Date: Mar 30, 1963
Weeks: 4
This is classic doo-wop style music. Or "doo-lang," according to the backup singers. I suppose it's a representative example of the genre, but it's not one of the better examples.
The biggest problem is the singers, especially the lead. Her pitch doesn't seem to be quite right, leading to some pretty painful examples of singing out of tune, especially in the choruses. When the backup singers switch from "doo-lang" to "Oh yeah" the vocals get especially painful all around. Vocal talent isn't necessarily required for pop music, but this particular sub-genre generally relies on vocal harmonies, and the Chiffons are not as good at harmonizing as their contemporaries, such as the Supremes.
The songwriting is also kind of weak. The lyrics aren't anything special, either positively or negatively. It's typical generic teenage crush stuff. Where it's weak is the meter. The singer has to work hard to make the lyrics fit in the space she's given, especially on the line "But then I really can't shy." It feels rushed and it doesn't fit.
The backing music is probably the best part, but even then it's not really anything special. Bass, light guitar, drums, and so on. This is nothing you haven't heard in other, better doo-wop songs.
This song may be best known as the song that George Harrison supposedly plagiarized "My Sweet Lord" (#247) from. Many people have arranged intriguing comparisons. I have to say I can definitely hear the similarities. It's too bad he was sued over supposedly plagiarizing a pretty weak song.
My verdict: Don't like it. The singing and songwriting are pretty weak and the music isn't sufficiently special to make up for it.
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