopis' 1972 recording became a mega-hit in the Spanish-speaking world on both sides of the Atlantic. Because of its strong political connotations it was banned by Castro, Pinochet and many other dictators. Unfortunately, Ferri Llopis left us at age 28 in '73 at the height of his popularity due to an auto accident south of Madrid. Puerto Rican...
Read more

"I'll Do My Crying in the Rain" by The Everly Brothers.

OK, girls and boys, back to the 60s: It was 1961 and Brill Building publisher Aldon Music had two killer teams writing for them - Carole King/Gerry Goffin and Howard Greenfield/Jack Keller. On a whim, they decided to "switch partners" for one day. King wrote the music and Greenfield the lyrics for a poignant ballad about lost love. This was their one and only collaboration. First recorded by The Everly Brothers, it peaked at #6 on Billboard's Hot 100. Other memorable cover versions include Tammy Wynette ('81), Carole King ('83), Norwegian group A-ha ('90) and Art Garfunkel/James Taylor ('94). Song? Answer: "I'll Do My Crying in the Rain" by The Everly Brothers. When our dear oldest daughter Lauren Denise was a baby, the only way we could get her to go to sleep was for me to play the guitar and sing to her by the crib. This was one of my go-to tunes. The lion's share of The Everly Brothers' hits were composed by Felice and ...
Read more