Number 578 - Brian Hyland

Number 578

Brian Hyland

"Itsy Bitsie Teenie Weenie"

(1961)

.

Genre:Pop

Art by Ribera

Ah yes, Take me back to 1979 time, again. Another part in the series where i first discovered music. Tindalls Bay. ( See here )

Not much to say about the song itself other than it was a hell a lot of fun to sing to when you were a kid. I guess we will all have to wait till its remade by Sludge & The Incredible Fudgepackers and put on Shrek 9, let it then become another Number 1 hit and then get questioned by the kids, "how do you know all the lryics to the song Dad?" while driving in the car .... "it only came out last week Dad?" Sigh.

Brian Hyland was one of the more charming members of the pack of teen idols who overran the rock & roll scene in the early '60s. His first big hit was the innocuous "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini," and it set the scene for the rest of his early-'60s work -- namely, sometimes silly pop/rock with female vocal choruses, gentle guitars, and Hyland's soft vocals. In 2004 BGO combined two of Hyland's early albums on one disc. Released in 1961, The Bashful Blond includes his big hit plus 11 other pop tunes. Most of them are novelties like the bopping "Cleo," "Cozy Little Compact Car," and the silly but catchy "Don't Dilly Dally, Sally." He also takes on a couple of vocal pop standards, "'A' You're Adorable" and "Baby Face," as well as making a valiant but doomed effort to make something of "I Don't Want to Set the World On Fire." Hyland's voice doesn't stretch quite far enough to find the melody here, but mostly he sticks to tunes that do accommodate his limited range.

Let Me Belong to You, issued in 1962, is half made up of his versions of songs that were popular for others, like "Are You Lonesome Tonight," "I'm Sorry," "Lonely Weekends," "Bye Bye Love," and "All Shook Up." He really doesn't add anything to the originals at all, which makes the album somewhat less successful than its predecessor. The songs that work are those that were written for him by Gary Geld and Pete Udell, like the dramatic ballads "It Ain't That Way at All," "The Night I Cried," and "Let It Die." The songs are loaded with drama, tension, and energy. Hyland's vocals don't quite reach Gene Pitney territory; he comes off like Pitney's younger and less histrionic brother, though he almost matches him on "Walk a Lonely Mile." Taken together, the albums show an artist with more charm than talent, but it makes for pleasant listening just the same. ~ [Tim Sendra, All Music Guide]

For Gene Pitney see Number 885

Now this was way before Rolling Stone Magazine so we will give them the night off huh? Cool, i'm glad you agreed :)

Heres a bit of Triv to see you through

In September 2006, the song's co-writer Paul Vance read his own mistaken obituary. Paul Van Valkenburgh, who had long claimed to have written the song, died and the false information was included in the newspaper. The impostor had explained his lack of royalty payments for the song by further claiming that he'd sold the rights to his alleged composition as a teenager. Vance, the song's true co-author, has earned several million dollars from the song since 1960, describing it as "a money machine." [Source:Wiki]

Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (Itsie bitsie whatsie?) and the Album ranked at Number (Yellow what? WTF?)

This song has a crowbarred rating of 72.7 out of 108 pts

Lyrics to the song

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Tags:Brian Hyland, 1961, Pop, Gene Pitney, Sludge and The Fudgepackers, Shrek, YouTube, Music Video, Rolling Stone Magazine, Crowbarred, New Zealand, Crowbarred Unleashed, The Definitive 1000 Songs Of All Time, Mellow Mix Volume 1, Mellow Mix Volume 2, Mellow Mix Volume 3, Mellow Mix Volume 4, Mellow Mix Volume 5, Mellow Mix Volume 6, Mellow Mix Volume 7, Mellow Mix Volume 9, Mellow Mix Volume 10, Mellow Mix Volume 11, Mellow Mix Volume 12

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