"Fallin" is a song written by

Neil Sedaka Neil Sedaka (; born March 13, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collabo ...

and

Howard Greenfield Howard Greenfield (March 15, 1936 – March 4, 1986) was an American lyricist and songwriter, who for several years in the 1960s worked out of the famous Brill Building. He is best known for his successful songwriting collaborations, including o ...

, that was recorded by

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937), known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...

on 2 September 1958 at Metropolitan Studio (NYC) in a session produced by Morton "Morty" Kraft who also conducted.

Background

The same team had been responsible for Francis' precedent single "Stupid Cupid" which had returned Francis to the Top 20 after the disappointing #36 peak of "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry" the follow-up to her breakout hit " Who's Sorry Now?". Francis recalls

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, Pop music, pop, rock and roll, Folk music, folk, Swing music, swing, and country music. He started his car ...

telling her "on 'Stupid Cupid' you were yourself – now n "Fallin"you're imitating me and it's not going to make it big. It's not a Top Ten hit." Francis adds: "And the lyrics were too sexy for then."

Chart performance

"Fallin" was an upbeat

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

song in the same vein as "Stupid Cupid" but failed to approach its success peaking at #30. The B-side of "Fallin" was "

Happy Days and Lonely Nights "Happy Days and Lonely Nights" is a torch song written by Billy Rose and Fred Fisher, first recorded by The Harmony Brothers on May 18, 1928. The song was successfully revived in the 1950s in the US by the Fontane Sisters and in the UK most succe ...

", a signature song of

torch song A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affecte ...

legend

Ruth Etting Ruth Etting (November 23, 1896 – September 24, 1978) was an American singer and actress of the 1920s and 1930s, who had over 60 hit recordings and worked in stage, radio, and film. Known as "America's sweetheart of song", her signature tunes ...

. Francis' version received enough airplay to reach #88 on the ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' Best Selling Singles chart. In the UK, "Fallin" was released with a different standard: " I'll Get By" as the B-side with both tracks charting at #20 for "Fallin" and #19 for "I'll Get By".

Cover versions

Wanda Jackson Wanda LaVonne Jackson (born October 20, 1937) is an American singer and songwriter. Since the 1950s, she has recorded and released music in the genres of rock, country and gospel. She was among the first women to have a career in rock and roll, ...

, who also recorded "Stupid Cupid", has recorded "Fallin". *The song's composer, Neil Sedaka, cut his own version for his 1959 debut album ''Rock With Sedaka''; Sedaka's version served as B-side for his

RCA Italiana RCA Italiana was an Italian record company founded in 1949 and active until 1987, the date on which, together with the parent company RCA Records, it was bought by BMG Entertainment. History Founded in Rome in 1949 under the Vatican's protecti ...

single "All I Need Is You".

Popular culture

*"Fallin" can be heard in the 1996 film '' The Craft'' in which the

Helen Shaver Helen Shaver (born February 24, 1951) is a Canadian actress and film and television director. She has received Emmy and Saturn Award nominations, among other honours. Early life Shaver was born and raised, with five sisters, in St. Thomas, O ...

character uses the insurance windfall she receives after her abusive husband is dispatched by her daughter's witchcraft to purchase a

jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to selec ...

stocked with Connie Francis singles. In 1999 Francis sued Universal Music Group – who by then held the MGM catalog – over "Fallin's appearance in ''The Craft'' as well as the appearance of her songs in two other films (''Postcards From America'' and ''

Jawbreaker Jawbreaker may refer to: * Gobstopper, a hard candy with multiple layers Arts and entertainment * ''Jawbreakers'' (album), an album by Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Harry "Sweets" Edison * Jawbreaker (band), an American rock band * Jawbreakers (duo) ...

''). The suit was dismissed. *In 2008 "Fallin" was used in the UK in a television commercial for

Special K Special K is an American brand of breakfast cereal and meal bars manufactured by Kellogg's. The cereal was introduced to the United States in 1955. It is made primarily from grains such as lightly toasted rice, wheat and barley. Special K used ...

. In September, 2012,

Target Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, fi ...

started using the song in a new commercial.

References

{{authority control Connie Francis songs 1958 singles Songs written by Neil Sedaka Songs with lyrics by Howard Greenfield 1958 songs MGM Records singles