On this day in music history: November 28, 1964 - Leader Of The Pack by The Shangri-Las hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 1 week. Written and produced by George Shadow Morton, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, it will be the biggest hit for the Queens, NY quartet. The group consists of two sets of sisters, Betty and Mary Weiss and twins Marge and Mary Ann Ganser. They will be signed to Jerry Leiber & Mike Stollers Red Bird label after first being discovered by Artie Ripp. The track is recorded at Ultrasonic Sound Studios in New York City in July 1964. Only fifteen years old at the time of the session, lead singer Mary Weiss, inhibited by the studio will need to be coached by producer Jeff Barry through the recording with him standing across from her and mouthing the words. The released take will capture the young singer crying while delivering her vocal. Entering the Hot 100 at #86 on October 10, 1964, it will climb to the top of the chart seven weeks later. Acknowledged as a classic of the 60s girl group genre, Leader Of The Pack will be covered numerous times over the years including versions by Bette Midler and Twisted Sister. It will also be parodied in songs such as The Detergents (featuring future Archies lead singer Ron Dante) Leader Of The Laundromat and Jimmy Cross I Want My Baby Back, both released in 1965. The Shangri-Las original version will be featured in the film Goodfellas in 1990.
Posted on: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 23:00:13 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015