Written in two days by Phil Spector and a couple of co-horts, Spector changed the way popular music was to be recorded…and created a popular, mammoth hit in the process.
By rights you’d have to be about 70 years old to remember and appreciate writer, arranger, and producer Phil Spector’s 1963 hit, Da Doo Ron Ron.
Many recognize it when they hear it, but have no idea about the group that performed it, or the song’s impact on the recording industry. It’s just a catchy tune.
But after our 60s ‘Top Five’ binge in January, we’ve gotten numerous requests from individuals for background on their own favorite hits from that era, and this one, in particular, is just too good a song story not to do for Linda, in Tipp City.
“My favorite song when I was a little girl was Da Doo Ron Ron, by the Crystals. I so enjoy what you write about the old songs that I wish you’d write something about that one. Thanks, and I’ll be reading.”
Gladly, Linda, because the Crystals used the song to rocket into the pop music spotlight along with He’s A Rebel, And Then He Kissed Me, and a string of lesser-successful releases.
Spector wrote the song with Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich over the span of two days, seeking to create the typical boy meets girl story line, but with a driving beat and with an admitted nonsense line – Da Doo Ron Ron – to fill in gaps separating the stanza and chorus.
Once the song actually took shape Spector was so taken with it that he devised a multi-track recording method that would create a more dynamic sound. The dynamic result in 1963 became known as a ‘wall of sound’, later to become a Spector trademark.
But he was concerned that the song, while catchy, needed more than a single voice to carry it off. He was eventually steered toward a New York City female quartet featuring Patricia Wright, Dolores Kenniebrew, Dolores Brooks, and Barbara Alston…aka The Crystals.
After experimenting with different lead voices, Spector eventually chose Dolores Brooks (nicknamed La La) to sing the lead…and a very young, and unknown Cher, to sing background. When he finally got what he wanted he reportedly said to another producer in the studio, named Sonny Bono, “That’s solid gold coming out of the speaker.”
As it turned out he was was right, as the song rose to #3 on the Billboard Charts, and with some promotional work by Dick Clark and American Bandstand it quickly sold a million copies, most to Spector’s targeted audience…teenagers.
Linda, we hope you enjoy the cut we’ve chosen, and appreciate that you still enjoy the music of your youth. Sadly, the last original member of the Crystals, Barbara Alston, passed away in February, 2018.
Their great hit, however, lives on.