"Hello Mary Lou" is a song written by American singer Gene Pitney[3][4][5] first recorded by Johnny Duncan in 1960[6] and by Ricky Nelson at United Western Recorders Studios on March 22, 1961.
| "Hello Mary Lou" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Ricky Nelson | ||||
| from the album Rick Is 21 | ||||
| A-side | "Travelin' Man" | |||
| Released | May 1961 | |||
| Recorded | 1960−61 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:17 | |||
| Label | Imperial Records #5741 | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Ricky Nelson singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "Hello Mary Lou" (Remastered) on YouTube | ||||
Nelson's version, issued as a double A-side with his No. 1 hit "Travelin' Man", (Imperial 5741), reached No. 9 on the Billboard music charts on May 28, 1961. In the United Kingdom it reached No. 2.[7] It was also a hit in much of Europe, particularly Norway, where it spent 14 weeks at No. 1, Denmark where it also peaked at No. 1,[8] and in Sweden, where it spent five months in the best selling chart (July-December) and peaked at No. 2 during eight weeks. In New Zealand, the song reached No. 4.[9]
A 1991 reissue following the song's use in a TV advertisement gave the song a second chart run, peaking at No. 45 in the UK Singles Chart.[10]
The song features an influential guitar solo by James Burton, often cited by later guitarists such as Brian May. Piano is by Ray Johnson, who had succeeded Gene Garf as Nelson's regular session pianist in November 1959.[11] Other musicians on the record include Joe Osborn on bass and Ritchie Frost on drums.[12]
The song appears on Nelson's sixth album Rick Is 21 (1961).
Plagiarism settlement
edit"Hello Mary Lou" is similar to an earlier song, "Merry, Merry Lou", written by Cayet Mangiaracina and recorded by his band, the Sparks, in 1957 on a single released by Decca Records. It was covered by Bill Haley & His Comets as "Mary, Mary Lou" and released as a single later in 1957, also by Decca, and by Sam Cooke in 1958 for the Keen Records label. Mangiaracina would later become ordained as a Catholic priest. When "Hello Mary Lou" was released, the publisher of "Merry, Merry Lou", Champion Music (an arm of Decca Records), sued for plagiarism and a settlement was reached. Mangiaracina was given co-writing credit for "Hello Mary Lou" and a share of the song's royalties, while Champion received a share of the publishing.[13]
Cover versions
edit- Patrick Zabé and Johnny Farago, in 1968 made a french cover, Hello, Marie-Lou
- Siw Malmkvist, in 1969. A Swedish cover, Lyckans ost (Lucky you), which peaked at #3 on the chart Svensktoppen in December that year.
- Bobby Lewis, in 1970. This version reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.[14]
- Creedence Clearwater Revival, in their 1972 album Mardi Gras.[15]
- Led Zeppelin, in 1972, as part of their "Whole Lotta Love" medley, released in 2003 on How the West Was Won. It was removed from the 2018 remaster.[16]
- The Statler Brothers in 1985, on their album Pardners in Rhyme.[17]
- Queen played the song during their 1986 Magic Tour, as witnessed on their Live at Wembley '86 album.[18]
References
edit- ^ Corp, Hal Leonard (1 April 2004). Rockabilly: Guitar Play-Along. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 9781476808611. Retrieved 18 November 2017 – via Google Books.
- ^ Marsh, Dave (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. Plume. p. 281. ISBN 0-452-26305-0.
- ^ "Hello Mary Lou Goodbye Heart (Legal Title)". Repertoire.bmi.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-18. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
- ^ Jensen, Lee (October 19, 2011). "Rock and Roll Heaven: How a Priest Helped Write "Hello, Mary Lou"". Yahoo Inc. Archived from the original on 12 April 2013. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
- ^ Ellzey, Don (2013). "Ponchatoula priest shares special part in Rock 'n Roll history". actionnews17.com/. Retrieved March 2, 2013.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Freddy and His Go-Cart by Johnny Duncan". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
- ^ "hello mary lou/travelin' man | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
- ^ "Billboard Magazine". Billboard. 16 October 1961. Retrieved 2024-05-08.
- ^ "flavour of new zealand - Lever hit parades". Flavourofnz.co.nz. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
- ^ "hello mary lou | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
- ^ "Ray Johnson". Rockabilly.nl. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Rick Is 21 : Rick Nelson Records". Rickynelson.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
- ^ "Original versions of Merry, Merry Lou written by Cayet Mangiaracina - SecondHandSongs". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
- ^ "Bobby Lewis - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
- ^ "Creedence Clearwater Revival - Mardi Gras" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ^ "The upcoming remaster of How the West Was Won appears to have cut some audio that was on the original release". 26 January 2018.
- ^ "The Statler Brothers - Pardners in Rhyme Album" – via www.allmusic.com.
- ^ "Queen - Live at Wembley '86" – via www.allmusic.com.
External links
edit- "Hello Mary Lou" lyrics at genius.com
- Rick Nelson - Hello Mary Lou on YouTube