Ellie Greenwich 'Leader of the Pack' for '60s Pop Tunes Passes Away
Her music was the soundtrack of the early 1960s.
Ellie Greenwich wrote some of the era's biggest hits, from "Chapel of Love" to "Be My Baby" to "Leader of the Pack." Working with collaborators including Phil Spector and Jeff Barry, Ms. Greenwich became one of early pop's most prolific writers, known for creating catchy, saccharine songs for all-female groups like the Crystals and the Dixie Cups.
Ms. Greenwich, who died Wednesday at the age of 68, was one of many pop composers working in the early 1960s at New York City's Brill Building, a hub of activity for the pop music industry. Her neighbors there included Carole King, Burt Bacharach and the team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who eventually hired Ms. Greenwich to write songs full time.
"She had this uncanny ability to write very simple," says Mr. Stoller. "The tunes for 'Da Doo Ron Ron' and 'Chapel of Love' -- they get in your head and they stay there."
In the hothouse environment of the Brill Building, it seemed anything might happen. In 1963, Ms. Greenwich overheard a conversation about the royalties being enjoyed by the author of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," and came up with her own confection, "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" -- recorded by Darlene Love and later by many others, including Mariah Carey, U2 and Death Cab for Cutie...
... But it was as a writer that she had her most lasting impact. In the mid-1960s, she turned out a wave of hits that became iconic tunes of the era: "Then He Kissed Me," "Hanky Panky," "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," "Baby I Love You" and "River Deep, Mountain High." She and her husband, Mr. Barry, divorced in 1965, but continued to write songs together.
By the late 1960s, the era of bubble-gum pop gave way to harder-edged rock, and Ms. Greenwich's work was less in demand.
Ms. Greenwich released a couple of solo albums before leaving the music business for a time. Later, she turned to writing and singing advertising jingles, including "Ooh-La-La-Sasson" for women's jeans. She also performed as a backup singer on albums by Blondie and Cyndi Lauper. She later described how the music world's changing tastes, coupled with personal setbacks, contributed to the severe depression that she suffered during the 1970s.
After being out of the spotlight for more than a decade, Ms. Greenwich found new career success in 1985, when she played herself on Broadway in "Leader of the Pack," a musical about her life. The show was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical.
Read entire article at The Wall Street Journal
Ellie Greenwich wrote some of the era's biggest hits, from "Chapel of Love" to "Be My Baby" to "Leader of the Pack." Working with collaborators including Phil Spector and Jeff Barry, Ms. Greenwich became one of early pop's most prolific writers, known for creating catchy, saccharine songs for all-female groups like the Crystals and the Dixie Cups.
Ms. Greenwich, who died Wednesday at the age of 68, was one of many pop composers working in the early 1960s at New York City's Brill Building, a hub of activity for the pop music industry. Her neighbors there included Carole King, Burt Bacharach and the team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who eventually hired Ms. Greenwich to write songs full time.
"She had this uncanny ability to write very simple," says Mr. Stoller. "The tunes for 'Da Doo Ron Ron' and 'Chapel of Love' -- they get in your head and they stay there."
In the hothouse environment of the Brill Building, it seemed anything might happen. In 1963, Ms. Greenwich overheard a conversation about the royalties being enjoyed by the author of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," and came up with her own confection, "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" -- recorded by Darlene Love and later by many others, including Mariah Carey, U2 and Death Cab for Cutie...
... But it was as a writer that she had her most lasting impact. In the mid-1960s, she turned out a wave of hits that became iconic tunes of the era: "Then He Kissed Me," "Hanky Panky," "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," "Baby I Love You" and "River Deep, Mountain High." She and her husband, Mr. Barry, divorced in 1965, but continued to write songs together.
By the late 1960s, the era of bubble-gum pop gave way to harder-edged rock, and Ms. Greenwich's work was less in demand.
Ms. Greenwich released a couple of solo albums before leaving the music business for a time. Later, she turned to writing and singing advertising jingles, including "Ooh-La-La-Sasson" for women's jeans. She also performed as a backup singer on albums by Blondie and Cyndi Lauper. She later described how the music world's changing tastes, coupled with personal setbacks, contributed to the severe depression that she suffered during the 1970s.
After being out of the spotlight for more than a decade, Ms. Greenwich found new career success in 1985, when she played herself on Broadway in "Leader of the Pack," a musical about her life. The show was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical.