Sherry by The Four Seasons

Album: Sherry And 11 Others (1962)

Charted: 8 1

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Songfacts®:

This was originally called "Terry." The group loved it and performed it over the telephone for their producer, Bob Crewe, who liked everything about it but the name. After considering "Jackie" (after Jackie Kennedy), and "Peri" (after a record label Crewe had a stake in), the group changed the name of the song to "Sherry," after Cheri Spector, the daughter of one of Crewe's best friends, a DJ named Jack Spector.
Bob Gaudio, who was the organist/singer with The Four Seasons, wrote this song and quickly became the group's primary songwriter. Previously a member of The Royal Teens (Short Shorts), he formed The Four Seasons with Frankie Valli the previous year. According to Gaudio, this song came to him very quickly, and he wrote it in less than 15 minutes. He says it took the group longer to decide upon a name for the song than it took him to write it.
When The Four Seasons wrote and recorded a demo of this song, they didn't have a record deal. Frankie Valli was friends with Randy Wood, who was the West Coast Sales Manager for Vee Jay Records. Vee Jay was a owned by a black couple and had a lot of success distributing Doo-Wop and R&B songs in the '50s. Their only Pop hit to this point was Gene Chandler's "Duke Of Earl." Valli played the song for Wood over the phone, and Wood loved it. Valli sent him a copy, and Wood took it to a local DJ named Dick "Huggy Boy" Hugg, who played it on his show. Listeners flooded the station with calls, and the song was released on Vee Jay, where it became a massive hit. The Four Seasons never had an official contract with Vee Jay - they submitted material to the label song by song for distribution - and after 7 more Top-40 hits with the label, The Four Seasons sued over non-payment of royalties and signed with Mercury/Philips. Vee Jay went under, leaving behind a legacy as the most successful black-owned record label pre-Motown, and as the first American label to distribute The Beatles.
In composing songs for The Four Seasons, Gaudio and the group's arranger Charlie Callello analyzed the hot songs of the era, and tried to incorporate elements of those into "Sherry." This meant big production, a girl's name in the title, and a storyline where our hero is begging the girl to come out with him. They even got The Twist craze into the song, inviting Sherry to the "Twist Party." The result was a very contemporary, commercial sound that provided a template for many future hits for the Four Seasons.
Frankie Valli's soaring falsetto vocals were a big part of the group's sound, which was emphasized in the packaging of this song and album, which was credited to "Four Seasons featuring The Sound Of Frankie Valli."
As "Sherry"'s reign on the charts was ending after an astonishing five weeks at #1, The Four Seasons released another single that spent another five weeks at #1: "Big Girls Don't Cry." It was recorded in a session that produced the group's first album as the Four Seasons: Sherry And 11 Others.
Before breaking through with this hit, the group was known by a few different names, including The Four Lovers and The Varietones. They did make an Ed Sullivan Show appearance as The Four Lovers, but couldn't score a hit. The group ended up singing backup on songs for other artists, including Danny & The Juniors and Johnny Halo. They spent much of the summer of 1962 performing local New Jersey bars before "Sherry" hit it big.
"Sherry" was entered into the Library of Congress National Recording Registry in 2023, chosen to recognize The Four Seasons as one of the most popular groups of their era.

Comments: 22

Interested Party from New YorkWho was the original drummer on Sherry?
Keely from FloridaAccording to Philadelphia DJ Jerry Blavat, The Geator with the Heater, tells this story:) "Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe had written “Sherry” and were shopping around for a label to pick it up. At the time, I was in Florida for a record convention and Bob Crewe played it for me and I said, “This is a smash!” He said, “I’m going to see Morris Levy at Roulette Records to see if he’s interested in picking it up.” I said to Bob, “Tell Morris it’s a hit.” That the evening I spotted Bob Crewe drinking at the bar looking dejected. I asked him what happened and he said, “Morris says this is the worst piece of s**t he’s ever heard,” and to tell you that you've lost your ear..” I picked up the bar phone and called Ewart Abner of Vee-Jay Records, a Black label — they had The Spaniels, Betty Everett, Jerry Butler, The Impressions, Jimmy Reed; all Black artists. I played almost all Black music on the radio myself, but I said to Abner, “I want you to hear something.” I went to Abner’s suite and played “Sherry” for him and he said, “Geator, you’re right, I think it’s a smash! Tell me about the group.” I said, “It’s a combination of Frankie Valli from The Four Lovers and Bob Gaudio from The Royal Teens who had a hit with ‘Short Shorts,’ and they’re calling themselves The Four Seasons.” Abner said to me, “Geator, I love this record, but I have a Black label. The Black DJs aren’t going to play it if they find out it’s a White group.” I said, “Abner, it’s a hit! Everybody will buy it, not just Black listeners,” and I said, “I’ll prove it to you!” So I went back to WCAM in Camden and I played “Sherry.” By the end of the week, the phones were lighting up. Vee-Jay’s distributor called me and said, “What’s this record you’re playing called ‘Sherry?’” Now, this was Main Line Record Distributors, and the guy who owned it was Barry Golder. I said to Barry, “This should be on Vee-Jay, but Abner is afraid the Black cats won’t play it.” So Barry talked to Abner, and Abner called me back and said, “We’re gonna make a deal to release it, and I’ll give you five cents for every record.” I said, "I’m not taking any money. I’m just glad its a hit!” — and that was the beginning for The Four Seasons."
Richie Pach from La Puente , CaliforniaDoes anyone know who's the model lady in the blue stripes?
Sherrie from Chattahoochee, Florida Love this song coworkers of my use to sing it to me while working all the time.
Jennifur Sun from RamonaStill have some of my old VJ 45s. And please don't laugh the first time I heard Frankie sing I thought it was a girl.
Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn May 6th, 1956, the Four Lovers performed "You're The Apple Of My Eye" on the CBS-TV Sunday night variety program 'The Ed Sullivan Show'...
The following week the song would enter Billboard's Top 100 chart at #90*; three weeks later it would peak at #62 {for 1 week} and it spent 5 weeks on the Top 100...
The quartet wouldn't have a another Top 100 record for six years, then as The Four Seasons they entered the Top 100 on August 19th, 1962 with "Sherry", at position #65...
* According to Billboard "You're The Apple Of My Eye" was tied at #90 with another RCA Victor artist named Elvis, and his "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You" was also in it's first week on the Top 100.
Barry from Sauquoit, NyPer: http://www.oldiesmusic.com/news.htm
The Broadway production of "Jersey Boys: The Story of the Four Seasons", will close January 15th, 2017 after 11 years and 4,642 performances...
It’s the 12th longest-running musical in Broadway history...
Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn October 18th 1980, Robert John's covered version of "Sherry" entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #82; and on November 2nd, 1980 it peaked at #70 {for 1 week} and spent 5 weeks on the Top 100...
Exactly eighteen years earlier on October 18th, 1962 the Four Seasons’ original version was at #2, it had spent the five previous weeks in the #1 position on the Top 100.
Barry from Sauquoit, NyHappy Birthday!!!
Frankie Valli, born Francesco Stephen Castelluccio, celebrates his 80th birthday today (May 3rd, 2014)...
He reached #1 on Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart with seven different records and spent a grand total of 21 weeks in the top spot...
Five times with the Four Seasons; "Sherry" (for 5 weeks in 1962), "Big Girls Don't Cry" (again for 5 week & also in 1962), "Walk Like A Man" (3 weeks in 1963), "Rag Doll" (2 weeks in 1964), and "December, 1963 (Oh, What A Night)" (3 weeks in 1976)
And twice as a solo artist; "My Eyes Adored You" (for 1 week in 1975) and "Grease" (2 weeks in 1978)...
Many he have many more Happy and Healthy Birthdays!
Raunchy from Tulsa, Ok"Sherry" was the first in a string of #1 hits for The Four Seasons. In 1962 and 1963, The Four Seasons were very hot on the charts. Even during The British Invasion period, they were one of the few artists who still had chart hits. I love to get onto Songfacts.com because there's a lotta rock history I didn't know. For example, I didn't know "Sherry" was influenced by Dion & The Belmonts' "A Teenager In Love." Great!
Barry from Sauquoit, NyThree of their 1st four releases all reached No. 1; "Sherry" {5 weeks}, "Big Girls Don't Cry {5 weeks}, "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" {#23}, and "Walk Like A Man" {3 weeks}. In 1958 Bob Gaudio was a member of the group 'The Royal Teens' who had a #3 hit with "Short Shorts", I'm pretty sure he was also the composer...
Daniel from Bergenfield, Njthis song is great the other day 2/3/09 Bob Gaudio graduated from school since he dropped out to be in music in my school bergenfield high school new jersey and i herd this song and some of the teachers say they were his neibhors and new him from back in the day! its so different how the time passes we saw a video of him and he looked extremely different then now! but this song is great
Sherrie from Midvale, UtI almost changed the way my name, Sherrie, to the song spelling cause I was in the 8th grade and the song made such an impression on me! Let's all cheer for the wonderful music of the 60's
Steve Dotstar from Los Angeles, CaWell..love it or hate it...nothing else quite sounded like it on the radio...the sound was and remains unique.
Bob from Roseville, CoThis song was soothing to the ear here in Calif.
Surfing music was beating us down at the time.
Dirk from Nashville, TnFrankie Vallie played this song over the phone to the record lable--Vee-Jay, who rushed it into circulation. Vee-Jay was a fading lable for mostly black artists, old rock and rhythm & blues acts. "Sherry" pumped new cash into the company and gave the label credibility in England just at the time that England's EMI records was looking for an American distributor for one of its unknown new acts, called "The Beatles." Vee-Jay agreed to take on the Beatles, and released their first record "Love Me Do." Just a few months later, the galactic asteroid called Bealtemania hit the planet, and EMI's American subsidiary, Capitol, decided (twist our arms) they would go ahead and distribute the Beatles' records here. They sort of ran over the top of poor old Vee-Jay's legal department. But by then, the cash from "Sherry" and "Walk Like a Man" had evaporated, and the company had little to offer in the way of distribution funds, so the Four Seasons ran off to another label too.
Howard from St. Louis Park, MnThis was the song that established Frankie Valli's falsetto sound. Robert John recorded a cover version around 1979.
Sherry from Donna, TxI LIKE THIS SONG BECAUSE MY DAD NAMED ME AFTER IT. IT WAS HIS FAVORITE SONG. MY DAD PASSED AWAY WHEN I WAS 9 SO THIS SONG REMINDS ME OF HIM ALOT. THATS WHY I LIKE IT.
Joyce from Urbandale, IaThis song grates on my very last nerve!!!!!!
Should be banned or better yet used as a torture to USA's enemy's!!
Rob from Santa Monica, CaIt is cool how Frankie Valli smoothly transitions his voice down from the falsetto as he gets to "Sherry won't you come out tonight."
Brandon from Seattle, WaThe song was influenced by "A Teenager In Love" by Dion and the Belmonts and the Tokens' "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", the latter also being influenced by "A Teenager In Love."

The song also influenced various songs, such as Jan and Dean's "Linda" and answer song by Tracey Dey called "Jerry I'm Your Sherry."
Fred from Summit, NeIt was NOT the group's first single as the Four Seasons. That credit goes to their sole Gone Records release, "Spanish Lace"/"Bermuda".
They also never actually recorded as the Varietones, though that was one of the early incarnations of the group.

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