On this date in 1963, LESLEY GORE released her second studio album, Lesley Gore Sings of Mixed-Up Hearts which contained three big hits: "She's a Fool", "You Don't Own Me" and "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows" (Oct 14, 1963)
From the album, YOU DON'T OWN ME.
NOTE: The video here is Lesley performing YOU DON'T OWN ME on the 1964 T.A.M.I show. I've upscaled and colourised the original black and white film.
The most commercially successful solo singer to be identified with the girl group sound, Lesley Gore hit the number one spot with her very first release, "It's My Party," in 1963.
Produced by Quincy Jones, who fattened the teenager's sound with double-tracked vocals and intricate backup vocals and horns, she reeled off a few more big hits in 1963 and 1964, including "Judy's Turn to Cry," "She's a Fool," "You Don't Own Me," "That's the Way Boys Are," and "Maybe I Know."
-----------------------------------------
Hello, and a warm welcome to COLOURING THE PAST.
Running the page is a one-man operation. I write and research the articles, and edit the videos which involves several hours of work - upscaling, colourising and tweaking in various software.
If you could see fit to make a small donation then it would help me to keep the page running.
Thank you and best wishes, Paul
Just visit one of the links to donate (all secure connections):
-----------------------------------------
Her best songs survive as classics, particularly the irresistibly melodic "Maybe I Know" and "Look of Love" (both written by Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry) and "You Don't Own Me," an anthem of independence with a feminist theme that was considerably advanced for early 1964.
Lesley appeared on the legendary T.A.M.I. Show alongside such heavyweights as the Rolling Stones, James Brown, and Smokey Robinson, but after 1964 her star plummeted rapidly.
Mercury was still investing a lot of care in her sessions throughout the rest of the '60s, and her material and arrangements showed her capable of greater stylistic range than many acknowledged. But after the mid-'60s, Jones no longer worked with the singer on a regular basis.
"Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows" (1965) and "California Nights" (1967), both of which were co-written by Marvin Hamlisch, would be her only Top 20 entries after 1964.
She played the cabarets after her days as an active recording artist, and eventually had some success as a songwriter for other performers.
Shortly after the turn of the century, Gore returned to recording, collaborating with multi-instrumentalist Blake Morgan.
In 2005, she released the critically acclaimed Ever Since, which landed songs on CSI: Miami and Showtime's The L Word as well as Jeff Lipsky's film Flannel Pajamas, which debuted at Sundance in 2006.
Lesley Gore died of lung cancer in New York City in February 2015; she was 68 years old.