Album: released as a single (1963)
Charted: 10
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Running a brisk 1:57, this doo-wop song is emblematic of the genre, complete with "dooby-doo"s and a super-innocent lyric about a girl this guy is crazy for. It was a #10 hit in the US in the summer of 1963; a year later The Beatles invaded and doo-wop suddenly sounded dated.
  • Randy & The Rainbows were from Queens, New York, a doo-wop hotspot. In this lineup, they were comprised of two sets of brothers: Randy and Frank Safuto, and Mike and Sal Zero, plus Ken Arcipowski. "Denise" was their first single.
  • The song was written by Neil Levenson, who wasn't a member of the group. According to his 2008 obituary in Billboard, Levenson wrote the song for Denise Lefrak, his childhood friend.

    Levenson also wrote the next Randy & The Rainbows single, "Why Do Kids Grow Up," which stalled at #97 - it was their last chart appearance. Levenson also shows up on the credits for "When It's All Over" by Jay & The Americans and "I Wanna Swim With Him" by The Daisies.
  • Songwriter Neil Levenson brought Randy & The Rainbows in contact with the Tokens ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight"). The Tokens producers worked on the track, and it became the last doo-wop hit for the Laurie label.
  • Blondie revived this song in 1977, changing the title to "Denis" but keeping the pronunciation as "Denise," thus making it about a French guy so their frontwoman Debbie Harry could sing it. This was early in Blondie's career, and the song was their breakthrough in Europe. They didn't have a hit in their home country of America until a year later with "Heart Of Glass."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Greg talks about writing songs of "universal truth" for King Crimson and ELP, and tells us about his most memorable stage moment (it involves fireworks).

Mark Arm of Mudhoney

Mark Arm of MudhoneySongwriter Interviews

When he was asked to write a song for the Singles soundtrack, Mark thought the Seattle grunge scene was already overblown, so that's what he wrote about.

Artis the Spoonman

Artis the SpoonmanSong Writing

Even before Soundgarden wrote a song about him, Artis was the most famous spoon player of all time. So why has he always been broke?

Christopher Cross

Christopher CrossSongwriter Interviews

The man who created Yacht Rock with "Sailing" wrote one of his biggest hits while on acid.

Spot The Real Red Hot Chili Peppers Song Titles

Spot The Real Red Hot Chili Peppers Song TitlesMusic Quiz

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have some rather unusual song titles - see if you can spot the real ones.

John Doe of X

John Doe of XSongwriter Interviews

With his X-wife Exene, John fronts the band X and writes their songs.