"La-La (Means I Love You)" is an R&B/

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

song by American vocal group

The Delfonics The Delfonics were an American R&B/soul vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Delfonics were most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Their most notable hits include "La-La (Means I Love You)", "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This ...

. Released on January 26, 1968, by

Philly Groove Records Philly Groove Records was a soul music label started by Stan Watson and Sam Bell in 1967, with noted producer Thom Bell doing A&R. The label's best-known artists were male vocal group the Delfonics and female group First Choice. Both acts enjoyed ...

, the song was written by

Thom Bell Thomas Randolph Bell (January 27th, 1943 – December 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, pianist, and composer known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. He found success as a producer ...

and William Hart, and produced by Bell and Stan Watson.

Background

The song was a number four U.S. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' pop, number two R&B hit in 1968. A 1971, release peaked at number 19 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The song is one of the Delfonics' most enduring recordings and perhaps their best loved, noting a number of

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

Chart performance

Other versions

Alton Ellis Alton Nehemiah Ellis (1 September 1938 – 10 October 2008)Godfather ...

and the Flames recorded a

rocksteady Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish ...

version in 1968 on the Jamaican Supersonics label. *Family group The Jets covered it in 1985 in for their self-titled album. * Booker T. & the M.G.'s covered an instrumental version of the song in their 1968 album, ''

Soul Limbo ''Soul Limbo'' is the seventh studio album by the American R&B band Booker T. & the M.G.'s, released in 1968 on Stax Records. The album was the first Stax LP issued after the label severed its ties with former distributor Atlantic Records in 1 ...

''. *

The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

covered the song in their 1970 album, ''

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

'', and it was featured in their early 1970s

Saturday Saturday is the day of the week between Friday and Sunday. No later than the 2nd century, the Romans named Saturday ("Saturn's Day") for the planet Saturn, which controlled the first hour of that day, according to Vettius Valens. The day's na ...

morning cartoon. *American actress

Connie Stevens Connie Stevens (born Concetta Rosalie Ann Ingolia; August 8, 1938) is an American actress and singer. Born in Brooklyn, New York City to musician parents, Stevens was raised there until age 12, when she was sent to live with family friends in r ...

covered the song in 1971 during a short-lived stint as an R&B singer, with Thom Bell producing. *Egyptian rock group

Les Petits Chats Les Petits Chats (Little Cats) was a well-known Egyptian rock band from Cairo that was formed in the 1960s. It was founded by Wagdi Francis. The group has an important place in the history of Egyptian rock music. Background The group was founded ...

(aka The Cats) released a version b/w "

With a Little Help from My Friends "With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, from their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and sung by drummer Ringo Starr (as Sgt. Pe ...

" in 1971 on the

Sono Cairo Sono Cairo (Sout Alqahira, Sout Al Qahira, or Sawt al-Qahira: ar, شركة صوت القاهرة للصوتيات والمرئيات, "the sound of Cairo") is an Egyptian government owned multimedia company. Company history Launched as a priv ...

label. *

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, multimedia artist, sound engineer and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the band Ut ...

covered the song, as a medley of soul songs on his 1973 album, ''

A Wizard, a True Star ''A Wizard, a True Star'' is the fourth album by American musician Todd Rundgren, released March 2, 1973, on Bearsville Records. It marked a departure from his previous, ''Something/Anything?'' (1972), with its lesser reliance on straightforward po ...

.'' *

Samantha Sang Cheryl Lau Sang (born 5 August 1951), known professionally as Samantha Sang, is an Australian singer. She had an earlier career as a teenage singer under the stage name Cheryl Gray, before adopting the stage name she is more widely known as in 1 ...

covered "La-La (Means I Love You)" on her 1978 LP, ''

Emotion Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is currently no scientific consensus on a definition. ...

''. *In 1981,

Tierra Tierra may refer to: Astronomy *Earth in the Spanish and Asturian language Computing and games * Tierra (computer simulation), a computer simulation of life by the ecologist Thomas S. Ray * Tierra Entertainment, now known as AGD Interactive, a ...

covered the song on their album, "Together Again". *

Tatsuro Yamashita , occasionally credited as Tatsu Yamashita or Tats Yamashita, is a Japanese singer-songwriter and record producer, who is known for pioneering the style of Japanese adult-oriented rock/soft rock music. His most well-known song is "Christmas E ...

covered the song on his 1989 album, ''Joy: Tatsuro Yamashita Live''. *The Cantonese version of the song was sung by

Grasshopper Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grasshopp ...

in 1992. *

Swing Out Sister Swing Out Sister are a British pop group best known worldwide for the 1986 song " Breakout". Other hits include "Surrender", " Twilight World", " Waiting Game", and a remake of the Eugene Record soul composition "Am I the Same Girl?" Histor ...

covered the song in their 1994 album ''

The Living Return ''The Living Return'' is the title of the fourth studio album by the British pop group Swing Out Sister. It was released in September 1994 on Fontana Records. Charts Although this was the first studio album by the group that failed to reach the ...

''. *

The Manhattan Transfer The Manhattan Transfer is a Grammy award–winning vocal group founded in 1969 that has explored a cappella, vocalese, swing, standards, Brazilian jazz, rhythm and blues, and pop music. There have been two editions of the Manhattan Transfer, ...

covered the song in their 1995 album ''

Tonin' ''Tonin is the sixteenth studio album by The Manhattan Transfer. It was released in 1995 on Atlantic Records. The expression "tonin'" is associated with the vocal groups of the 1950s and 1960s. The songs on this album are favorites of the band's ...

''. *

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

covered the song in his 1996 album ''

Emancipation Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure economic and social rights, political rights or equality, often for a specifically disenfranchis ...

'', retitling the song "La, La, La Means 👁 Love U". *

Laura Nyro Laura Nyro ( ; born Laura Nigro; October 18, 1947 – April 8, 1997) was an American songwriter, singer, and pianist. She achieved critical acclaim with her own recordings, particularly the albums ''Eli and the Thirteenth Confession'' (1968 ...

covered the song, as a medley, on her 1988 live album laura:) live at the bottom line.

Samples

*In 2004, rapper

Ghostface Killah Dennis Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang (36 C ...

also

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...

"La-La" for his song "Holla" from his album, ''

The Pretty Toney Album ''The Pretty Toney Album'' is the fourth studio album by American hip hop artist Ghostface. The album was released on April 20, 2004, by Def Jam. It is the only album from the artist to be released solely under the title of "Ghostface" ("Killah" ...

''.

Pop culture

Billy Bragg Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music is ...

quotes the chorus of the song on "The Saturday Boy" from his 1984 album, ''

Brewing Up with Billy Bragg ''Brewing Up with Billy Bragg'' is the second album by Billy Bragg, released in 1984. While his debut album ''Life's a Riot with Spy vs Spy'' (1983) was performed by Bragg accompanied only by his guitar, ''Brewing Up with Billy Bragg'' began t ...

''. *The song was featured in

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

's 1994 film, ''

Crooklyn ''Crooklyn'' is a 1994 American semi-autobiographical film produced and directed by Spike Lee and co-written with his sister Joie and brother Cinqué. Occurring in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, during the summer ...

''. *It also appeared in

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

's 1997 film, ''

Jackie Brown ''Jackie Brown'' is a 1997 American crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, based on Elmore Leonard's 1992 novel ''Rum Punch.'' It stars Pam Grier as Jackie Brown, a flight attendant who is caught smuggling money. Samuel L. Ja ...

''. *

Brett Ratner Brett Ratner (born March 28, 1969) is an American film director and producer. He directed the ''Rush Hour'' film series, ''The Family Man'', '' Red Dragon'', '' X-Men: The Last Stand'', and ''Tower Heist''. He is also a producer of several films ...

‘s 2000 film, ''

The Family Man ''The Family Man'' is a 2000 American romantic fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Brett Ratner, from a screenplay by David Diamond and David Weissman. The film stars Nicolas Cage and Téa Leoni, with Don Cheadle, Saul Rubinek, and Jeremy ...

'', Jack Campbell (

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Gu ...

) sang this song to Kate (

Téa Leoni Téa Leoni (; born Elizabeth Téa Pantaleoni; February 25, 1966) is an American actress. In her early career, she starred in the television sitcoms '' Flying Blind'' (1992–93) and ''The Naked Truth'' (1995–98). Her breakthrough role was in t ...

References

{{authority control 1968 singles The Delfonics songs The Jackson 5 songs Todd Rundgren songs Samantha Sang songs The Jets (band) songs Swing Out Sister songs Prince (musician) songs Laura Nyro songs Songs written by Thom Bell Songs written by William Hart (singer) 1967 songs Philly Groove Records singles