"Little Darlin'" is a popular
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 ...
song, made famous by
the Diamonds
The Diamonds are a Canadian vocal quartet that rose to prominence in the 1950s and early 1960s with 16 ''Billboard'' hit records. The original members were Dave Somerville (lead), Ted Kowalski (tenor), Phil Levitt (baritone), and Bill Reed (ba ...
.
The Gladiolas' version
It was written by
Maurice Williams with both
melody and
doo-wop accompaniment strongly emphasizing the
clave rhythm. It was first recorded by
Excello Records Excello Records was an American blues independent record label, started by Ernie Young in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, in 1953 as a subsidiary of Nashboro, a gospel label.
History
It recorded such artists as Lonnie Brooks, Lightnin' Slim ...
in January 1957 and quickly released as a
rhythm-and-blues
Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...
song by Williams' R&B group,
the Gladiolas. The song is noted for its spoken recitation by the lead singer ("My Darlin' I need you..."). The Gladiolas, featuring Williams, were from
Lancaster,
South Carolina
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, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
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, where they had been together since high school. Their original version of the song was on the small Excello label. (Excello primarily recording "
swamp blues
Swamp blues is a type of Louisiana blues that developed in the Black communities of Southwest Louisiana in the 1950s.Malone, Evelyn Levingston, "Swamp Blues: Race And Vinyl From Southwest Louisiana" (2016). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertatio ...
" songs in
Crowley
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Places
* Crowley, Mendocino County, California, an unincorporated community
*Crowley County, Colorado
* Crowley, Colorado, a town in Crowley County
*Crowley, Louisiana, a city
* Crowley, Oregon (disambiguation)
* Crowley, Te ...
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
.) The Gladiolas song peaked at No. 11 on the R&B charts in April 1957, but barely dented the Hot 100. By 1959, Williams' group became "Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs" with the rock 'n roll-R&B hit "Stay."
The Gladiolas' version was included in
Robert Christgau's "Basic Record Library" of 1950s and 1960s recordings, published in ''
Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies'' (1981).
The Diamonds' version
The Diamonds
The Diamonds are a Canadian vocal quartet that rose to prominence in the 1950s and early 1960s with 16 ''Billboard'' hit records. The original members were Dave Somerville (lead), Ted Kowalski (tenor), Phil Levitt (baritone), and Bill Reed (ba ...
' successful cover version followed a month later.
[ The Diamonds were a Canadian pop group that evolved into a doo-wop group. The Diamonds' version reached number two in sales for eight weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. ''Billboard'' ranked this version as the No. 3 song for 1957. In Canada, the song was No. 11 on the premiere ]CHUM Chart
The CHUM Chart was a ranking of top 30 (and, until August 1968, the top 50) songs on Toronto, Ontario radio station CHUM AM, from 1957 to 1986, and was the longest-running Top 40 chart in the world produced by an individual radio station. On Janua ...
, May 27, 1957.
The Diamonds' version is generally considered superior. Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine argues that the Diamonds "Little Darlin'" is an unusual example of a cover being better than the original: e Diamonds' take remained the bigger hit, and over the years, the better-known version. Normally, this would have been an outrage, but there's a reason why the Diamonds' version has sustained its popularity over the years: it's a better, fiercer recording. Both versions are good, even if they're a little silly, because it's a good doo wop song, giving each member of the quartet a lot to do. At times, the vocal phrases verge on self-parody -- the "ai-ya-yi-yai-yai-ya"'s or the "wella-wella"'s -- which may be why The Diamonds' version is superior.
On the ''
Pop Chronicles
The ''Pop Chronicles'' are two radio documentary series which together "may constitute the most complete audio history of 1940s–60s popular music." They originally aired starting in 1969 and concluded about 1974. Both were produced by John ...
'', host
John Gilliland
John Sanford Gilliland Jr. (October 18, 1935 – July 27, 1998) was an American radio broadcaster and documentarian best known for the ''Pop Chronicles'' music documentaries and as one of the original members of The Credibility Gap. He was ...
claimed that their version was in fact a parody of the genre.
[ Nonetheless, "Little Darlin'" (primarily the Diamonds' version, but to some extent the Gladiolas' version) remains an all-time rock 'n roll R&B classic.][
]
Other recordings
* Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
performed the song and a version appears on his final album, ''Moody Blue
Moody may refer to:
Places
* Moody, Alabama, U.S.
* Moody, Indiana, U.S.
* Moody, Missouri, U.S.
* Moody, Texas, U.S.
* Moody County, South Dakota, U.S.
* Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada
* Hundred of Moody, a cadastral division in South Au ...
'' (1977).
* Rock-and-roll-revival group Sha Na Na
Sha Na Na was an American rock and roll doo-wop group. Formed in 1969, but performing a song-and-dance repertoire based on 1950s hit songs, it simultaneously revived and parodied the music and the New York street culture of the 1950s. After ga ...
performed "Little Darlin'" at the Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aquar ...
in 1969.
* The Four Seasons
* The Monkees
The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was con ...
performed a live version on their 1969 TV special '' 33⅓ Revolutions Per Monkee''.
* Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
performed a parody version in concert in the early 1960s which appears on the 1983 compilation ''Very Early Joan''. The title song of her album ''Honest Lullaby
''Honest Lullaby'' is the nineteenth studio album (and twenty-first overall) by Joan Baez, released in 1979. It would be her final album on CBS Records' Portrait imprint; it also stood as her last studio album issued in the U.S. until the release ...
'' (1979) quotes the vocal hook
A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...
of "Little Darlin".
* Classics IV
The Classics IV is an American band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, in 1965. The band, founded by Dennis Yost, is known mainly for the hits "Spooky," " Stormy," and "Traces," released 1967 to 1969, which have become cover standards ...
* The Rocky Fellers
* The Chevrons
The Chevrons were a United States pop group who recorded the hit record "Lullabye" in 1960. The band featured lead singer Terry Cashman, best known for his baseball songs, notably " Talkin' Baseball", then known by his born name, Dennis Minogue. ...
* Victor Wood
The name Victor or Viktor may refer to:
* Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname
Arts and entertainment
Film
* ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film
* ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...
(1971)
In popular culture
* The recording by The Diamonds is featured on the soundtrack of the 1973 film ''American Graffiti
''American Graffiti'' is a 1973 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by George Lucas, produced by Francis Ford Coppola, written by Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz and Lucas, and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard (billed as Ronny ...
'' and the 1990 film ''Hello Hemingway
''Hello Hemingway'' is a 1990 Cuban drama film directed by Fernando Pérez and starring Laura de la Uz. The plot, set in Havana in 1956, near the end of Fulgencio Batista's dictatorship, follows a young girl whose aspirations to obtain a scholarsh ...
''.
* The song is performed by Warren Beatty
Henry Warren Beatty (né Beaty; born March 30, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker, whose career spans over six decades. He was nominated for 15 Academy Awards, including four for Best Actor, four for Best Picture, two for Best Director, ...
and Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable characters. He is ...
in the 1987 film ''Ishtar
Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in Su ...
''.
* Elton John quotes this song in his 1972 hit Crocodile Rock
"Crocodile Rock" is a song written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, and recorded in summer 1972 at the Château d'Hérouville studio in France (it was listed as "Strawberry Studios" in the album's credits), where John and his team had previous ...
.
See also
*1957 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1957.
Specific locations
* 1957 in British music
* 1957 in Norwegian music
Specific genres
* 1957 in country music
* 1957 in jazz
Events
* January 5 – Renato Carosone ...
References
{{Authority control
1957 singles
The Diamonds songs
Elvis Presley songs
Mercury Records singles
Swan Song Records singles