There was a lull in rock music during the late 1950s and
early 1960s. Elvis was in the Army, Buddy Holly had died, Jerry Lee Lewis
and Chuck Berry's careers were sidelined by scandals and Little Richard had
given up rock music for the church. Fortunately, there were a number of
so-called girl groups active at the time, singing songs created mostly by
songwriters based in New York's Brill Building.These groups included the
Crystals, the Ronettes, theChiffons, the Shangri-las, the Shirelles, and
many others. The songs were almost always about romance (much like the
earlier, male dominated doo-wop groups).
The Shangri-las
Several of these groups were produced by the legendary Phil Spector, who
made a name for himself creating records that featured a "wall of sound"
quality that gave them tremendously complex textures. Spector actually
married one of the Ronettes (Ronnie) and after their divorce years of court
battles over royalties ensued.
Notable girl group songs included "Will You Love Me Tomorrow (the
Shirelles," 1960); "My Boyfriend's Back" (the Angels, 1963); "He's So
Fine" (the Chiffons, 1963); and "The Boy From New York City," (the Ad
Libs, 1965).
There were also a number of solo singers whose songs
were very similar to those of the girl groups. One of the most prominent
among them was Leslie Gore (b. 1946). She had a string of 11 top 40 singles
including a No. 1 hit in 1963 (“It’s My Party”) and she was one of the
featured artists in the legendary T.A.M.I. Show of 1964. Several of
Gore’s songs featured lyrics that represented a viewpoint that was not
typical of most girl group songs. For example, the first stanza illustrates
a more independent, feminist attitude:
You don’t own
me, I’m not just one of your many toys,
You don’t own me, don’t say I can’t go with other boys.
And don’t tell
me what to do,
And don’t tell me what to say.
And please when I go out with you,
Don’t put me on display…
