"What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For?" is a song written by

Joseph McCarthy Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarthy became the most visi ...

, Howard Johnson and

James V. Monaco James Vincent Monaco (January 13, 1885 – October 16, 1945) was an Italian-born American composer of popular music. Life and career Monaco was born in Formia, Italy. His family emigrated to the United States when he was six, and he grew up i ...

in 1916 for the

Broadway production Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

''Follow Me'', in which it was performed by Henry Lewis.

Early recordings

Lewis' version was released as a single on

Emerson Records Emerson Records was an American record company and label created by Victor Emerson in 1915. Victor Hugo Emerson was the chief recording engineer at Columbia Records. In 1914 he left the company, created the Emerson Phonograph Company, and then ...

in early 1917. Around the same time, a version by

Sam Ash Sam Ash (born Samuel Ashkynase) was a violinist, teacher, and entrepreneur, best known as the founder of the Sam Ash Music Store. Life and career Early life Ashkynase was born to Moishe and Mottle Ashkynase in a small town in Austria-Hungary ...

was released in February on

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, having been recorded on 11 December 1916. It was first a hit when released in March that year by

Ada Jones Ada Jane Jones (June 1, 1873 – May 2, 1922) was an English-American popular singer who made her first recordings in 1893 on Edison cylinders. She is among the earliest female singers to be recorded. Biography She was born in Lancashire, UK, ...

and Billy Murray on

Victor Records The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer that operated independently from 1901 until 1929, when it was acquired by the Radio Corporation of America and subsequently operated as a subsidi ...

, peaking at number 3 on the US ''Billboard'' chart.

Emile Ford and the Checkmates version

The song became a UK hit in 1959 when a

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

version was recorded by

Emile Ford and the Checkmates Michael Emile Telford Miller (16 October 1937 – 11 April 2016), known professionally as Emile Ford, was a musician and singer born in Saint Lucia, British Windward Islands. He was popular in the United Kingdom in the late 1950s and early ...

as the B-side of their single "Don't Tell Me Your Trouble". This B-side became more popular and it topped the charts for six weeks over the Christmas and New Year of 1959/60. It retained the number one position for the first three weeks of 1960. This earned Ford his first

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

for sales of over a million, which was "an incredible feat for an unknown singer with his debut recording". The song was co-produced by Ford and

Joe Meek Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer, sound engineer and songwriter who pioneered space age and experimental pop music. He also assisted in the development of recording practices like over ...

Personnel

Emile Ford Michael Emile Telford Miller (16 October 1937 – 11 April 2016), known professionally as Emile Ford, was a musician and singer born in Saint Lucia, British Windward Islands. He was popular in the United Kingdom in the late 1950s and early ...

– lead vocals, guitar * George Sweetman – saxophone * Dave Sweetman – bass * Ken Street – guitar * Pete Carter – guitar * Les Hart – tenor saxophone *

Alan Hawkshaw William Alan Hawkshaw (27 March 1937 – 16 October 2021) was a British composer and performer, particularly of library music used as themes for movies and television programs. Hawkshaw worked extensively for the KPM production music company ...

– piano * John Cuffley – drums

Charts

Shakin' Stevens version

In 1987, Welsh singer

Shakin' Stevens Michael Barratt (born 4 March 1948), known professionally as Shakin' Stevens, is a Welsh singer and songwriter. He was the UK's biggest-selling singles artist of the 1980s. His recording and performing career began in the late 1960s, althoug ...

covered the song for his album '' Let's Boogie''. It became his first UK Top 10 hit in two years, peaking at number 5 on the Singles Chart and became his last until the re-entry of "

Merry Christmas Everyone "Merry Christmas Everyone" is a festive song recorded by Welsh singer-songwriter Shakin' Stevens. Written by Bob Heatlie and produced by Dave Edmunds, it is the fourth and to date last number one single for Shakin' Stevens on the UK Singles Char ...

" in 2018.

Track listings

7": Epic / SHAKY 5 (UK) # "What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For" – 2:49 # "(Yeah) You're Evil" – 2:11 7": Epic / 651255 7 (Australia) # "What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For" – 2:49 # "If You're Gonna Cry" – 3:43 EP: Epic / SHAKY G5 (UK, Limited Edition) # "What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For" – 2:49 # "(Yeah) You're Evil" – 2:11 # "

" – 3:39 # "With My Heart" – 2:45

Charts

Other versions

* The 1945 film ''Nob Hill'', starring George Raft, Joan Bennett and Peggy Ann Garner, featured Vivian Blaine singing this song. * The 1950 film '' Wabash Avanue'', starring

Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million; for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she reign ...

Victor Mature Victor John Mature (January 29, 1913 – August 4, 1999) was an American stage, film, and television actor who was a leading man in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. His best known film roles include ''One Million B.C.'' (1940), '' My Darlin ...

and

Phil Harris Wonga Philip Harris (June 24, 1904 – August 11, 1995) was an American actor, comedian, musician and songwriter. He was an orchestra leader and a pioneer in radio situation comedy, first with ''The Jack Benny Program'', then in ''The Phil Harri ...

, had used the chorus as a transition between scenes, following " I've Been Floating Down the Old Green River" * In 1960, Danish rock singer

Otto Brandenburg Otto Herman Max Brandenburg (4 September 1934 – 1 March 2007) was a Danish musician, singer and actor. Career Music and Theatre He debuted in 1955 in the ensemble Four Jacks, but quickly became a soloist producing Danish rock. He then ad ...

recorded a cover of the song that gave him his breakthrough on the Danish music scene. * In 1963, Italian singer Don Backy recorded another cover of the song, using Italian lyrics, under the title "Ho rimasto". The title is intentionally grammatically wrong (it should have been "Sono rimasto") to catch public attention. *

Les Gray Thomas Leslie Gray (9 April 1946 – 21 February 2004) was an English musician best known for his work with glam rock pop band Mud. Gray was also known for his distinctive vocal impersonation of Elvis Presley, as well as being a lifelong suppor ...

's 1977 recording is on

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

K 17007. * Swedish rock band

Hep Stars The Hep Stars are a Swedish rock band formed in Stockholm in 1963. During 1965–1966 the band was the most successful of contemporary 1960s Swedish pop groups performing in the English language. Outside the Nordic countries the band is best ...

incorporated the song into their repertoire, and a live version of it was recorded on their 1965 live album ''

Hep Stars on Stage ''Hep Stars on Stage'' (also referred to as simply ''On Stage'') is the first live album and second overall release by Swedish rock band Hep Stars. Released in November 1965 on Olga Records, the album is composed of recordings made on 7 and 8 Aug ...

''. * Another Swedish singer,

Christer Sjögren Hans Christer Sjögren (born 6 April 1950) is a Swedish singer, songwriter and musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the dansband Vikingarna. Early life Hans Christer Sjögren was born in Hagfors, Sweden, on 6 April 1950, as the ...

released recorded the song on his 2008 album '' Mitt sköna sextiotal''.

References

Specific General *''Nostalgia Book of Hit *Singles by Jimmy Savile and Tony Jasper (page 60, 1st pub. in G.B. in 1982 by Frederick Muller Ltd.)'' * ''Rock File 4 edited by Charlie Gillett & Simon Firth (page 167, 1st pub. 1976 by Panther Books Ltd., Frogmore, St Albans, Herts. U.K.)'' {{Shakin' Stevens 1916 songs 1959 singles 1960 singles Hep Stars songs Shakin' Stevens songs 1987 singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Norway Songs with lyrics by Joseph McCarthy (lyricist) Songs with lyrics by Howard Johnson (lyricist) Songs with music by James V. Monaco Christmas number-one singles in the United Kingdom Pye Records singles Epic Records singles

Early recordings

Emile Ford and the Checkmates version

Personnel

Charts

Shakin' Stevens version

Track listings

Charts

Other versions

See also

References