Archived from groups: rec.music.rock-pop-r+b.1950s,rec.music.rock-pop-r+b.1960s,rec.games.trivia (More info?)
RESULTS & ANSWER KEY for Golden Oldies Lyrics Quiz #215 (GOLQ215)
Congratulations to the team of Randy Price and Peter Morley, Ron Anderson,
and the EJ's and Company, who tied for first place in this quiz with
perfect scores of 500++.
GOLQ215's mean score was a relatively high 411.96, and the median was the
extremely high 461. Most teams got at least partial credit for at least
one tie breaker. I guess I could not fool people with what I thought was
an esoteric theme of songs that Neil Diamond has written, co-written,
recorded, or sung in a movie. Ron Anderson, EMC and Friends, The EJ'S & Co.,
Mike Weaver, the Genateam, and Lori Bailey and team all noticed some Neil
Diamond connection. Jessica Raine noticed a Neil Diamond connection to
one particular song (noted below). Ron Anderson also found a theme I didn't
intend -- a lot of numbers appear in the titles, artists, or cited lyrics.
[#03(10), #05 (9), #07 (Once), #09 (2), #10 (1 and 1,000,000), #11 (4),
#12 (1), #15 (66), #20 (16),#21 (1), #T1 (1), #T2 (1)]
My thanks to everyone who participated.
Howard Teitelbaum has already posted GOLQ216.
-- Regina Litman <golq215@golq.org>
Replace all occurrences of "&" in all e-mail addresses with "@".
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tie Breaker Scoring Key
+ after numeric score below indicates a tie-breaker answered correctly.
- indicates partial credit.
x indicates a totally incorrect guess.
. indicates no guess.
# on
Pos Score ID Name and E-mail address Team Age(s)
---+-----+--+-----------------------------------------------------+---+--------
T01 500++ RP Randy Price & Peter Morley 2 35-52
<randypny&aol.com, pmorley&nyc.rr.com>
T01 500++ RA Ron Anderson <ronandelaine&juno.com> 1 54
T01 500++ EJ The EJ'S & Co.: Ellis, Steve, Vinnie, Mitch, Kevin, 7 40+
Bruce, Carlin <brombere&matc.edu>
04 494+. MW Mike Weaver <oldtunes&sbcglobal.net> 1 58
05 492-+ JO Jo <JO201&aol.com> 1
T06 480++ DT Delphi Trivia Club (Logot, Beth, Brenda, ClueLess, 7 35-55
JO201, und83) <billp49&concentric.net>
T06 480++ GE The Genateam <ah.rh&bigpond.net.au> 5 36-56
T06 480++ VI The Village Idiots (Andrew, Andy, Roxie, Doug, Ping) 5 <53
<Clete6&aol.com>
09 480-+ L0 Len Blanks <ltb&haruspex.net> 6
10 479-+ JW James White <jjwhite6&ameritech.net> 1 56
11 478++ LB Lori Bailey et al. (Tom Adams, Sean Anglum, David 8 boomers
Bailey, Lori Bailey, Rick Crane, Warren Fellman,
Dan Rector, Ed Toutant) <baileyl&ci.boulder.co.us>
12 462-+ EM EMC and Friends <cochran_david&emc.com> 6 various
13 460-. AB Across the Boarder eriador1972&yahoo.com> 2
14 448.. NA NAVAIRHEADS <thomas.pillion&navy.mil> 2 58,52
15 430.. WB The Wicked Boys - Sanford Stein, Paul Hallaman 2 54
<Sanford_Stein&rush.edu, hallaman&california.com>
16 380-. TT Team Teitelbaum <hat_pat&yahoo.com> 3 46,54,42
17 380.. RR Really Rockin' In Boston <bob&egh.com> 5 50s
18 359-. CO The Coasters (Rick & Kathy Schubert, Norm Katuna, 4 50s
Bigfoot Mae) <rns&san.rr.com>
19 350.. WM Will McCorry <wmccorry&ca.inter.net> 1 47
20 298-. BP BP Oz (Brian, Pam) <brian&opossumsystems.com> 2 60ish
21 271.. CM Curt Miller <curtismiller&launchnet.com> 1 55
22 260.+ DO The Dutch Officials <a3&a3.xs4all.nl> 2
23 226.. CC Cole & Cole <jonathan.cole&siemens.com> 1 58
24 200-. JR Jessica Raine <jraine&bostonconservatory.edu> 1 30
---+-----+--+-----------------------------------------------------+---+--------
Pos Score ID Name and E-mail address # on Age(s)
Team
The following table gives the individual scoring breakdown. A '-' is used to
indicate that no guess was made for a question, whereas a zero indicates that
a completely incorrect response was submitted.
Song#
01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--
RP 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
RA 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
EJ 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
MW 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 15 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
JO 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 12 20 20
DT 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
VI 20 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
GE 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
L0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
JW 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
LB 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 18 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
EM 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 10 10 10 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 12 20 20
AB 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
NA 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 20 20 - 20 9 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
WB 20 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 10 - 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
TT 20 20 - 20 20 20 - 20 - - 20 - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
RR 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0 0 20 - - 20 0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 20
CO 20 20 - 20 20 20 - 20 20 - 20 - - - 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 -
WM 10 20 - 20 20 20 - 20 20 - 20 - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 -
BP 20 20 - 20 20 - - 20 - - 20 - - 20 - 20 18 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 -
CM - 20 - - 12 - - 20 - - 20 - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 20 - 20 -
DO 20 20 20 20 20 - - - - - 20 - - - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 - - 20 -
CC - 20 - 20 20 20 - 10 - - - - - - - 20 18 20 20 19 19 - 20 - -
JR 10 20 - 10 12 - - - - - 10 - - 20 - 20 18 20 20 20 20 - - - -
--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--
01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
===============================================================================
GOLDEN OLDIES LYRICS QUIZ #215 ANSWERS:
Answers are in the form:
#number) Artist: Title (year) [peak position on Pop chart] {peak R&B}
[-] = did not make pop chart
{-} = did not make R&B chart
{F} = made R&B chart as a flip side
{n/c} = no Billboard R&B chart published during this recording's period
of peak popularity
===============================================================================
You'll go down in history
#01) Autry, Gene: Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1957) [70] {-}
Gene Autry must be turning over in his grave contemplating the name
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. But I'm sure he was celebrating in the
great beyond along with the 2002 World Series champion Anaheim Angels.
Sung by Neil in his second Christmas album, released in 1994.
She gives me everything
And tenderly
The kiss my lover brings
She brings to me
#02) Beatles, The: And I Love Her (1964) [12] {n/c}
One of a handful of Beatles songs Neil has recorded. It's on THE MOVIE
ALBUM (AS TIME GOES BY), one of my least favorite Neil Diamond albums, which
was released in 1998 (referred to hereinafter as ATGB). From the Fab Four's
first flick, A HARD DAY'S NIGHT.
This was not in my first draft of GOLQ215. Instead, one of the tie-breakers
was going to be "Carry That Weight," a song on Neil's live box set released
in 2003, "Stages." This was going to be included as an addition to last
year's December quiz, GOLQ203, in which all of the songs had some connection
to a U.S. President in the artist name, song name, subject, or lyrics.
However, something I considered to be an unfortunate event happened in early
November, and I lost interest in including this one. (This unfortunate
event has nothing to do with 1980s chartmaker John Waite, but it does
concern someone with the first name of John and a last name that's a homonym
for a word in the song's title.)
Each night we meet and talk about you
Reminisce about the things you used to do
We just sit around broken-hearted
Cause all of us are still in love with you
#03) Boone, Pat: Ten Lonely Guys (1962) [45] {-}
There is an interesting story behind this one. Neil and nine other song-
writers who were working for a music publishing firm in New York were given
the assignment to write Pat Boone's next single. They came up with this
song. They liked it so much that they wanted to record it themselves.
However, there were some legal issues involved, so they had to use pseudo-
nyms in making their own recording. Their recording, "Ten Lonely Guys"
by the Ten Lonely Guys, did not chart. The lead vocalist was 21-year-old
"Mark Lewis," also known as Neil Diamond. Although he was not yet a
successful recording artist, his vocal talents (at least compared to theirs)
must have been apparent to the others to earn him this assignment. Pat
Boone's version of this song marked Neil Diamond's first entry into the
Hot 100 as a songwriter.
The nine other co-writers of this song are Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein,
Richard Gottehrer, Stanley Kahan, Eddie Snyder, Lockie Edwards Jr., Larry
Weiss, Cliff Adams, Wes Farrell. Several of them are well-known for other
achievements.
Neil finally recorded a version of this song under his own name for the 1993
album UP ON THE ROOF (SONGS FROM THE BRILL BUILDING) (referred to herein-
after as UOTR).
The other night as I lay sleeping
I dreamed I held you, held you in my arms
But when I woke up this morning
Found out I was mistaken
#04) Charles, Ray: You Are My Sunshine (1962/63) [7] {1}
A much-performed song--it also charted by the Ferko String Band, Johnny &
the Hurricanes, and Mitch Ryder in the Top Pop Singles book era, and it was
a #20 hit for Bing Crosby in 1941. Neil sang it in his only starring film
role in THE JAZZ SINGER (1980), but it's not on the soundtrack album or any
other album. The results page for GOLQ94 at http://golq.org/archive.html
gives some history of this song.
I held my nose
I closed my eyes
I took a drink
#05) Clovers, The: Love Potion No. 9 (1959) [23] {23}
Some entrants named the Coasters as the artist for this one. Similar name,
which fits alphabetically, and the type of song they'd do, too. In fact
they did take it to #72 in 1972. The highest-charting version of this song
was the one I know best--#3 by the Searchers in 1965. Done by Neil on UOTR.
Written by the famed songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.
Won't you stay
We'll put on the day
And we'll wear it till the night comes
#06) Collins, Judy: Chelsea Morning (1969) [78] {-}
Recorded by Neil during his days on Uni records as an introspective singer/
songwriter on his 1971 album STONES. Written by Joni Mitchell, one of three
songs written by her that he has recorded. The other two were a bigger
Collins hit, "Both Sides Now," and Mitchell's own 1974 hit, "Free Man in
Paris."
This recording of this song is what inspired an Arkansas couple named Bill
and Hillary Clinton to name their daughter Chelsea. And perhaps you thought
that "Sweet Caroline" was the only song Neil had ever recorded that
mentioned the name of a daughter of a Democratic President of my lifetime
whose first initial is "C"!
In this cold world
I struggle to survive
And sometimes I would fall
You'd think someone would lend a helping hand
They'd sooner see me crawl
#07) Davis, Sammy, Jr.: The Shelter of Your Arms (1964) [17] {n/c}
This is my favorite recording by Sammy Davis, Jr., and it's also one of my
two favorite recordings of a song written by someone else that Neil has
done. The other song is also in this quiz, and coincidentally, it was also
done in a well-known (but not charting) version by Sammy Davis, Jr. Neil
did this on his album SEPTEMBER MORN, released in early 1980.
Lori Bailey and team pointed out that this was written by Jerry Samuels,
aka Napoleon XIV of "They're Coming to Take Me Away" fame.
Starting with the ABC of it
Right down to the XYZ of it
#08) DeCastro Sisters: Teach Me Tonight (1954/55) [2] {-}
Neil did this in concert as part of an oldies medley in the 1980s. It's
part on a video/DVD of his called "Greatest Hits Live," and it's also on the
"Stages" box set.
Also an acceptable answer for this is another DeCastro Sisters' recording,
"Teach Me Tonight Cha-Cha," #76 in 1959.
Bad times, I can't take 'em
Good times, got to make 'em
Got to find 'em
Got to taste 'em
#09) Diamond, Neil: Two-Bit Manchild (1968) [66] {-}
Neil's second single release after he signed with Uni in 1968. None of his
first three Uni singles reached the Top 40, but they did showcase his versa-
tility. This was one of his few single releases that could be considered a
guitar rocker--along with 1967's "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" and
1970's "Cracklin' Rosie." One entrant, perhaps intentionally forfeiting 10
points in order to avoid listing Neil's name, credited the artist as Carol
Hunter, a guitarist in Neil's touring band around 1969-1970. However, she
had not joined Neil's band at the time this was recorded, and most likely
the guitar licks featured throughout the song were done by a studio musician.
Without your love
I'm just one of a million other guys
#10) Dove, Ronnie: My Babe (1967) [50] {-}
Ronnie Dove was a singer from the Washington/Baltimore area, where I am
from originally. He was all over WWDC, WPGC, WEAM, and WINX with his
weepy ballads in the mid-1960s, and most of his recordings were not
favorites of mine. He recorded on a label called Diamond, but Neil
Diamond had nothing to do with the label. However, he did write and
produce a few songs for Ronnie Dove, including this one.
I've tried so not to give in
I've said to myself this affair never would go so well
But why should I try to resist
When darling I know so well?
#11) 4 Seasons, The, Featuring the Sound of Frankie Valli:
I've Got You Under My Skin (1966) [9] {-}
Ask me with what Italian singer from Northern New Jersey sometimes or always
known as Frankie I associate this song, and of course I'll mention Frankie
Valli. I did not know of any other guys fitting this description who did
this song until after Sinatra died in 1998. And Neil paid tribute to that
Frank by including this in a medley called "Suite Sinatra" on ATGB. I did
learn while this song was climbing the charts in 1966 that it was an old
song that my parents' generation knew when one of my uncles started singing
along with it after he let me play a Top 40 station in his car. Unfortu-
nately, this uncle did not live to see any of his grandchildren. While I
was in the midst of putting this quiz together, I attended the Bar Mitzvah
of his namesake grandson, so I thought it fitting to put this song on this
quiz. Written by Cole Porter.
One day I'm gonna take her home
Tell the world that she's my own
#12) Jay & the Americans: Sunday and Me (1965) [18] {-}
This was Neil Diamond's first Top 40 entry as a songwriter. He's never
released a recording of his own of this song.
If the tom-tom in my heart
Sounded out a warning
#13) Jones, Jack: Love With The Proper Stranger (1964) [62] {n/c}
Another one from ATGB. This was the title song to one of two movies that
featured both Natalie Wood and Macy's flagship department store in New York,
the other being MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET. Steve McQueen co-starred in LOVE
WITH THE PROPER STRANGER. It's also one of two songs in this quiz from a
Natalie Wood movie. The other one is a tie-breaker.
Bah-da bah-da-da-da
Bah-da bah-da-da-da
#14) Mamas & The Papas, The: Monday, Monday (1966) [1] {-}
I didn't fool too many people with this nonsense lyrics entry. Neil record-
ed this on his first album for Bang Records, THE FEEL OF NEIL, in 1966.
There's an interesting stutter song progression from that year--The Mamas
and The Papas had a hit with "Monday, Monday," which Neil Diamond also re-
corded and put on the same album as his hit "Cherry, Cherry," which the
Music Machine then recorded and put on the same album as their hit "Talk,
Talk."
Randy Price & Peter Morley listed the group's name as Mama's & The Papa's
and pointed out that the apostrophes were in the group name on the original
single. I also saw this representation of their name in the 1960s and read
somewhere at the time that the group intended for their name to show that
they were the offspring of their own mamas and papas, and hence the posses-
sive form of the name was used.
Be mine tonight
Let this be just the start of so many nights like this
Let's take a lover's vow and then seal it with a kiss
#15) Mendes, Sergio, and Brasil '66: The Look of Love (1968) [4] {-}
While I was pretty lenient on some things in this quiz, I deducted one point
each for substituting "z" for "s" in Mendes and Brasil. I felt that it was
important to emphasize that Mendes is from a Portuguese-speaking country,
not a Spanish-speaking one (even though the country's own name is spelled
with a "z").
Neil did this one on ATGB. It's from the movie CASINO ROYALE, and coinci-
dentally it is the first of two consecutive songs on this quiz to have been
featured in a James Bond spoof movie. Dusty Springfield took this to #22
less than a year earlier, and a version by Isaac Hayes went to #79 in 1971.
Written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, who appear twice in this quiz as
songwriters. Not to be confused with a different song with the same title
that was a hit for Lesley Gore and was written by Jeff Barry and Ellie
Greenwich.
I thought love was more or less a giving thing
Seemed the more I gave the less I got
#16) Monkees: I'm A Believer (1966/67) [1] {-}
As pointed out by Jessica Raine--"written by Neil Diamond, yuck."
Lead vocal by Micky Dolenz, who debuted this week as a disc jockey on WCBS
radio in New York. This was Neil's first number one as a songwriter. After
he left Bang records, the label released a single of his own recording of
this song, which went to #51 in 1971. An act called Tin Huey recorded a
non-charting version in the late 1970s. In recent years, this song has
enjoyed renewed popularity as a result of having been featured in two
movies--the Monkees' own version was in the James Bond spoof movie AUSTIN
POWERS: THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME, and a version by Smash Mouth was in the 2001
blockbuster animation feature SHREK. Smash Mouth's version charted in the
mid-20s that same year.
Not to be confused with another Monkees' #1 song "Daydream Believer." The
Monkees' follow-up to "I'm a Believer" was another song written by Neil,
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You." And the group also did at least two
other Neil Diamond songs on albums.
Shall I stay?
Would it be a sin?
#17) Presley, Elvis, with The Jordanaires: Can't Help Falling in Love
(1961) [2] {-}
Can you believe it? It's been 70 years since he was born! Everybody got this
one, but I deducted points for stating the title as "I Can't Help Falling in
Love with You." From the movie BLUE HAWAII, and done by Neil on ATGB.
You have won all my money and my brand new Stetson hat
#18) Price, Lloyd: Stagger Lee (1958) [1] {1}
Done by Wilson Pickett under the title "Stag-O-Lee" in 1967. Due to the
close proximity of the two artists in the alphabet, I deliberately chose a
line that I don't think is in the Pickett song. I needn't have been so
careful--every entry correctly identified the song by the intervening
Presley guy. Done by Neil on the SEPTEMBER MORN album. While we're on the
subject of seemingly incomprehensible "Stagger Lee" recording artists, I'll
also mention that Tommy Roe went to #25 with a version in 1971.
'Cause it's gone, gone, gone
And I can't go on
#19) Righteous Brothers, The: You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' (1964/65)
[1] {3}
Done by Neil as a duet with Dolly Parton on UOTR. One of three Righteous
Brothers hits that Neil has recorded. Both of the others are on ATGB--
"Unchained Melody" and "Ebb Tide." Written by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, and
Phil Spector. Produced by Spector.
You've turned into the prettiest girl I've ever seen
#20) Sedaka, Neil: Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen (1961) [6] {-}
How many different singers named Neil who graduated from Abraham Lincoln
High School in Brooklyn have recorded this song? I know of at least two.
Yes, Mr. Diamond has a version, dedicated to his own two daughters plus
Dara Sedaka, on UOTR. He also did a video called "The Roof Party" to pro-
mote this album, and in the video, the two Neils do a duet of this song.
Written by Sedaka and his longtime writing partner Howard Greenfield.
Life can never be
Exactly like we want it to be
I can be satisfied
Knowing you love me
#21) Shirelles, The: Dedicated to the One I Love (1959,1961) [83,3] {-,2}
This was included in the oldies medley Neil did in concerts. It's on
"Stages" (but not "Greatest Hits Live"). The version with which I am most
familiar was done by the Mamas and Papas, er, Mama's and Papa's, and went
to #2 in 1967. Plus there were versions by "5" Royales in 1961, Temprees
in 1972, and Bernadette Peters in 1981. None of the other versions made
the top 40.
I shout it from the high, highest hill
Don't you know I even went out and I told the golden daffodil
#22) Stewart, Billy: Secret Love (1966) [29] {11}
Made famous by Doris Day in "Calamity Jane" in the early 1950s. Done by
Neil on ATGB. Like Ronnie Dove, Billy Stewart was from the Washington area
(not Philadelphia, as the Coasters mentioned) and got a lot of airplay
there. Unfortunately, he was killed in an automobile accident 35 years ago
this month. While I may come across as not being such a fan of soul music,
I've always preferred Billy Stewart over Ronnie Dove. This recording was
somewhat overshadowed by that of another old standard he did a few months
earlier, "Summertime," which reached #10 on the Hot 100.
If I lost you would I cry
Oh how I love you baby
#23) Turner, Ike & Tina: River Deep-Mountain High (1966) [88] {-}
Speaking of soul music, one regret I had when I put this quiz together was
that Motown was not represented. The only original Motown song Neil has
done ("Dancing in the Street") was used too recently in a quiz, and the only
charting version of a song written by Neil and recorded by a Motown act
("Holly Holy" by Junior Walker & the All Stars) came out a year too late,
and anyway, Neil's own version of the song had been used too recently.
This was the closest I came to having a Motown hit on the quiz. Two entries
named Supremes & Four Tops as the artist for this song. And in fact, it
fits alphabetically. However, it came out in 1970, although it was the
highest charting rendition of this song that was written by Jeff Barry,
Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector. A version by Deep Purple went to #53 in
1969, making this song the answer to the question, what song other than
"Kentucky Woman" was done by both Neil Diamond and Deep Purple? Neil's
version is on UOTR, and he also has a great live version on his 1994 album
LIVE IN AMERICA.
In my CD collection, besides the Turner, Supremes/4 Tops, Diamond, and
Deep Purple versions, I have recordings of this song by Eric Burdon and
the Animals, the Easybeats, and co-writer Ellie Greenwich.
Let go a laugh
Shook back his clothes all around
#24) Walker, Jerry Jeff: Mr. Bojangles (1968) [77] {-}
This is the other of my two favorite recordings of a song written by someone
else that Neil has done. And like "The Shelter of Your Arms," it has also
been done, in perhaps one of its most famous renditions, by Sammy Davis, Jr.
The Jerry Jeff Walker version may have been hampered by a cover by Bobby
Cole that was on the chart at the same time; the Cole version only went as
high as #79. Walker wrote the song and finally saw it go Top 10 when done
by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1971. Neil did this on his 1969 album
TOUCHING YOU, TOUCHING ME.
Woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh
Woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh
#25) Warwick, Dionne: Do You Know The Way to San Jose (1968) [10] {23}
The second Burt Bacharach-Hal David song on this quiz. Unlike "Monday,
Monday," these nonsense lyrics proved tougher to identify. Other responses
I got included "Last Kiss" by J. Frank Wilson (and the Cavaliers) and two
songs by Stevie Wonder (more Motown!), "My Cherie Amour" and "Fingertips,
Pt. 2." I listened to these three songs just to make sure that they don't
contain this sequence. In addition, I got an email from one of the partici-
pants before the entry was finalized asking if I perhaps put "Poetry in
Motion" by Johnny Tillotson in the wrong place. In fact, the "woh" lyrics
from "Poetry in Motion" were used in GOLQ127 and thus are not eligible to be
used again!
Neil recorded this (without the "woh woh"s) on UOTR.
------------
Tie-Breakers
------------
These were not difficult enough. I should have put in another seasonal entry,
"Santa, Santa" by the Rocky Fellers, a 1962 release written by Neil.
Make of our vows
One last vow
Only death will part us now
#T1) Kert, Larry, with Carol Lawrence: One Hand, One Heart (1957) [-] {-}
From the original broadway cast album of WEST SIDE STORY. Also acceptable
is the version done by Jim Bryant and Marnie Nixon, which is from the origi-
nal soundtrack album of WEST SIDE STORY. Bryant and Nixon are the actual
singers, while Richard Beymer and Natalie Wood are lip-synching on-screen.
I was treading into new territory here, picking a song that was famous for
being in a Broadway music made into a movie. I gave a lot of leeway for the
artist here. I accepted any or part of the three duos mentioned above (in-
cluding the lip synchers). I gave full credit for any act that fit alpha-
betically, including entries that mentioned the Escorts and Vic Damone. I
gave partial credit for acts that didn't fit alphabetically if the entry did
not answer #T2. For anyone giving the artist as Neil Diamond as a result of
his recording on his 1991 album LOVESCAPE, I gave credit only if the entry
did not answer him as the artist for his song in the main 25 songs (since
his appearance there makes him ineligible to be a tie breaker act).
I don't worry about all the things I'm not
There's only one thing I want I ain't got
You know that I'm thinking about you baby
But you'd better know 'fore you come along
#T2) Lulu: The Boat That I Row (1967) [-] {-}
A #6 hit for her in the U.K., but in the U.S. it ended up as the B-side of
her #1 hit, "To Sir With Love." Written by Neil Diamond, and it also ap-
peared as the B-side of his hit record that was just used as #10 in GOLQ214,
"I Got the Feelin' (Oh No, No)."
A surprisingly large number got this one. I attribute it to one of three
factors--being familiar with Neil's own version (although I was careful to
choose some lyrics sung differently by Lulu) and then researching who else
did it, owning a copy of the "To Sir With Love" single at some point in time
and flipping it over to hear what's on the other side, or being from the
U.K., where this was a big hit.
===============================================================================
This chart ranks the songs/artists from most to least recognized. The second
number on the line denotes the average number of points scored on that song
(total points divided by number of entrants, to 2 decimal places). For
comparison purposes, tie-breakers are scored here on the usual 20-point scale.
As you can see this was not a difficult quiz at all, with some songs being
identified by every entry (although points were deducted for various small
errors). I expected "Ten Lonely Guys," "My Babe," and "Love with the Proper
Stranger" of the regular 25 songs to be the most difficult. Although they
did rank near the bottom, each was still identified by at least half of the
participants. The only song for which I did not supply nonsense lyrics that
did worse, relatively speaking, than I expected was "Sunday and Me."
Rank Avg. Song
---+-----+----+--------------------------------------------------------------
T01 20.00 #02) Beatles: And I Love Her
T01 20.00 #18) Price, Lloyd: Stagger Lee
T01 20.00 #19) Righteous Brothers: You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'
04 19.96 #20) Sedaka, Neil: Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen
05 19.92 #21) Shirelles: Dedicated to the One I Love
06 19.79 #16) Monkees: I'm A Believer
07 19.75 #17) Presley, Elvis: Can't Help Falling in Love
08 19.33 #05) Clovers: Love Potion No. 9
T09 18.75 #04) Charles, Ray: You Are My Sunshine
T09 18.75 #11) 4 Seasons: I've Got You Under My Skin
11 18.33 #24) Walker, Jerry Jeff: Mr. Bojangles
T12 17.50 #08) DeCastro Sisters: Teach Me Tonight
T12 17.50 #14) Mamas & The Papas: Monday, Monday
T12 17.50 #22) Stewart, Billy: Secret Love
15 17.46 #01) Autry, Gene: Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
16 16.67 #06) Collins, Judy: Chelsea Morning
17 15.21 #15) Mendes, Sergio, and Brasil '66: The Look of Love
18 14.33 #23) Turner, Ike & Tina: River Deep-Mountain High
T19 13.33 #07) Davis, Sammy, Jr.: The Shelter of Your Arms
T19 13.33 #09) Diamond, Neil: Two-Bit Manchild
21 12.50 #03) Boone, Pat: Ten Lonely Guys
22 11.67 #12) Jay & the Americans: Sunday and Me
23 11.21 #T1) Kert, Larry, with Carol Lawrence: One Hand, One Heart
24 10.38 #10) Dove, Ronnie: My Babe
T25 10.00 #13) Jones, Jack: Love With The Proper Stranger
T26 10.00 #25) Warwick, Dionne: Do You Know The Way to San Jose
T27 10.00 #T2) Lulu: The Boat That I Row
---+-----+----+--------------------------------------------------------------
===============================================================================
Regina Litman <golq215@golq.org>
RESULTS & ANSWER KEY for Golden Oldies Lyrics Quiz #215 (GOLQ215)
Congratulations to the team of Randy Price and Peter Morley, Ron Anderson,
and the EJ's and Company, who tied for first place in this quiz with
perfect scores of 500++.
GOLQ215's mean score was a relatively high 411.96, and the median was the
extremely high 461. Most teams got at least partial credit for at least
one tie breaker. I guess I could not fool people with what I thought was
an esoteric theme of songs that Neil Diamond has written, co-written,
recorded, or sung in a movie. Ron Anderson, EMC and Friends, The EJ'S & Co.,
Mike Weaver, the Genateam, and Lori Bailey and team all noticed some Neil
Diamond connection. Jessica Raine noticed a Neil Diamond connection to
one particular song (noted below). Ron Anderson also found a theme I didn't
intend -- a lot of numbers appear in the titles, artists, or cited lyrics.
[#03(10), #05 (9), #07 (Once), #09 (2), #10 (1 and 1,000,000), #11 (4),
#12 (1), #15 (66), #20 (16),#21 (1), #T1 (1), #T2 (1)]
My thanks to everyone who participated.
Howard Teitelbaum has already posted GOLQ216.
-- Regina Litman <golq215@golq.org>
Replace all occurrences of "&" in all e-mail addresses with "@".
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tie Breaker Scoring Key
+ after numeric score below indicates a tie-breaker answered correctly.
- indicates partial credit.
x indicates a totally incorrect guess.
. indicates no guess.
# on
Pos Score ID Name and E-mail address Team Age(s)
---+-----+--+-----------------------------------------------------+---+--------
T01 500++ RP Randy Price & Peter Morley 2 35-52
<randypny&aol.com, pmorley&nyc.rr.com>
T01 500++ RA Ron Anderson <ronandelaine&juno.com> 1 54
T01 500++ EJ The EJ'S & Co.: Ellis, Steve, Vinnie, Mitch, Kevin, 7 40+
Bruce, Carlin <brombere&matc.edu>
04 494+. MW Mike Weaver <oldtunes&sbcglobal.net> 1 58
05 492-+ JO Jo <JO201&aol.com> 1
T06 480++ DT Delphi Trivia Club (Logot, Beth, Brenda, ClueLess, 7 35-55
JO201, und83) <billp49&concentric.net>
T06 480++ GE The Genateam <ah.rh&bigpond.net.au> 5 36-56
T06 480++ VI The Village Idiots (Andrew, Andy, Roxie, Doug, Ping) 5 <53
<Clete6&aol.com>
09 480-+ L0 Len Blanks <ltb&haruspex.net> 6
10 479-+ JW James White <jjwhite6&ameritech.net> 1 56
11 478++ LB Lori Bailey et al. (Tom Adams, Sean Anglum, David 8 boomers
Bailey, Lori Bailey, Rick Crane, Warren Fellman,
Dan Rector, Ed Toutant) <baileyl&ci.boulder.co.us>
12 462-+ EM EMC and Friends <cochran_david&emc.com> 6 various
13 460-. AB Across the Boarder eriador1972&yahoo.com> 2
14 448.. NA NAVAIRHEADS <thomas.pillion&navy.mil> 2 58,52
15 430.. WB The Wicked Boys - Sanford Stein, Paul Hallaman 2 54
<Sanford_Stein&rush.edu, hallaman&california.com>
16 380-. TT Team Teitelbaum <hat_pat&yahoo.com> 3 46,54,42
17 380.. RR Really Rockin' In Boston <bob&egh.com> 5 50s
18 359-. CO The Coasters (Rick & Kathy Schubert, Norm Katuna, 4 50s
Bigfoot Mae) <rns&san.rr.com>
19 350.. WM Will McCorry <wmccorry&ca.inter.net> 1 47
20 298-. BP BP Oz (Brian, Pam) <brian&opossumsystems.com> 2 60ish
21 271.. CM Curt Miller <curtismiller&launchnet.com> 1 55
22 260.+ DO The Dutch Officials <a3&a3.xs4all.nl> 2
23 226.. CC Cole & Cole <jonathan.cole&siemens.com> 1 58
24 200-. JR Jessica Raine <jraine&bostonconservatory.edu> 1 30
---+-----+--+-----------------------------------------------------+---+--------
Pos Score ID Name and E-mail address # on Age(s)
Team
The following table gives the individual scoring breakdown. A '-' is used to
indicate that no guess was made for a question, whereas a zero indicates that
a completely incorrect response was submitted.
Song#
01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--
RP 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
RA 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
EJ 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
MW 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 15 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
JO 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 12 20 20
DT 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
VI 20 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
GE 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
L0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
JW 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
LB 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 18 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
EM 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 10 10 10 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 12 20 20
AB 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
NA 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 20 20 - 20 9 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0
WB 20 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 10 - 20 - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
TT 20 20 - 20 20 20 - 20 - - 20 - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
RR 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0 0 20 - - 20 0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 20
CO 20 20 - 20 20 20 - 20 20 - 20 - - - 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 -
WM 10 20 - 20 20 20 - 20 20 - 20 - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 -
BP 20 20 - 20 20 - - 20 - - 20 - - 20 - 20 18 20 20 20 20 20 - 20 -
CM - 20 - - 12 - - 20 - - 20 - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 19 20 - 20 -
DO 20 20 20 20 20 - - - - - 20 - - - - 20 20 20 20 20 20 - - 20 -
CC - 20 - 20 20 20 - 10 - - - - - - - 20 18 20 20 19 19 - 20 - -
JR 10 20 - 10 12 - - - - - 10 - - 20 - 20 18 20 20 20 20 - - - -
--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--
01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
===============================================================================
GOLDEN OLDIES LYRICS QUIZ #215 ANSWERS:
Answers are in the form:
#number) Artist: Title (year
[-] = did not make pop chart
{-} = did not make R&B chart
{F} = made R&B chart as a flip side
{n/c} = no Billboard R&B chart published during this recording's period
of peak popularity
===============================================================================
You'll go down in history
#01) Autry, Gene: Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1957) [70] {-}
Gene Autry must be turning over in his grave contemplating the name
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. But I'm sure he was celebrating in the
great beyond along with the 2002 World Series champion Anaheim Angels.
Sung by Neil in his second Christmas album, released in 1994.
She gives me everything
And tenderly
The kiss my lover brings
She brings to me
#02) Beatles, The: And I Love Her (1964) [12] {n/c}
One of a handful of Beatles songs Neil has recorded. It's on THE MOVIE
ALBUM (AS TIME GOES BY), one of my least favorite Neil Diamond albums, which
was released in 1998 (referred to hereinafter as ATGB). From the Fab Four's
first flick, A HARD DAY'S NIGHT.
This was not in my first draft of GOLQ215. Instead, one of the tie-breakers
was going to be "Carry That Weight," a song on Neil's live box set released
in 2003, "Stages." This was going to be included as an addition to last
year's December quiz, GOLQ203, in which all of the songs had some connection
to a U.S. President in the artist name, song name, subject, or lyrics.
However, something I considered to be an unfortunate event happened in early
November, and I lost interest in including this one. (This unfortunate
event has nothing to do with 1980s chartmaker John Waite, but it does
concern someone with the first name of John and a last name that's a homonym
for a word in the song's title.)
Each night we meet and talk about you
Reminisce about the things you used to do
We just sit around broken-hearted
Cause all of us are still in love with you
#03) Boone, Pat: Ten Lonely Guys (1962) [45] {-}
There is an interesting story behind this one. Neil and nine other song-
writers who were working for a music publishing firm in New York were given
the assignment to write Pat Boone's next single. They came up with this
song. They liked it so much that they wanted to record it themselves.
However, there were some legal issues involved, so they had to use pseudo-
nyms in making their own recording. Their recording, "Ten Lonely Guys"
by the Ten Lonely Guys, did not chart. The lead vocalist was 21-year-old
"Mark Lewis," also known as Neil Diamond. Although he was not yet a
successful recording artist, his vocal talents (at least compared to theirs)
must have been apparent to the others to earn him this assignment. Pat
Boone's version of this song marked Neil Diamond's first entry into the
Hot 100 as a songwriter.
The nine other co-writers of this song are Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein,
Richard Gottehrer, Stanley Kahan, Eddie Snyder, Lockie Edwards Jr., Larry
Weiss, Cliff Adams, Wes Farrell. Several of them are well-known for other
achievements.
Neil finally recorded a version of this song under his own name for the 1993
album UP ON THE ROOF (SONGS FROM THE BRILL BUILDING) (referred to herein-
after as UOTR).
The other night as I lay sleeping
I dreamed I held you, held you in my arms
But when I woke up this morning
Found out I was mistaken
#04) Charles, Ray: You Are My Sunshine (1962/63) [7] {1}
A much-performed song--it also charted by the Ferko String Band, Johnny &
the Hurricanes, and Mitch Ryder in the Top Pop Singles book era, and it was
a #20 hit for Bing Crosby in 1941. Neil sang it in his only starring film
role in THE JAZZ SINGER (1980), but it's not on the soundtrack album or any
other album. The results page for GOLQ94 at http://golq.org/archive.html
gives some history of this song.
I held my nose
I closed my eyes
I took a drink
#05) Clovers, The: Love Potion No. 9 (1959) [23] {23}
Some entrants named the Coasters as the artist for this one. Similar name,
which fits alphabetically, and the type of song they'd do, too. In fact
they did take it to #72 in 1972. The highest-charting version of this song
was the one I know best--#3 by the Searchers in 1965. Done by Neil on UOTR.
Written by the famed songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.
Won't you stay
We'll put on the day
And we'll wear it till the night comes
#06) Collins, Judy: Chelsea Morning (1969) [78] {-}
Recorded by Neil during his days on Uni records as an introspective singer/
songwriter on his 1971 album STONES. Written by Joni Mitchell, one of three
songs written by her that he has recorded. The other two were a bigger
Collins hit, "Both Sides Now," and Mitchell's own 1974 hit, "Free Man in
Paris."
This recording of this song is what inspired an Arkansas couple named Bill
and Hillary Clinton to name their daughter Chelsea. And perhaps you thought
that "Sweet Caroline" was the only song Neil had ever recorded that
mentioned the name of a daughter of a Democratic President of my lifetime
whose first initial is "C"!
In this cold world
I struggle to survive
And sometimes I would fall
You'd think someone would lend a helping hand
They'd sooner see me crawl
#07) Davis, Sammy, Jr.: The Shelter of Your Arms (1964) [17] {n/c}
This is my favorite recording by Sammy Davis, Jr., and it's also one of my
two favorite recordings of a song written by someone else that Neil has
done. The other song is also in this quiz, and coincidentally, it was also
done in a well-known (but not charting) version by Sammy Davis, Jr. Neil
did this on his album SEPTEMBER MORN, released in early 1980.
Lori Bailey and team pointed out that this was written by Jerry Samuels,
aka Napoleon XIV of "They're Coming to Take Me Away" fame.
Starting with the ABC of it
Right down to the XYZ of it
#08) DeCastro Sisters: Teach Me Tonight (1954/55) [2] {-}
Neil did this in concert as part of an oldies medley in the 1980s. It's
part on a video/DVD of his called "Greatest Hits Live," and it's also on the
"Stages" box set.
Also an acceptable answer for this is another DeCastro Sisters' recording,
"Teach Me Tonight Cha-Cha," #76 in 1959.
Bad times, I can't take 'em
Good times, got to make 'em
Got to find 'em
Got to taste 'em
#09) Diamond, Neil: Two-Bit Manchild (1968) [66] {-}
Neil's second single release after he signed with Uni in 1968. None of his
first three Uni singles reached the Top 40, but they did showcase his versa-
tility. This was one of his few single releases that could be considered a
guitar rocker--along with 1967's "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" and
1970's "Cracklin' Rosie." One entrant, perhaps intentionally forfeiting 10
points in order to avoid listing Neil's name, credited the artist as Carol
Hunter, a guitarist in Neil's touring band around 1969-1970. However, she
had not joined Neil's band at the time this was recorded, and most likely
the guitar licks featured throughout the song were done by a studio musician.
Without your love
I'm just one of a million other guys
#10) Dove, Ronnie: My Babe (1967) [50] {-}
Ronnie Dove was a singer from the Washington/Baltimore area, where I am
from originally. He was all over WWDC, WPGC, WEAM, and WINX with his
weepy ballads in the mid-1960s, and most of his recordings were not
favorites of mine. He recorded on a label called Diamond, but Neil
Diamond had nothing to do with the label. However, he did write and
produce a few songs for Ronnie Dove, including this one.
I've tried so not to give in
I've said to myself this affair never would go so well
But why should I try to resist
When darling I know so well?
#11) 4 Seasons, The, Featuring the Sound of Frankie Valli:
I've Got You Under My Skin (1966) [9] {-}
Ask me with what Italian singer from Northern New Jersey sometimes or always
known as Frankie I associate this song, and of course I'll mention Frankie
Valli. I did not know of any other guys fitting this description who did
this song until after Sinatra died in 1998. And Neil paid tribute to that
Frank by including this in a medley called "Suite Sinatra" on ATGB. I did
learn while this song was climbing the charts in 1966 that it was an old
song that my parents' generation knew when one of my uncles started singing
along with it after he let me play a Top 40 station in his car. Unfortu-
nately, this uncle did not live to see any of his grandchildren. While I
was in the midst of putting this quiz together, I attended the Bar Mitzvah
of his namesake grandson, so I thought it fitting to put this song on this
quiz. Written by Cole Porter.
One day I'm gonna take her home
Tell the world that she's my own
#12) Jay & the Americans: Sunday and Me (1965) [18] {-}
This was Neil Diamond's first Top 40 entry as a songwriter. He's never
released a recording of his own of this song.
If the tom-tom in my heart
Sounded out a warning
#13) Jones, Jack: Love With The Proper Stranger (1964) [62] {n/c}
Another one from ATGB. This was the title song to one of two movies that
featured both Natalie Wood and Macy's flagship department store in New York,
the other being MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET. Steve McQueen co-starred in LOVE
WITH THE PROPER STRANGER. It's also one of two songs in this quiz from a
Natalie Wood movie. The other one is a tie-breaker.
Bah-da bah-da-da-da
Bah-da bah-da-da-da
#14) Mamas & The Papas, The: Monday, Monday (1966) [1] {-}
I didn't fool too many people with this nonsense lyrics entry. Neil record-
ed this on his first album for Bang Records, THE FEEL OF NEIL, in 1966.
There's an interesting stutter song progression from that year--The Mamas
and The Papas had a hit with "Monday, Monday," which Neil Diamond also re-
corded and put on the same album as his hit "Cherry, Cherry," which the
Music Machine then recorded and put on the same album as their hit "Talk,
Talk."
Randy Price & Peter Morley listed the group's name as Mama's & The Papa's
and pointed out that the apostrophes were in the group name on the original
single. I also saw this representation of their name in the 1960s and read
somewhere at the time that the group intended for their name to show that
they were the offspring of their own mamas and papas, and hence the posses-
sive form of the name was used.
Be mine tonight
Let this be just the start of so many nights like this
Let's take a lover's vow and then seal it with a kiss
#15) Mendes, Sergio, and Brasil '66: The Look of Love (1968) [4] {-}
While I was pretty lenient on some things in this quiz, I deducted one point
each for substituting "z" for "s" in Mendes and Brasil. I felt that it was
important to emphasize that Mendes is from a Portuguese-speaking country,
not a Spanish-speaking one (even though the country's own name is spelled
with a "z").
Neil did this one on ATGB. It's from the movie CASINO ROYALE, and coinci-
dentally it is the first of two consecutive songs on this quiz to have been
featured in a James Bond spoof movie. Dusty Springfield took this to #22
less than a year earlier, and a version by Isaac Hayes went to #79 in 1971.
Written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, who appear twice in this quiz as
songwriters. Not to be confused with a different song with the same title
that was a hit for Lesley Gore and was written by Jeff Barry and Ellie
Greenwich.
I thought love was more or less a giving thing
Seemed the more I gave the less I got
#16) Monkees: I'm A Believer (1966/67) [1] {-}
As pointed out by Jessica Raine--"written by Neil Diamond, yuck."
Lead vocal by Micky Dolenz, who debuted this week as a disc jockey on WCBS
radio in New York. This was Neil's first number one as a songwriter. After
he left Bang records, the label released a single of his own recording of
this song, which went to #51 in 1971. An act called Tin Huey recorded a
non-charting version in the late 1970s. In recent years, this song has
enjoyed renewed popularity as a result of having been featured in two
movies--the Monkees' own version was in the James Bond spoof movie AUSTIN
POWERS: THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME, and a version by Smash Mouth was in the 2001
blockbuster animation feature SHREK. Smash Mouth's version charted in the
mid-20s that same year.
Not to be confused with another Monkees' #1 song "Daydream Believer." The
Monkees' follow-up to "I'm a Believer" was another song written by Neil,
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You." And the group also did at least two
other Neil Diamond songs on albums.
Shall I stay?
Would it be a sin?
#17) Presley, Elvis, with The Jordanaires: Can't Help Falling in Love
(1961) [2] {-}
Can you believe it? It's been 70 years since he was born! Everybody got this
one, but I deducted points for stating the title as "I Can't Help Falling in
Love with You." From the movie BLUE HAWAII, and done by Neil on ATGB.
You have won all my money and my brand new Stetson hat
#18) Price, Lloyd: Stagger Lee (1958) [1] {1}
Done by Wilson Pickett under the title "Stag-O-Lee" in 1967. Due to the
close proximity of the two artists in the alphabet, I deliberately chose a
line that I don't think is in the Pickett song. I needn't have been so
careful--every entry correctly identified the song by the intervening
Presley guy. Done by Neil on the SEPTEMBER MORN album. While we're on the
subject of seemingly incomprehensible "Stagger Lee" recording artists, I'll
also mention that Tommy Roe went to #25 with a version in 1971.
'Cause it's gone, gone, gone
And I can't go on
#19) Righteous Brothers, The: You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' (1964/65)
[1] {3}
Done by Neil as a duet with Dolly Parton on UOTR. One of three Righteous
Brothers hits that Neil has recorded. Both of the others are on ATGB--
"Unchained Melody" and "Ebb Tide." Written by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, and
Phil Spector. Produced by Spector.
You've turned into the prettiest girl I've ever seen
#20) Sedaka, Neil: Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen (1961) [6] {-}
How many different singers named Neil who graduated from Abraham Lincoln
High School in Brooklyn have recorded this song? I know of at least two.
Yes, Mr. Diamond has a version, dedicated to his own two daughters plus
Dara Sedaka, on UOTR. He also did a video called "The Roof Party" to pro-
mote this album, and in the video, the two Neils do a duet of this song.
Written by Sedaka and his longtime writing partner Howard Greenfield.
Life can never be
Exactly like we want it to be
I can be satisfied
Knowing you love me
#21) Shirelles, The: Dedicated to the One I Love (1959,1961) [83,3] {-,2}
This was included in the oldies medley Neil did in concerts. It's on
"Stages" (but not "Greatest Hits Live"). The version with which I am most
familiar was done by the Mamas and Papas, er, Mama's and Papa's, and went
to #2 in 1967. Plus there were versions by "5" Royales in 1961, Temprees
in 1972, and Bernadette Peters in 1981. None of the other versions made
the top 40.
I shout it from the high, highest hill
Don't you know I even went out and I told the golden daffodil
#22) Stewart, Billy: Secret Love (1966) [29] {11}
Made famous by Doris Day in "Calamity Jane" in the early 1950s. Done by
Neil on ATGB. Like Ronnie Dove, Billy Stewart was from the Washington area
(not Philadelphia, as the Coasters mentioned) and got a lot of airplay
there. Unfortunately, he was killed in an automobile accident 35 years ago
this month. While I may come across as not being such a fan of soul music,
I've always preferred Billy Stewart over Ronnie Dove. This recording was
somewhat overshadowed by that of another old standard he did a few months
earlier, "Summertime," which reached #10 on the Hot 100.
If I lost you would I cry
Oh how I love you baby
#23) Turner, Ike & Tina: River Deep-Mountain High (1966) [88] {-}
Speaking of soul music, one regret I had when I put this quiz together was
that Motown was not represented. The only original Motown song Neil has
done ("Dancing in the Street") was used too recently in a quiz, and the only
charting version of a song written by Neil and recorded by a Motown act
("Holly Holy" by Junior Walker & the All Stars) came out a year too late,
and anyway, Neil's own version of the song had been used too recently.
This was the closest I came to having a Motown hit on the quiz. Two entries
named Supremes & Four Tops as the artist for this song. And in fact, it
fits alphabetically. However, it came out in 1970, although it was the
highest charting rendition of this song that was written by Jeff Barry,
Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector. A version by Deep Purple went to #53 in
1969, making this song the answer to the question, what song other than
"Kentucky Woman" was done by both Neil Diamond and Deep Purple? Neil's
version is on UOTR, and he also has a great live version on his 1994 album
LIVE IN AMERICA.
In my CD collection, besides the Turner, Supremes/4 Tops, Diamond, and
Deep Purple versions, I have recordings of this song by Eric Burdon and
the Animals, the Easybeats, and co-writer Ellie Greenwich.
Let go a laugh
Shook back his clothes all around
#24) Walker, Jerry Jeff: Mr. Bojangles (1968) [77] {-}
This is the other of my two favorite recordings of a song written by someone
else that Neil has done. And like "The Shelter of Your Arms," it has also
been done, in perhaps one of its most famous renditions, by Sammy Davis, Jr.
The Jerry Jeff Walker version may have been hampered by a cover by Bobby
Cole that was on the chart at the same time; the Cole version only went as
high as #79. Walker wrote the song and finally saw it go Top 10 when done
by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1971. Neil did this on his 1969 album
TOUCHING YOU, TOUCHING ME.
Woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh
Woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh woh
#25) Warwick, Dionne: Do You Know The Way to San Jose (1968) [10] {23}
The second Burt Bacharach-Hal David song on this quiz. Unlike "Monday,
Monday," these nonsense lyrics proved tougher to identify. Other responses
I got included "Last Kiss" by J. Frank Wilson (and the Cavaliers) and two
songs by Stevie Wonder (more Motown!), "My Cherie Amour" and "Fingertips,
Pt. 2." I listened to these three songs just to make sure that they don't
contain this sequence. In addition, I got an email from one of the partici-
pants before the entry was finalized asking if I perhaps put "Poetry in
Motion" by Johnny Tillotson in the wrong place. In fact, the "woh" lyrics
from "Poetry in Motion" were used in GOLQ127 and thus are not eligible to be
used again!
Neil recorded this (without the "woh woh"s) on UOTR.
------------
Tie-Breakers
------------
These were not difficult enough. I should have put in another seasonal entry,
"Santa, Santa" by the Rocky Fellers, a 1962 release written by Neil.
Make of our vows
One last vow
Only death will part us now
#T1) Kert, Larry, with Carol Lawrence: One Hand, One Heart (1957) [-] {-}
From the original broadway cast album of WEST SIDE STORY. Also acceptable
is the version done by Jim Bryant and Marnie Nixon, which is from the origi-
nal soundtrack album of WEST SIDE STORY. Bryant and Nixon are the actual
singers, while Richard Beymer and Natalie Wood are lip-synching on-screen.
I was treading into new territory here, picking a song that was famous for
being in a Broadway music made into a movie. I gave a lot of leeway for the
artist here. I accepted any or part of the three duos mentioned above (in-
cluding the lip synchers). I gave full credit for any act that fit alpha-
betically, including entries that mentioned the Escorts and Vic Damone. I
gave partial credit for acts that didn't fit alphabetically if the entry did
not answer #T2. For anyone giving the artist as Neil Diamond as a result of
his recording on his 1991 album LOVESCAPE, I gave credit only if the entry
did not answer him as the artist for his song in the main 25 songs (since
his appearance there makes him ineligible to be a tie breaker act).
I don't worry about all the things I'm not
There's only one thing I want I ain't got
You know that I'm thinking about you baby
But you'd better know 'fore you come along
#T2) Lulu: The Boat That I Row (1967) [-] {-}
A #6 hit for her in the U.K., but in the U.S. it ended up as the B-side of
her #1 hit, "To Sir With Love." Written by Neil Diamond, and it also ap-
peared as the B-side of his hit record that was just used as #10 in GOLQ214,
"I Got the Feelin' (Oh No, No)."
A surprisingly large number got this one. I attribute it to one of three
factors--being familiar with Neil's own version (although I was careful to
choose some lyrics sung differently by Lulu) and then researching who else
did it, owning a copy of the "To Sir With Love" single at some point in time
and flipping it over to hear what's on the other side, or being from the
U.K., where this was a big hit.
===============================================================================
This chart ranks the songs/artists from most to least recognized. The second
number on the line denotes the average number of points scored on that song
(total points divided by number of entrants, to 2 decimal places). For
comparison purposes, tie-breakers are scored here on the usual 20-point scale.
As you can see this was not a difficult quiz at all, with some songs being
identified by every entry (although points were deducted for various small
errors). I expected "Ten Lonely Guys," "My Babe," and "Love with the Proper
Stranger" of the regular 25 songs to be the most difficult. Although they
did rank near the bottom, each was still identified by at least half of the
participants. The only song for which I did not supply nonsense lyrics that
did worse, relatively speaking, than I expected was "Sunday and Me."
Rank Avg. Song
---+-----+----+--------------------------------------------------------------
T01 20.00 #02) Beatles: And I Love Her
T01 20.00 #18) Price, Lloyd: Stagger Lee
T01 20.00 #19) Righteous Brothers: You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'
04 19.96 #20) Sedaka, Neil: Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen
05 19.92 #21) Shirelles: Dedicated to the One I Love
06 19.79 #16) Monkees: I'm A Believer
07 19.75 #17) Presley, Elvis: Can't Help Falling in Love
08 19.33 #05) Clovers: Love Potion No. 9
T09 18.75 #04) Charles, Ray: You Are My Sunshine
T09 18.75 #11) 4 Seasons: I've Got You Under My Skin
11 18.33 #24) Walker, Jerry Jeff: Mr. Bojangles
T12 17.50 #08) DeCastro Sisters: Teach Me Tonight
T12 17.50 #14) Mamas & The Papas: Monday, Monday
T12 17.50 #22) Stewart, Billy: Secret Love
15 17.46 #01) Autry, Gene: Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
16 16.67 #06) Collins, Judy: Chelsea Morning
17 15.21 #15) Mendes, Sergio, and Brasil '66: The Look of Love
18 14.33 #23) Turner, Ike & Tina: River Deep-Mountain High
T19 13.33 #07) Davis, Sammy, Jr.: The Shelter of Your Arms
T19 13.33 #09) Diamond, Neil: Two-Bit Manchild
21 12.50 #03) Boone, Pat: Ten Lonely Guys
22 11.67 #12) Jay & the Americans: Sunday and Me
23 11.21 #T1) Kert, Larry, with Carol Lawrence: One Hand, One Heart
24 10.38 #10) Dove, Ronnie: My Babe
T25 10.00 #13) Jones, Jack: Love With The Proper Stranger
T26 10.00 #25) Warwick, Dionne: Do You Know The Way to San Jose
T27 10.00 #T2) Lulu: The Boat That I Row
---+-----+----+--------------------------------------------------------------
===============================================================================
Regina Litman <golq215@golq.org>
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