Ellie Greenwich-- amazing songwriter (I just found out about her!!)
Ellie Greenwich
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
Ellie Greenwich
Background information
Birth name Eleanor Louise Greenwich
Born October 23, 1940
Brooklyn, New York
Died August 26, 2009 (aged 68)
New York City, New York
Genres Rock and roll
Occupation(s) Songwriter, background singer, record producer
Years active 1958 - 2009
Associated acts The Ronettes, The Crystals, Neil Diamond, Manfred Mann, The Shangri-Las, The Raindrops, Tommy James & the Shondells, Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans, Lesley Gore
Website elliegreenwich.com
Eleanor Louise Greenwich (October 23, 1940 – August 26, 2009)[1] was an American pop music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She wrote or co-wrote "Be My Baby", "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)", "Da Doo Ron Ron", "Leader of the Pack", "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", and "River Deep – Mountain High", among others. Greenwich was born Eleanor Louise Greenwich in Brooklyn, New York, to electrical engineer and former painter William, a Roman Catholic of Russian descent[2] and Russian Jewish department store manager Rose (née Baron).[2][3][4][5] She was not raised in either religion.[2] She was reportedly named for Eleanor Roosevelt. Her musical interest was sparked as a child when her parents played music in their home and she listened to artists including Teresa Brewer, The Four Lads and Johnnie Ray,[6] and she learned how to play the accordion at a young age.[2][7] At age ten, she moved with her parents and younger sister, Laura, to the suburb of Levittown, New York.[8]
By her teens, Greenwich was composing songs and said in a 1973 article, "When I was 14, I met Archie Bleyer who liked my songs but told me continue my education before trying to invade the songwriting jungle";[9] eventually she taught herself to compose on the piano rather than the accordion. In high school, Greenwich and two friends formed a singing group, The Jivettes, which took on more members and performed at local functions.[10] While attending high school, she started using the accordion to write love songs about her school crush.[2] After graduating high school, Greenwich enrolled at the Manhattan School of Music but was rejected because the school did not accept accordion players, and she subsequently enrolled at Queens College.[2]
At 17, around the time she began attending Queens College, Greenwich recorded her first single for RCA Records, the self-written "Silly Isn't It", backed with "Cha-Cha Charming".[2] The single was issued under the name "Ellie Gaye" (which she chose as a reference to Barbie Gaye, singer of the original version of "My Boy Lollipop"
.[7] However, a biography about Greenwich claimed that the name was changed by RCA Records to prevent mispronunciations of "Greenwich".[2] "Cha-Cha Charming" was released in 1958 and indirectly led to her decision to transfer from Queens College to Hofstra University after one of her professors at the former institution belittled her for recording pop music.
. . . .
Greenwich's affiliation with Ellen Foley and Nona Hendryx indirectly led to a Broadway show that resurrected her 1960s music. When Foley and Hendryx performed at The Bottom Line cabaret in New York City, Greenwich was there to see them. The Bottom Line owner Allan Pepper convinced Greenwich to meet him and discuss putting together a revue showcasing her hits. In 1984, Leader of the Pack, a show based on Greenwich's life and music, opened at The Bottom Line. Greenwich appeared as herself in the second act, which focused on her early years in Long Island and her marriage and partnership with Barry. The show was revamped for Broadway and opened at the Ambassador Theater the following year. Cast members included Greenwich, Darlene Love, Annie Golden, Dinah Manoff as young Ellie, and Patrick Cassidy as Jeff Barry. Leader of the Pack was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Musical[16] and a Grammy Award for the cast album, and the play garnered The New York Music Critics' Award for Best Broadway Musical. During the 1990s and into the new millennium, the musical has enjoyed several revivals and continues to be performed at schools and community theaters. Leader Of The Pack is still performed all over the world.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellie_Greenwich
Selected songs
Year Song title Artist Written with Recording
date US
charts R&B
charts British
charts Producer Miscellaneous
1962 “Why Do Lovers Break Each Other's Heart” Bob B. Soxx
and the Blue Jeans Phil Spector, Tony Powers November 38 arranged by Jack Nitzsche
lead vocal by Darlene Love[21]
1963 “Da Doo Ron Ron” The Crystals Jeff Barry, Phil Spector March 3 5 5 Phil Spector arranged by Jack Nitzsche[21]
“(Today I Met) The Boy I’m Gonna Marry” Darlene Love Phil Spector, Tony Powers March 39 Phil Spector arranged by Jack Nitzsche
“Why Don't They Let Us Fall in Love” Veronica Jeff Barry, Phil Spector March Phil Spector arranged by Jack Nitzsche
“Then He Kissed Me” The Crystals Jeff Barry, Phil Spector July 6 8 2 Phil Spector
“Be My Baby” The Ronettes Jeff Barry, Phil Spector July 2 4 Phil Spector arranged by Jack Nitzsche
“Baby, I Love You” The Ronettes Jeff Barry, Phil Spector November 24 11 Phil Spector arranged by Jack Nitzsche
He's Got the Power The Exciters Tony Powers 57 Leiber, Stoller arranged by Teacho Wiltshire
“Do Wah Diddy” The Exciters Jeff Barry 78 Leiber/Stoller arranged by Artie Butler
“Hanky Panky” Tommy James and the Shondells Jeff Barry 1963/1966 1 2 38 The song had been originally recorded by
The Raindrops and the Summits.
James recorded it in 1963 but it did not
become a hit until 1966
1964 “Chapel of Love” The Dixie Cups Jeff Barry, Phil Spector February 1 22 Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller,
Greenwich and Barry
“Do Wah Diddy Diddy” Manfred Mann Jeff Barry June 11 1 1 John Burgess
“Maybe I Know” Leslie Gore Jeff Barry 14 37 Quincy Jones arranged by Claus Ogerman[22]
“Look of Love” Lesley Gore Jeff Barry 27 Quincy Jones
1965
“Out in the Streets” Shangri-Las Jeff Barry 53 Shadow Morton 1966
“River Deep – Mountain High” Ike and Tina Turner Jeff Barry, Phil Spector 3 Phil Spector
I Can Hear Music The Ronettes Jeff Barry, Phil Spector 1968
I Can Hear Music The Beach Boys Jeff Barry, Phil Spector October 1 24 10 Carl Wilson
1970 “Chapel of Love” Bette Midler Jeff Barry, Phil Spector 1970 40 arranged & produced by Barry Manilow, Geoffery Haslam, Ahmet Ertegun two sided release