"If I Call You By Some Name" | ||||
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Single by The Paupers | ||||
B-side | "Copper Penny" | |||
Released | 1966 | |||
Genre | pop | |||
Length | 2:50 | |||
Label | Verve Folkways KF 5033 | |||
Songwriter(s) | Rick Shorter | |||
Producer(s) | Rick Shorter | |||
The Paupers singles chronology | ||||
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If I Call You By Some Name was a hit for the Canadian rock group The Paupers. The song which was composed by Rick Shorter was released in 1966. It was the biggest hit that the band had.
The song is a mellow folk-influenced tune. [1] It was composed, produced, and by Rick Shorter. He also produced and arranged the B-side, which was written by Adam Mitchell and Skip Prokop. The single was released on Verve Folkways in December, 1966. [2]
In December 1966 Billboard announced that the single was predicted to reach the Hot 100 Chart. [3] It was announced in the January 21, 1967 issue of Billboard that the record had already broken out as a hit in Canada. [4] It made it to No. 31 on Canada’s RPM chart [5] In January, 1967, the song peaked at No. 6 on Toronto's influential radio station CHUM (AM). [6] [7]
Because they had success with "If I Call You By Some Name", opportunities were opened for the group. They recorded their debut album, Magic People , and got to play at the Whisky a Go Go and Fillmore West. [8] There was also a demand for a follow-up single, so the group released "Simple Deed" b/w "Let Me Be", both which were composed by Adam Mitchell and Skip Prokop. [9]
According to The Great Canadian Book of Lists by Randy Ray and Mark Kearney, the group was not very proud of the song. But in the late 1960s it went down very well as the ultimate close-dancing song when they played high school dances in Toronto. [10] The Paupers were a psychedelic group, and the folk-influenced song was their most mellow. [11]
Zalman Yanovsky was a Canadian folk-rock musician. Born in Toronto, he was the son of political cartoonist Avrom Yanovsky and teacher Nechama Yanovsky, who died in 1958. He played lead guitar and sang for the Lovin' Spoonful, a rock band which he founded with John Sebastian in 1964. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1996. He was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000 as a member of the Lovin’ Spoonful. He was married to actress Jackie Burroughs, with whom he had one daughter, Zoe.
Michael Jay Johnson was an American pop, country, and folk singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best remembered for his 1978 hit song "Bluer Than Blue". He charted four hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and nine more on Hot Country Songs, including two number one country hits in 1986's "Give Me Wings" and "The Moon Is Still Over Her Shoulder". He also co-wrote "Cain's Blood", the debut single of 1990s country group 4 Runner.
Lighthouse is a Canadian rock band formed in 1969 in Toronto, Ontario, whose repertoire included elements of rock music, jazz, classical music, and swing and featured horns, string instruments, and vibraphone. They won Juno Awards for Best Canadian Group of the Year in 1972, 1973, and 1974.
David Clayton-Thomas is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the U. S. band Blood, Sweat & Tears. Clayton-Thomas has been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and in 2007 his jazz/rock composition "Spinning Wheel" was enshrined in the Canadian Songwriter's Hall of Fame. In 2010, Clayton-Thomas received his star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Richard Dean Taylor was a Canadian musician, most notable as a singer, songwriter, and record producer for Motown during the 1960s and 1970s. According to Jason Ankeny, Taylor was "one of the most underrated acts ever to record under the Motown aegis."
Lawrence Wayne "Larry" Evoy is a Canadian drummer and songwriter who was the lead singer and founder of the rock band Edward Bear.
The CHUM Chart was a Canadian hit parade that consisted of 50 top tunes from May 1957 to July 1968, but in August 1968, the top 50 song list was reduced to 30 top songs until the final hit parade was issued in June 1986. Furthermore, CHUM was a Toronto, Ontario radio station of which the call letters were CHUM AM, from 1957 to 1986, and was the longest-running Top 40 chart in the world produced by an individual radio station. On January 10, 1998, sister station CHUM-FM, which airs a hot adult contemporary format, revived the CHUM Chart name for a new countdown show.
Ronald Harry "Skip" Prokop was a Canadian drummer, guitarist and keyboardist. He was also a band leader, was a founding member of the Canadian rock music groups the Paupers and Lighthouse.
The Paupers were a Canadian psychedelic rock band from Toronto, Ontario, who recorded between 1965 and 1968. They released two albums for Verve Forecast Records and appeared at the Monterey International Pop Festival.
"If I Were a Carpenter" is a folk song written by Tim Hardin in the 1960s, and re-recorded with commercial success by various artists including Bobby Darin, The Four Tops and Johnny Cash. Hardin's own recording of the piece appeared on his 1967 album Tim Hardin 2. It was one of two songs from that release performed by Hardin at Woodstock in 1969. The song, believed by some to be about male romantic insecurity, is rumored to have been inspired by his love for actress Susan Morss, as well as the construction of Hardin's recording studio.
Gwendolyn Dianne Brooks, was a soul, r&b and jazz singer from New Jersey. With the Three Playmates, Brooks recorded several songs in 1957. She moved to Toronto shortly thereafter. Her part in Canadian soul music history began when the group Diane Brooks, Eric Mercury and the Soul Searchers was formed. As a solo singer, she recorded two albums and several singles of her own. Her biggest solo hit was "Walkin' on My Mind" in 1969. She was also a prolific session singer. As a vocalist, she provided backing vocals on albums by a multitude of artists that include Anne Murray, Gino Vannelli and Richie Havens. She was also a song-writer.
The Bells, a.k.a. The Five Bells, were a Canadian soft rock band from Montreal, Quebec, active from 1964 to 1974. They released four albums and several singles, two of which were major hits in the early 70s, "Fly Little White Dove Fly" and especially "Stay Awhile".
The Pozo-Seco Singers was an American folk music group that had success during the 1960s. They recorded the hit "Time" and launched the music career of Don Williams.
Adam Mitchell is a Scottish songwriter, most notable for writing "French Waltz", which was a hit for Nicolette Larson; "Dancing Round and Round", which was a hit for Olivia Newton-John; and for his later co-writing work with Kiss on the albums Killers, Creatures of the Night, Crazy Nights, and Hot in the Shade.
"Please Love Me Forever" is a song written by John Malone and Ollie Blanchard. The song was originally released by Tommy Edwards in 1958. Hit versions were later released by Cathy Jean and the Roommates in 1960 and Bobby Vinton in 1967.
"Coming Home Soldier" is a song co-written and sung by Bobby Vinton, which he released in 1966. The song is a sequel to Vinton's previous hit "Mr. Lonely," sung from the perspective of a man who is returning home to the girl he loves, after having fought in a war overseas, and has survived without serious injury. The song spent 12 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 11, while reaching No. 29 on Canada's CHUM Hit Parade, and No. 89 on Canada's RPM 100.
The Quiet Jungle was a Canadian garage rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario, in 1965. At the beginning of the group's recording career, they achieved success with pop and novelty songs. In addition, the band recorded cover albums for Arc Records before venturing into early elements of psychedelic rock with their best-known single "Ship of Dreams" in 1967. The Quiet Jungle released one more single later in the year before disbanding; however, more recordings are rumored to exist.
Rick Shorter was an American songwriter, music producer, and author. During the 1960s when he was most active, he produced and arranged for a multitude of artists. They include Ciska Peters, Big Dee Irwin, and Galt MacDermot. His compositions have been covered by Ola & the Janglers, The Five Tornados, Johnny And The Hurricanes, The Liverbirds, The Esquires, Gene Pitney and Burl Ives. He also composed, arranged, and produced "If I Call You By Some Name" which was a hit for The Paupers. In the 1970s, Shorter returned to his faith and, along with his wife Gwen became very active in the Seventh-day Adventist church from which he had drifted away over prior years.
Magic People was the debut album by the Canadian rock group The Paupers. It was produced by Rick Shorter and it made it to 178 on the U.S. charts.
"Pretty Lady" is a 1973 song by Canadian rock band Lighthouse. The song was the lead single of three released from their Can You Feel It LP. It was written by lead singer Skip Prokop.