Looking For An Echo

Album: Vance 32 (1975)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song tells the nostalgic story of a Doo-Wop group who were always looking for a good place to sing - somewhere with a good echo to enhance their sound. The singer looks back fondly at that time and realizes that he's always looking for his "echo," which is a place of happiness and understanding.
  • In 2000, this song was used as the basis for the movie Looking For An Echo, which is about a Doo-Wop star years after his fame has faded. Kenny Vance recorded a new version of the song with his group The Planotones, and recorded the soundtrack to the movie. Says Vance: "The song was originally recorded in 1975, and it was basically a folk song. I did it acoustically. How I recorded the original was I put down an acoustic guitar, and then I sang it, and then I basically stacked all the vocals on there. And then we added a drum, bass, and keyboard. And that's basically it. Somehow it captures that feeling... it could make you cry in a way. I don't know what it was, but it evokes a certain emotion in the listener. It's so many years later that I'm detached from what I did originally, and I think I can hear it objectively. It was basically a folk song about growing up in Brooklyn, about those days. And then as the years went by, it never died. It never was a hit, but it never went away. And it was played on a lot of these doo-wop shows all throughout the country, these guys would close their show with it."
  • This was written by Richie Reicheg, who is better known as a character actor, appearing in many TV shows including Kojak, CHiPs, Remington Steele, Beverly Hills, 90210 and Alias. Says Vance: "He was a friend of mine, and he had this song - whether he wrote it for me, I don't know. But he had it in a different form, and I kind of changed it around and I left out certain verses. It was kind of corny. I wouldn't criticize him in any way, but I changed it around, put the modulations in. There's two half step modulations in it to kind of build it up a little bit." (Read more in our interview with Kenny Vance.)

Comments: 1

  • Mario from MdfSo I added this song to my Spotify playlist
    Low and behold words changed
    “ two Italian guys“
    Changed to something inaudible?
    Why ? PC ?
    I’m Italian and it was the best part of the song .
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Holly Knight ("The Best," "Love Is A Battlefield")

Holly Knight ("The Best," "Love Is A Battlefield")Songwriter Interviews

Holly Knight talks about some of the hit songs she wrote, including "The Warrior," "Never" and "The Best," and explains some songwriting philosophy, including how to think of a bridge.

Soul Train Stories with Stephen McMillian

Soul Train Stories with Stephen McMillianSong Writing

A Soul Train dancer takes us through a day on the show, and explains what you had to do to get camera time.

John Parr

John ParrSongwriter Interviews

John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)Songwriter Interviews

Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Vai were two of Graham's co-writers for some '80s rock classics.

Wolfgang Van Halen

Wolfgang Van HalenSongwriter Interviews

Wolfgang Van Halen breaks down the songs on his debut album, Mammoth WVH, and names the definitive Van Halen songs from the Sammy and Dave eras.

Loreena McKennitt

Loreena McKennittSongwriter Interviews

The Celtic music maker Loreena McKennitt on finding musical inspiration, the "New Age" label, and working on the movie Tinker Bell.