"Tall Paul" is a song recorded by

Annette Funicello Annette Joanne Funicello (October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013) was an American actress and singer. Funicello began her professional career as a child performer at the age of twelve. She was one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the orig ...

and written by the

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard M. Sherman (born June 12, 1928). Together they received various accolades in ...

, along with Bob Roberts.

Background

It marked the first time that a female singer reached a top ten slot with a

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 ...

single. It also spotlighted Annette from the group of Mouseketeers on the Mickey Mouse Club and paved the way for her movie career.

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

personally took notice of the string of chart toppers the Sherman Brothers were writing for Annette and subsequently asked them to work for him exclusively. The Sherman Brothers went on to win two Oscars for ''

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

'' several years later. It was rumored that the song was about Paul Anka, but Anka denied this, saying that he was not tall. (Source: A&E Biography on Annette Funicello.) Anka and Funicello did have a brief relationship before Walt Disney, who was overprotective of Funicello, kept them apart.

Chart performance

"Tall Paul" was credited to Annette and the Afterbeats and reached #7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in 1959. It was the highest-charting song by Annette Funicello and also one of the shortest, clocking in at 1 minute and 38 seconds. The version included on ''Annette: A Musical Reunion with America's Girl Next Door'' lists the song at 1 minute 52 seconds. ''Annette: A Musical Reunion with America’s Girl Next Door'', CD 1, Walt Disney Records, Burbank, CA, 1993, The extra time is because of studio chatter at the beginning of the track.

Popular culture

Annette Funicello made a cameo appearance as herself in the 1989 film ''

Troop Beverly Hills ''Troop Beverly Hills'' is a 1989 American comedy film. It is produced by the Weintraub Entertainment Group and directed by Jeff Kanew, starring Shelley Long, Craig T. Nelson, Betty Thomas, Mary Gross, Stephanie Beacham and introducing Jenny Lewis ...

'', while jogging she's singing the first line of "Tall Paul" and being pursued by Frankie Avalon, also playing himself.

References

Annette Funicello songs Disney songs Songs written by the Sherman Brothers 1958 songs 1959 singles {{1950s-pop-song-stub