Remake-off: Song #83: "Go Away Little Girl" by Steve Lawrence vs. Song #260: "Go Away Little Girl" by Donny Osmond

Date: Jan 12, 1963
Weeks: 2

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 vs.

Date: Sept 11, 1971
Weeks: 3

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Both incarnations of this song have so many problems that I'm at a bit of a loss for where to even begin. I suppose the fundamental problem is the same: it's a a cowboy-sounding ballad with way too much going on in what could otherwise be a charmingly simple song.

Lawrence's version starts out okay, sounding like he's settled on a song that should be sung by a cowboy as his horse strolls down the dusty trail. But then for some reason the sound mix throws in a second track where he harmonizes with himself. And then a string section comes in, which makes it feel less like a cowboy sing-along and more like a cowboy movie. Which wouldn't be all bad, but I don't think the song is aiming for cowboy movie chic.

Osmond's version, oddly, maintains a lot of that same cowboy western sound. The horse-hoof clopping sound has been toned down a bit, but in its place is an unwelcome backup chorus, and a much larger backing orchestra. And Osmond's vocals are unrefined. When he reaches for those upper notes, you can hear him straining. I suppose that's why they added the backup chorus, so he wouldn't have to do quite so much.

The lyrics bug me, but for different reasons. The song is about the singer feeling tempted by the "little girl," but not wanting to be unfaithful to the relationship he's in. And so he begs her to "go away." "You're much too hard to resist," he says. He's not quite blaming her for his attraction to her, but it's close enough to make me uncomfortable.

And then we have the diminutive "little girl" problem. Steve, if that girl is so "little," you probably shouldn't be tempted by her in the first place. Either she's a woman and the issue with your attraction is that you're seeing someone else, or she's underage and that's the problem with your attraction.

That's less of a problem for Osmond, who is about 14 here, but sounds like he's all of 10. "Little Girl" is a bit more appropriate when sung by a little boy. But then the rest of the lyrics start to seem inappropriate. "I know that your lips are sweet." You do? How do you know that? "When you're near me like this you're much too hard to resist." That's an understandable line coming from a grown man, but from a boy it sounds like he's repeating something he heard without knowing what it means. And I suppose that feeling is enhanced by the fact that he's doing a cover.

My verdict: Don't like it. I don't like either one, but Steve Lawrence's version is better. Donny Osmond's voice just isn't ready yet for this. He did mature into a much better performer eventually, though.

Song #58: "Take Good Care Of My Baby" by Bobby Vee

Date: Sept 18, 1961
Weeks: 3

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This is a pretty good 50s-style doo-wop song. The bass and drum lines are fun and full of energy, and keep the song's momentum from stalling. There are some string parts here and while I usually complain about those, they mostly work here. I don't care for the plunked violins that arrive like unwelcome punctuation in the middle of a flowing sentence, but the general string, piano, and backing chorus actually help the song. They make it feel bigger without making it feel clunkier or more ponderous. I really like the bridge, too, when the drum and bass stop just long enough to focus your attention and then hit you hard with some stings. That's good stuff.

Bobby Vee also has a pretty nice voice. There's a little too much vibratto in some of his longer sustained notes, but it never gets irritating. He's good at knowing when to punch up a note with some fanciness, and when to just sing it straight.

Lyrically, the song is just okay. This is a message to the singer's ex's new guy. He's imploring the new guy to treat her well. That's not so bad in itself. I kind of sympathize with the idea that he wants his ex to be happy, and that he wants this guy to treat her well. It's the relationship equivalent of the sports adage that it's better to be beaten by the eventual champion. For the most part, it's not too bad from the angle of treating the ex as some kind of property to be competed over or exchanged. Unfortunately, then comes the line "And if you should discover that you don't really love her, just send my baby back home to me." Dude, if the new guy doesn't work out, you don't automatically get to take her back. Your relationship failed for some reason. Wish her happiness and then move on. It's better for both of you.

My verdict: Like it. It's a jaunty little tune, and I approve of that.

Song #63: "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by The Tokens

Date: Dec 18, 1961
Weeks: 3

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I'm not sure it's even possible to dislike this song. Even if you can't appreciate it on its own merits, you can appreciate it as a funny novelty song. It works either way, depending on your mood.

The falsetto lead vocals are probably the thing that grab the attention first. This is an era when falsetto vocals worked pretty well, and this song demonstrates why. The singer really goes for it with bravado during his featured vocal solo, and I appreciate that. I'm not sure the vocals in the verses needed to be the same falsetto, but it adds to the consistency of presentation. The backing vocal harmony is also great fun, and the soprano wailing over the top is absurdly crazy, in a great way. I think this song gets a bad reputation because it's fun to sing no matter how good you are at it, and that probably leads to a lot of bad singers leaving people with a bad impression of the song. But this performance is really quite good.

The music is well-chosen to enhance the vocals just enough without overpowering them, and keeps within the jungle theme. Most of the music is basic drums and light strummy guitars, but then there's also a fun sax solo in the bridge. It's just enough to be interesting without conflicting with the vocals or becoming too much.

The lyrics seem like kind of a sweet lullaby for kids. "In the jungle... the lion sleeps tonight." It's telling you not to worry about the dangers of the world outside, represented by the lion, because they're currently at rest and not going to bother you just now. There's not much more too it than that, and there doesn't need to be.

For what it's worth, I found the history of this song to be an interesting story. The original recording of the song on which it's based is also an interesting listen.

My verdict: Like it. It's charmingly corny, and you can't help but sing along. "Wimoweh, A-Wimoweh."

Song #50: "Mother-In-Law" by Ernie K-Doe

Date: May 22, 1961
Weeks: 1

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Is... is this supposed to be a novelty song? It comes across like something I'd expect to hear on a Dr. Demento collection. And the subject matter of a guy singing about his evil mother-in-law seems like it's supposed to be funny. But he sounds so sincere, and novelty songs I've heard from this era are rarely this dry and subtle. But then maybe that's part of the joke. I don't know, 1961, I'm not sure I get your sense of humor.

The song is about the singer's evil mother-in-law. And I don't mean that metaphorically. He actually uses the words "Satan should be her name. To me they're about the same." Ultimately, his problem with his mother-in-law comes down to the stress she puts on his marriage. She criticizes how much money he makes, "she thinks her advice is the Constitution." Yeah, that's a bad situation, I suppose, but I guess the joke of the evil mother-in-law has been worn out by years of situation comedies and beer commercials. And it wasn't that great a joke in the first place, so age and overused has really diminished its charm. I suppose this song manages to balance a kernel of truth (other people commenting on your marriage can make it extra stressful) with an exaggerated joke (she's the Devil), in a way that works okay. I get a bit of wry amusement from the song.

Musically, I really like it. This is basic 1950s R&B, with all the gentle dance bop beat that implies. The guitar and drums are simple and effective. The transitions between verse and chorus are accented with horns effectively. There's a nice piano bridge. Everything is very basic and simple and clean. This is one of the building blocks of rock and roll, here. Ernie K-Doe himself does a fine job singing. His voice is very appealing and he has a good rhythmic sense. His background singers are a little goofier, especially the guy singing bass, but it's not so bad.

My verdict: Like it. The music is basic classic rock and roll and I'd listen to it under any lyrics. The lyrics are kind of silly, and the joke isn't all that funny, but they're fairly inoffensive overall.

Song #59: "Hit The Road Jack" by Ray Charles and his Orchestra

Date: Oct 9, 1961
Weeks: 2

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I always thought this song was older than this. It sounds like a big band song from the 1940s, and seems to be such a widely-known phrase in the culture that I thought its origin must have been older  than 1961. But no, although Ray Charles didn't write it, he did make the original recording. I spent some time poking around the Internet to see if I could find an older origin for the entire phrase "Hit the road, Jack," but I couldn't find one, so I assume its origin is this song. The song has been covered, remixed, and performed live so many times that I had a hard time finding the original studio recording. I hope this one is right, because I'm not so sure. It sounds way too clean, even for a remix.

Ray Charles is the epitome of cool. His sense of how to jazz up a song is wonderful. I have always loved his rendition of "America The Beautiful" in particular. His piano is always energetic and fun, even in a slow song. Ray Charles can do no wrong in his performance, and this song is no exception to that rule.

Which isn't to say the song is arranged perfectly. The piano chords acting as the bass line are a bit repetitive. There's an elegant simplicity to them, and I think that's part of the reason the song is so well-known. But they start to wear out their welcome, even in the short amount of time that the song runs. There's not quite enough variety, and the piano dominates the song. I like the drums and the occasional interjection from the brass section, though. The brass in particular livens up the chorus in an appealing way.

The background singers are fine. I guess he had a group of background singers called the Raylettes who provided the backup singing. Their performance isn't exceptional, but it doesn't need to be. That's why they're the backup singers. There was probably room to recruit a better vocal talent to provide the female counterpoint, that could have improved the song. But they do a sufficient job.

Lyrically, the song is about a man being thrown out of his home by the woman who feels wronged. The reasons aren't really explored, beyond when the female singer says "you ain't got no money, you just ain't no good." He offers no defense. "I guess if you say so, I have to pack my things and go." He complains that she's mean, she stands her ground. It doesn't so much tell a story as it captures the emotion of a breakup that maybe wasn't seen coming. I think the lyrics are effective, although the verses aren't really what's memorable. What's memorable is the chorus, "Hit the road, Jack." Like I said, it's become part of the cultural lexicon far divorced from its origins. I bet you can find people using this phrase who have never heard of this song.

My verdict: Like it. Ray Charles can do no wrong.

Song #56: "Wooden Heart" by Joe Dowell

Date: Aug 28, 1961
Weeks: 1

I... er... what?

Okay, when I talked previously about Connie Francis trying to inject a polka sound into "Everybody's Somebody's Fool" (#30), I expected that to be the closest I would get to polka on the pop charts. Well, that and any songs that get used in a Weird Al Polka song.

I've seen and heard some rather unusual music on the list from the late 50s and early 60s, but an actual polka song? With a verse of German lyrics? How did that become the most popular song in the country? This merits research...

Oh, I see.

Joe Dowell's official website tells the story (and hooray for him for maintaining an official website that explains all this). The song was written for the Elvis Presley movie G.I. Blues, which is set in Germany. Joe Dowell (among others) recorded the song and released it as a single. But Elvis didn't release a single, possibly because he had another song on the charts at the time and his label didn't want to Elvis to compete with himself. So Joe Dowell's version, likely benefiting from the association with Elvis, went to the top of the charts.

This lead me to the question of how multiple artists could just hear a song and then race to record the best version and get it sold. That doesn't seem like something that happens any more. Maybe the answer to has to do with songwriters and record labels exercising stronger control over their songs these days. Perhaps I'll need to do some research and come back with a blog post with my findings. While I'm at it, I ought to analyze the large number of the pop songs that get to number one just because of their association with a popular movie.

Getting to the song itself, it's not great. It's far too polka for my tastes, even featuring a tuba and an accordion. Joe Dowell's site says they used a bass guitar and an organ, but they were trying to emulate the sounds of a tuba and accordion. I don't think that improves it. On top of that, Joe Dowell is a decent singer, but he's not Elvis.

I'm a bit lost in the lyrics. "Please don't break my heart in two. That's not hard to do, 'cause I don't have a wooden heart." Wait, what's not hard to do? Breaking your heart is not hard to do, or not breaking your heart is not hard to do? Is it easy to break your heart or easy to not? And is it easy or hard to break a wooden heart? Wood can be strong like a tree trunk, or weak like a branch. Is a wooden heart made of oak or balsa? Wouldn't a wooden heart be easier to break than a heart made of muscle? The muscle heart would bend but not break, whereas the wooden heart would resist bending initially but then break suddenly. Wood is a brittle material.

The point is, it's a confusing metaphor. The lyrics have me confused, and that's long before we even get to the German lyrics, which are apparently based on a 19th century German folk song.

My verdict: Don't like it. This is a classic case of a song that's pretty good within the context of its movie, but loses all meaning and appeal once separated from that context.