sunshine pop
Sunshine pop (originally known as soft pop) is a subgenre of pop music that originated in Southern California in the mid-1960s. Rooted in easy listening and advertising jingles, sunshine pop acts combined nostalgic or anxious moods with "an appre ...
The song describes the singer's satisfaction with a love relationship that is down-to-earth rather than extravagantly romantic, a
subgenre
Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...
of
love song
A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order ...
exemplified by the
Jerome Kern
Jerome David Kern (January 27, 1885 – November 11, 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in ove ...
/
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, ( ; 15 October 188114 February 1975) was an English author and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Jeeve ...
composition "
Bill
Bill(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
* Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States)
* Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature
* Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer
* Bill, a bird or animal's beak
Plac ...
". Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil had previously written the similarly themed "
He's Sure the Boy I Love
"He's Sure the Boy I Love" is a 1962 single by The Crystals. The song was originally recorded by The Blossoms but credited to The Crystals. On the '' Billboard'' charts in 1963, "He's Sure the Boy I Love" peaked at #11 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 10 ...
", a hit for
the Crystals
The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including "There's No Other (Like My Baby)", " ...
in 1963.
The earliest evident recording of "It's Getting Better" was by
the Vogues
The Vogues are an American vocal rock and roll group from Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh. The original lineup consisted of Bill Burkette (lead baritone), Don Miller (baritone), Hugh Geyer (first tenor), and Chuck Blasko (s ...
for their August 1968 album release ''Turn Around, Look at Me'' ( Reprise Records). Also in 1968, the song was featured on the
Leonard Nimoy
Leonard Simon Nimoy (; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor, famed for playing Spock in the '' Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes originating Spock in the original ''Star Trek'' series in 1966, th ...
album ''The Way I Feel'' (
Dot Records
Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In 1956, the company moved ...
) released that October. The first evident single release of "It's Getting Better" was by
Pierre Lalonde
Pierre Lalonde (January 20, 1941 – June 21, 2016) was a Canadian singer and television host.
The son of Jean Lalonde, a popular singer in the 1940s, Lalonde attended high school in the United States but returned to Canada in 1960, where he wo ...
on the Montréalais label Disco Prestige in September 1968 with the track's parent album: ''Introducing Peter Martin'', being released that November.
In March 1969, the Will-O-Bees, a New York City-based trio (Janet Blossom, Steven Porter, and Robert Merchanthouse) who recorded a number of Mann-Weil compositions, had a single release of "It's Getting Better" on the SGC label (Screen Gems Columbia). Overall 1969 saw the release of several single versions of "It's Getting Better" but only Cass Elliot's was by an established artist at that time, the other versions being by Ronnie Buskirk, Freddie Gelfand, and P. K. Limited. The song has since been recorded and covered by many well-known artists around the world including UK singer and ex-cruise star Jane McDonald.
"It's Getting Better" has also been recorded by Richard Barnes, the Günter Kallmann ( de) Chorus Louise Morrissey the Popinjays, Kevin Rowland and John & Anne Ryder. Bobby Rydell recorded the song for his 1976 album release ''Born With a Smile'', his sole album released after 1964, and his version was issued as a single in 1977.Jane McDonald's rendition of "It's Getting Better" can be heard on her 2010 concert album ''Live at the
London Palladium
The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 a ...
''. A Swedish rendering of "It's Getting Better" by lyricist
Stig Anderson
Stig Erik Leopold Anderson (25 January 1931 – 12 September 1997), better known as Stikkan Anderson, was a Swedish music manager, lyricist and music publisher. He was the co-founder of Polar Music, and is best known for managing the Sw ...
entitled "Det Känns Bara Bättre" was cut by Anna-Lena Löfgren in 1970.
Steve Barri
Steve Barri (born Steven Barry Lipkin in Brooklyn, New York on February 23, 1942) is an American songwriter and record producer.
Career
Early in his career, Barri was a staff writer with Dunhill Records. He produced such huge hits as " Dizzy" ...
James Burton
James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also been recognized ...
on guitar,
Hal Blaine
Hal Blaine (born Harold Simon Belsky; February 5, 1929 – March 11, 2019) was an American drummer and session musician, thought to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. ...
on drums,
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon & ...
on keyboards, and Joe Osborn on bass) — who'd regularly backed
the Mamas & the Papas
The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of Am ...
— were among the instrumentalists on the album.
"It's Getting Better" was issued as the second advance single in May 1969 following the release that March of " Move in a Little Closer, Baby", a single reminiscent of
the Mamas & the Papas
The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of Am ...
sound which reached a ''Billboard'' Hot 100 peak of #58 (#30 Canada). Steve Barri would recall that "Move in a Little Closer, Baby" was "one lbum tracklliotwasn't ''too'' thrilled about...but she loved 'It's Getting Better'".
Elliot herself did convey reservations about "It's Getting Better", stating in a September 1969 '' Melody Maker'' interview that while pleased with the single was rising toward the UK Top Ten - "It shows I am being accepted on my own and that is something I've worried about ever since I left the Mamas & Papas" - "musically, though, it's not quite what I want to be doing. It doesn't satisfy me, It's a good recording for what it is, but you wouldn't exactly call it social commentary and musically it's not very complicated." Elliot further told ''Melody Maker'' - regarding "It's Getting Better" or perhaps the overall focus of its parent album - "
Bubblegum music
Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States ...
is very pleasant to listen to...but it's like they say about Chinese food: half an hour after tasting it you are hungry again", although she did concede "maybe ubblegumis what I am supposed to be doing
ince Ince may refer to:
*Ince, Cheshire, a village in Cheshire, UK
*Ince-in-Makerfield in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, UK
*Ince (UK Parliament constituency), a former constituency covering Ince-in-Makerfield
*Ince (ward), an electoral ward covering ...
my voice is very light...I just can't sing heavy material". Elliot would be less easygoing in her 1971 summation of her 1968-1970 tenure with Dunhill Records, saying she had been "forced to be so bubblegum that I'd stick to the floor when I walked."''Los Angeles Times'' 5 December 1971 "Mamas & Papas: four rugged individuals getting back together" by Nat Freedland p.705
A #13
Easy Listening
Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...
hit, "It's Getting Better" peaked at #30 in August 1969 during what was then considered an unusually lengthy 19-week run on ''Billboards Hot 100. Only five other 1969 releases had longer chart runs on the Hot 100.”Billboard Hot 100 Charts – The Sixties/The Seventies”, Record Research Inc, 1990 The single's regional success was staggered, and it reached the Top Ten in several markets, ranking as high as #2 in Minneapolis-Saint Paul and
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
. Its estimated U.S. sales were 500,000 copies.Coxhill, G: "Mama Cass Hates Hypocrisy" - ''NME'' - 25 October 1969 archived at http://casselliot.com/nmexpress.htm retrieved 22 September 2009
Cass Elliot made her first solo appearance on '' American Bandstand'' belatedly promoting "It's Getting Better" on its broadcast of November 8, 1969.
Elliot's "It's Getting Better" had a more pronounced chart impact in the UK, reaching #8 in October 1969 and selling almost 100,000 copies. The single bested the UK chart performance of Elliot's signature song, "
Dream a Little Dream of Me
"Dream a Little Dream of Me" is a 1931 song with music by Fabian Andre and Wilbur Schwandt and lyrics by Gus Kahn. It was first recorded in February 1931 by Ozzie Nelson and also by Wayne King and His Orchestra, with vocals by Ernie Birchill. ...
" (#11), which had lost some popularity to a rival version by Anita Harris. In Ireland, where "Dream a Little Dream of Me" had reached #13, "It's Getting Better" reached #3.
"Dream a Little Dream of Me" and "It's Getting Better" would be Elliot's only charting singles in the British Isles. In the U.S., "It's Getting Better" was the fourth of Elliot's seven solo ''Billboard'' Hot 100 appearances and her second
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...
hit after "Dream a Little Dream of Me".
In Australia, Cass Elliott's "It's Getting Better" charted concurrently with a version by Paul Jones, these singles peaking at respectively #53 and #52. Produced by Jones himself and arranged by
Tony Visconti
Anthony Edward Visconti (born April 24, 1944) is an American record producer, musician and singer. Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers. His first hit single was T. Rex's " Ride a White Swan" in 1970, the first of man ...
, the Paul Jones version was featured on his album ''Inside My Music Box'' and was released concurrently as a single with the Cass Elliott version in both the UK and Ireland without reaching the chart in either territory.
In the wake of the success of "It's Getting Better", Elliot's next two singles were recordings of Barry Mann-Cynthia Weil compositions: " Make Your Own Kind of Music" — which like "It's Getting Better" had been recorded by the Will-O-Bees in 1968 — and a new song, "New World Coming". Although both songs are now considered soft rock classics, their original chart success was fairly mild: "Make Your Own Kind of Music" peaked at #36 (Elliot's third and final solo Top 40 appearance) (#20 Canada), and "New World Coming" peaked at #42 (#22 Canada).
In 2011 Cass Elliot's "It's Getting Better" was employed in a television advertisement for
Nestea
Nestea is a Swiss brand of iced tea and pop beverages owned by Nestlé, manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company and distributed by Nestlé's beverage department in the United States and by Beverage Partners Worldwide (BPW),abc's
LOST
Lost may refer to getting lost, or to:
Geography
*Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland
* Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US
History
*Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
,
meet kevin johnson
"Meet Kevin Johnson" is the 80th television episode of the American Broadcasting Company's (ABC's) ''Lost'' and the eighth episode of the fourth season. It was written in October and November 2007 by supervising producer Elizabeth Sarnoff and co- ...
.
Chart performance
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Cover versions
Bobby Rydell covered "It's Getting Better" on his 1976 LP ''Born with a Smile''.