Book Of Love

Album: Who Wrote The Book Of Love? (1958)
Charted: 5
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Songfacts®:

  • This was inspired by a Pepsodent toothpaste commercial with the jingle, "You'll wonder where the yellow went when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent." According to group member Charles Patrick, he was in a store looking at sheet music for a different song called "Book Of Love" when the jingle came on the radio. He got the idea to combine the title with the melody from the jingle, turning "You'll wonder where the yellow went" into "I wonder, wonder who."

    He took the idea to two of his fellow Monotones, Warren Davis and George Malone, and they completed the song.
  • Love doesn't come with an instruction manual, so this book provides one:

    Chapter 1: Say you love her with all your heart
    Chapter 2: Tell her you're never gonna part
    Chapter 3: Remember the meaning of romance
    Chapter 4: Break up, but give her one more chance

    So simple really.
  • The Monotones, a doo-wop act from Newark, New Jersey, considered this song a goof and had no plans to record it, but it got a great reaction when they performed it. When they got word that a rival group was going to rip it off, they decided they had to record the song. After singing it for different record companies, they found a taker in Argo Records, which recorded and distributed it. The song was the only hit for The Monotones.
  • The drum that comes in on the first line of each verse (while the line is sung a cappella) was not planned. When they were recording the song, a kid outside the studio threw a ball that hit a window just as they finished singing the "mmbadoo-ooh, who" line. They liked the way it sounded, so they decided to put a drum hit in that spot.
  • Don McLean's song "American Pie" contains what is probably a reference to this in the lyric "Did you write the book of love?"
  • The doo-wop throwback group Sha-Na-Na covered this on their 1969 debut album and sang it at Woodstock that same year. They went on just ahead of Jimi Hendrix.

Comments: 5

  • Paul Osman from Liverpool, EnglandI'm sure Elvis Costello's lyrics for the song Every Day I Write The Books were inspired by this song. Both contain a list of chapters!
  • Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn March 8th 1964, the Raindrops' covered version of "The Book of Love" entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #95; it would remain on the chart for seven weeks, peaking at #62...
    And almost exactly six years earlier, save one day, on March 9th, 1958 the original version by the Monotones entered the Top 100 at #80; and on April 6th it reached #5 for one week...
    In 1961 a group named Nino & the Ebb Tides released "Juke Box Saturday Night"; it peaked at #57 and the song featured "The Book of Love" and "Get A Job"...
    Between April 1963 and September 1964 the Raindrops had five Top 100 records; there biggest hit was "The Kind of Boy You Can't Forget", it peaked at #17 {for 1 week} on September 22nd, 1963...
    Sadly, Raindrop member Ellie Greenwich passed away on August 26th, 2009 at the age of 68...
    May she R.I.P.
  • Meredith from Wauwatosa, WiAlso covered by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons who did a wonderful job! I like this song a lot!!!!!
  • Howard from St. Louis Park, Mn"Book of Love" was also used as the theme for "The Newlywed Game" when Paul Rodriguez replaced Bob Eubanks as host in 1988.
  • Ted from Loveland, CoPeaked Billboard position #5 in 1958
    Reportedly inspired by a Pepsodent commercial
    "You'll wonder where the yellow went
    when you brush your teeth with Pepsodent"
see more comments

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