Wild Stories About The Shangri-Las, The High School Girls Who Inspired Punk
Their Tough-Girl Image Was Genuine
The Shangri-Las was made up of two sets of sisters: Mary and Betty Weiss and identical twins Marge and Mary Ann Ganser. They all hailed from the Cambria Heights neighborhood of Queens, NY. The teens formed their girl-group in 1963, originally performing without a name. Over the years, the lineup changed a bit; only Mary Weiss remained in the group.
As Weiss recalled, "We rehearsed constantly, until the harmonies were perfected. I think our voices blended so well because we were two sets of sisters. In a brief period of time, we had a manager, and we started doing small gigs."
The Cambria Heights of that era was a hardscrabble, blue-collar neighborhood that was anything but posh. But it was precisely the toughness of Cambria Heights that gave the girls their unique edge. The Weisses and Gansers were true bad girls from Queens, and they were not to be messed with – an image that was a far cry from the prim and proper all-girl musical acts of the time. Even the name the group eventually chose nodded to Queens: the Shangri-La was a neighborhood restaurant.
They Signed Their First Record Contract While They Were Minors
Photo: Metaweb / CC-BYThe industry came knocking early for the young Shangri-Las. Betty Weiss was 17, Mary Weiss was 15, and Marge and Mary Ann Ganser were 16 when their parents signed them with Red Bird Records in 1964.
The meeting came about thanks to a producer named George "Shadow" Morton. He had been looking for a new group, and when he heard about the girls singing in Queens, he went to check them out. Morton was so impressed that he convinced them to come and record a new song of his, "Remember (Walkin' In The Sand)." Red Bird executives liked the girls' sound enough to bring them on board.
They Recorded With Billy Joel And A Future Producer For The New York Dolls
Video: YouTube
A few months after they signed with Red Bird in 1964, the Shangri-Las had their first hit single: "Remember (Walking in the Sand)."
George Morton produced the record, which he claimed to have written on the fly on the way to the studio. An unknown 15-year-old named Billy Joel reportedly played piano on the demo.
On some level, Morton must have been inspired by the girls' hard-edged personas and intense songs. He went on to be a producer for the punk rock band New York Dolls.
They Performed With James Brown And The Rolling Stones When They Were Still In High School
Photo: GurlGroops / YouTubeImagine being a teenager, dealing with the frustrations of school and parents and social life. Now imagine, in the throes of all of this, you open for acts like James Brown and the Rolling Stones.
That's just what the Shangri-Las did in the mid '60s. But they seemed to take it all in stride – even when they had an awkward first meeting with Brown. When he saw them, the famed R&B singer burst out laughing. He had assumed from their music that they were black, and had in fact hired them for an intended all-black revue.
They Were Backed By A Young Iggy Pop
Photo: Pass The Paisley / YouTubeIn the mid-'60s, the high school student soon to be known as Iggy Pop was a member of a band called the Iguanas (hence his name). The Iguanas joined the Shangri-Las on stage, and backed up the girl group with Iggy on the drums.
Years later, he remembered playing with the Shangri-Las:
"My cover band... had a professional engagement the summer that we graduated high school at a teen club called The Ponytail in northern Michigan. They served Cokes. And a lot of big acts came through. I got to play drums behind the Shangri-Las, the Crystals, the Four Tops. Learned a lot...
Mary, the lead singer of the Shangri-Las, had a really beautiful head of hair... and I just remember being very happy in the back you know playing 'ts, ts, ts,' while she was going, 'remember, walking in the sand.'"
They Specialized In Songs About Death, Love, And More Death
Video: YouTube
The Shangri-Las' first hit single, "Remember (Walkin' In The Sand)," is a fairly sweet and straightforward song of lost love. But it is by no means indicative of much of The Shangri-Las' catalog, which is full of wonderfully crazy, melodramatic odes to teenage hormones.
The group's best-known song is the 1964 number-one hit "Leader of the Pack." The lyrics tell the story of dreamy, motorcycle-riding Jimmy, and Betty, the narrator who loves him. Her parents force her to stop seeing him and, distraught, he crashes his motorcycle and dies – mid-song ("Look out! Look out!" Betty shouts as he crashes and burns).
This is a common theme in Shangri-Las tunes. In "Give Us Your Blessings," a young couple dies in a car accident. In "I Can Never Go Home Anymore," a mother who has disowned her teenage daughter dies of a broken heart. The Shangri-Las tapped into a uniquely morbid vein of teen angst in their music, and it made them famous.
Mary Weiss Got In Trouble With The FBI For Her Handgun
Photo: thunderzzz.tumblr.com / PinterestThe Shangri-Las got a lot of attention from adoring fans, but being in the spotlight means becoming vulnerable to shady characters – especially when you're a young woman. While the girls were on tour, someone tried to break into their hotel room. In response, the frightened Mary Weiss (who was just 16 at the time) bought a gun for protection.
So far, so legal. But then, the tour moved onto another state, and Weiss inadvertently broke the law by transporting the firearm across state lines. As a result, the FBI paid a visit to her mother in Queens. "She must have loved that," Weiss later quipped.
They Let Off Steam By Breaking China And Setting Off Fireworks
Photo: last.fm / PinterestMary Weiss remembers going to a party at Dusty Springfield's place while the Shangri-Las were on tour promoting "Leader of the Pack." The singer had a unique way of dealing with frustration: she would go out and buy boxes of china with the sole purpose of hurling it all against a wall. Springfield showed Weiss how it was done, and soon all the Shangri-Las were breaking plates at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre:
"They had these long corridors that echoed and we would stand at one end and throw plates to the other. We would let off a lot of steam that way... That was how I met Marvin Gaye. He was trying to get out of his dressing room. He stuck his head out and all of these plates went flying past his head."
The girls were known to set off fireworks as well, and play pranks on their fellow musicians – like changing the sign on Marvin Gaye's dressing room door to read "Marvin's Gaye."
They Turned Down Would-Be Suitors From The Beach Boys And The Zombies
Photo: amajor7.tumblr.com / PinterestThe members of the Shangri-Las were attractive young women, and many men were interested in spending time with them. Twisted Sister vocalist Dee Snider summed up their charm:
"They were wearing leather jackets, and they looked tough, too. They didn’t look like good girls... They looked like the girls all the bad guys wanted."
Mary Weiss says plenty of guys put the moves on them, but that they just weren't interested:
"We went to dinner with a few of the Beach Boys and hung out with the Zombies in England and New York, but did not date any of them."
Mary Weiss Was Almost Arrested For Using The Wrong Bathroom
Photo: themadmod.tumblr.com / PinterestThe Shangri-Las performed with James Brown in the mid-'60s. The all-white girl group stood out in the otherwise all-black lineup, and the Texas venue hosting the event was strictly segregated. That presented some unexpected problems for the girls, as Mary Weiss explained to the New York Post:
"I was almost arrested for using a ‘colored’ bathroom... It was close to the stage, and I had no time to find the ‘White’ bathroom. [The sheriff] yelled at me, and I yelled back. He came in with his gun drawn and told me to get out."
They Looked Different From Most Girl Groups
Photo: Red Bird Records / Wikimedia/Creative Commons / Public DomainIn creating their tough-girl look, the Shangri-Las eschewed what other girl groups of the era were wearing. Shift dresses, bubble-gum colors, and bouffant hairstyles were the rage. But despite their initial styling, the Shangri-Las leaned more toward blue jeans (and any men's pants, really, instead of dresses) and, of course, leather biker jackets. As for hairstyles, lead vocalist Mary Weiss kept her locks long and straight.
The Shangri-Las were distinctive from the beginning, and their success was due, in at least small part, to their ability to be unique in an industry of cookie-cutter musical acts.
They Broke Up After Just A Few Years
Photo: LaTN ErNiE / YouTubeThe Shangri-Las were only active between 1964 and 1969. After that, the group went their separate ways, although they did briefly try to reunite in 1977.
Betty Weiss stepped down from the band shortly after they hit it big, and gave birth to a daughter in 1964. She retired from music, and currently lives on Long Island.
Mary Ann Ganser died of mysterious causes at age 22; sources vary on whether she overdosed on barbiturates or fell ill. Her twin sister Marge Ganser worked for a telephone company post-Shangri-Las, and died of breast cancer at age 48.
Mary Weiss went into a self-imposed exile after the onslaught of fame in her teens, becoming an interior designer and eventually reentering the musical world.
Why did the Shangri-Las break up? There's no one reason. Red Bird Records shuttered, the girls were growing up, and the music industry was changing. Weiss has also alluded to legal issues contributing to the Shangri-Las' demise.
They Influenced Blondie, New York Dolls, Amy Winehouse, And Countless Other Bands And Artists
Photo: flickr / CC0With their streetwise image and unabashedly dark lyrics, the Shangri-Las blazed the trail for the punk music revolution that came in their wake. "The Shangri-Las were punk before punk existed," Mary Weiss said. "People thought we were tough."
It's hard to argue that; their influence is everywhere in early punk and later rock. Blondie and New York Dolls are frequently cited as successors to the Shangri-Las' tone and style. Aerosmith and The Go-Go's have covered their songs. Joey Ramone told Weiss how much of an impact the group had on him. Strains of the Shangri-Las can even be heard in Twisted Sister and Amy Winehouse, who directly cited them as an inspiration.
Mary Weiss Fired Back When Trump Used The Shangri-Las' Music On The Campaign Trail
When Donald Trump was campaigning for president, he would often play the Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack" as part of his rally playlist. But he never got permission to do so, and Mary Weiss was outraged. She took to Facebook to express her fury:
"I do not want anyone to think that I would in any way shape or form endorse this man. A letter will be sent, but if you hear one of our songs at any of his engagements, please note I did not and never would authorize it... Actually I throw up in my mouth a little knowing that this is being done! Of all the people... I will never endorse hatred of any groups of people and would never give my permission to use this song."
