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Baby Face (song)

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"Baby Face"
Song by Jan Garber
Published1926
Composer(s)Harry Akst
Lyricist(s)Benny Davis
"Baby Face"
Single by Little Richard
from the album Little Richard
B-side"I'll Never Let You Go (Boo Hoo Hoo Hoo)"
ReleasedJuly 1958
StudioJ&M Studio, New Orleans, Louisiana
GenreRock & Roll
LabelSpecialty
Producer(s)Robert "Bumps" Blackwell
Little Richard singles chronology
"Ooh! My Soul"
(1958) 		"Baby Face"
(1958) 		"She Knows How to Rock/Early One Morning"
(1959)

"Baby Face" is a popular song. The music was written by Harry Akst, with lyrics by Benny Davis, and the song was published in 1926. That same year, Jan Garber had a number one hit with the song.

Swan Districts, an Australian Rules club in the WAFL since 1934, bases its club song on this tune.

An instrumental version of the song was used in the 1933 film Baby Face starring Barbara Stanwyck.

Recorded by many

"Baby Face" was performed and recorded by many recording artists of the time, including Al Jolson.[1] It has remained a commonly performed song.

In 1958, Little Richard peaked at #12 on the R&B chart and #41 on the pop chart with his version of the song.[2] It also reached #2 in the UK in January 1959, becoming Little Richard's highest charting single in the United Kingdom.

In 1962, American singer Bobby Darin recorded a version as a single.

In 1967, a refrain was mixed with the Hallelujah chorus in Thoroughly Modern Millie.

In 1974, in the Paul McCartney and Wings special One Hand Clapping, McCartney performed the song at a piano. He later sang the song on his 2007 Secret Tour.

In late 1975, disco studio group Wing and a Prayer Fife and Drum Corps recorded a version of the song where it peaked at number two for two weeks on the disco chart.[3] This version also went to #32 on the soul chart, #6 Easy Listening[4] and #14 on the Hot 100[5] during the winter of 1976. In the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at #12, in February 1976, spending 7 weeks within the Top 50.

On Dec. 31, 1976, bandleader Guy Lombardo and the Royal Canadians kicked off their New Year's Eve concert (a tradition since 1929), with an instrumental performance of the song on CBS television.[6] The concert was Lombardo's last before his death on Nov. 5, 1977. The Royal Canadians New Year's specials would end on the network in 1978.

A version done by the Muppet Chickens appears on The Muppet Show 2 album. The first singing of it was done with a simple beat in the background, then the rest of the song is sung with more rock-oriented background music.

Other major recordings of the song have been (listed alphabetically) by:

In 1976, the Brady family performed the song for the opening number for the pilot episode of The Brady Bunch Variety Hour.

A parody of the song, retitled "Baby Pants," was used in a Luvs diapers TV commercial in the 1980s.[7]

Richard Perlmutter sang this with a bunch of kids on Tin Pan Alley: America's Best Songs for Children.

References

  1. ^ Gilliland, John (October 19, 2020). "Pop Chronicles 1940s Program #13". UNT Digital Library.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 356.
  3. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 282.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 260.
  5. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 632.
  6. ^ "Guy Lombardo's Final New Year's Eve. Appearance - New Year's Eve. 1976-1977 - YouTube". www.youtube.com.
  7. ^ Luvs Babypants, YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7HVK-pjWsw
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