Date: July 18, 1964
Weeks: 2
I didn't care for the last 4 Seasons song I did, largely because it felt like an assault on my ears. This one is more restrained and more pleasant, although I can't help feel like maybe they overshot the mark and made a song that was too bland and gentle. I suppose it's kind of unfair of me to demand that these guys hit some kind of mysterious, narrow sweet spot, but I can't help it, that's just how the song catches me.
I think Franke Valli's falsetto is better contained and better used here than in "Sherry." It's not constantly oppressive, but it is still featured. I enjoy some of the embellishments he does late in the song. Maybe that's his strength, carrying random, melodic tones as part of the overall song, rather than trying to belt out the lyrics and grab your attention away from everything else in the song. The vocal harmonies throughout the rest of the song are pretty appealing, as well. It's not just Frankie Valli belting out a tune, it's a vocal group that works well together.
The backing music is a little lazy and simple. The bass, guitar, and drums are all right, but then there's a xylophone, a tambourine, and a hand-clap section that just feels like they were trying to pad out the soundscape with whatever instruments were handy in a studio in the 60s. It's not bad, and it doesn't conflict with the vocals, and in a relatively complex vocal song like this that's probably for the best, but it doesn't elevate the material.
There aren't a lot of lyrics, but the general gist is that this guy is in love with a girl who is poor. A pretty girl who is poor. "Rag" for her clothes, "doll" for her looks. So that leads to lines like "such a pretty face should be dressed in lace." Part of me wants to be bothered by the fact that he only wants to rescue this young woman from poverty because she's pretty, but I suppose I can let the line "my folks won't let me 'cause they say that she's no good" persuade me that he's really just lamenting the difficulty of romantic relationships when there's a severe economic disparity. It could feel too much like charity for one side or the other. So I guess my initial reaction was negative, but I'll give the lyrics the benefit of the doubt and credit them for observing a regrettable aspect of modern society.
My verdict: Like it. It's not that deep, and it's not that spectacular, but it's pleasant enough to listen to.
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