"Little Bitty Pretty One" | |
---|---|
Single by Thurston Harris and the Sharps | |
B-side | "I Hope You Won't Hold It Against Me" |
Released | September 1957 |
Genre | Doo-wop [1] |
Length | 2:22 |
Label | Aladdin |
Songwriter(s) | Bobby Day |
"Little Bitty Pretty One" is a 1957 song written and originally recorded by Bobby Day. The same year, the song was popularized by Thurston Harris. [2] Produced by Aladdin Records (located in Los Angeles, Calif.), and featuring the Sharps on backing vocals, [3] Harris's version reached No. 6 on the U.S. Billboard Best-Sellers chart and No. 2 on the R&B chart. [4] The Bobby Day version reached No. 11 in the Canadian CHUM Chart. [5]
In 1991, Jacqueline Byrd, the widow of songwriter Bobby Day, told lawmakers that she had intercepted a letter addressed to her husband. The letter from the Copyright Office stated that the copyright to "Little Bitty Pretty One" was not renewed, thus ending royalty payments to Day and the song's publisher. Byrd never told her husband, who was dying of cancer, about the letter. If the song's copyright were renewed, Byrd and her four children would have received royalty payments until 2037. [6]
"Little Bitty Pretty One" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by The Jackson 5 | ||||
from the album Lookin' Through the Windows | ||||
B-side | "If I Have to Move a Mountain" | |||
Released | April 4, 1972 | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Studio | Motown | |||
Genre | R&B | |||
Length | 2:22 | |||
Label | Motown | |||
Songwriter(s) | Bobby Day | |||
Producer(s) | Mel Larson, Jerry Marcellino | |||
The Jackson 5 singles chronology | ||||
|
Bryan Thomas writes that the song "has gone on to become one of the best loved oldies of the late '50s". [7]
The song is famous for its hummed opening. [8] [9]
It was used in the 1983 horror film Christine , the 1989 comedy/fantasy film Little Monsters , and the 1996 comedy/fantasy film Matilda .
"Little Bitty Pretty One" was the inspiration for the Accents' sole hit "Wiggle Wiggle" in 1958, and though the similarities were evidently not sufficient to warrant a lawsuit, Aladdin Records took the expedient step of covering the song with a group called the Chestnuts.
Robert James Byrd, known by the stage name Bobby Day, was an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, music producer, and songwriter. He is best known for his hit record "Rockin' Robin", written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas. Day also wrote the top-10 Billboard hits "Little Bitty Pretty One" and "Over and Over".
"Crying" is a song written by Roy Orbison and Joe Melson for Orbison's third studio album of the same name (1962). Released in 1961, it was a number 2 hit in the US for Orbison and was covered in 1978 by Don McLean, whose version went to number 1 in the UK in 1980.
"Chantilly Lace" is a 1958 rock and roll song by The Big Bopper. It was produced by Jerry Kennedy, and reached No. 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Bruce Channel covered the song on his 1962 album, Hey! Baby. The song was also covered by Jerry Lee Lewis in 1972.
"Pledging My Love" is a blues ballad. It was written by Ferdinand Washington and Don Robey and published in 1954.
"Why Do Fools Fall in Love" is a debut single by American rock and roll band Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers that was released on January 10, 1956. It reached No. 1 on the R&B chart, No. 6 on Billboard's Pop Singles chart, and No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in July. Many renditions of the song by other artists have also been hit records in the U.S., including versions by the Diamonds, the Beach Boys, and Diana Ross.
"Dedicated To The One I Love" is a song written by Lowman Pauling and Ralph Bass that was a hit for the "5" Royales, the Shirelles, the Mamas & the Papas and Bitty McLean. Pauling was the guitarist of the "5" Royales, the group that recorded the original version of the song, produced by Bass, in 1957. Their version was re-released in 1961 and charted at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Diana" is a song written and first performed by Paul Anka, who recorded it in May 1957 at Don Costa’s studio in New York City. Anka stated in his autobiography that the song was inspired by a girl named Diana Ayoub, whom he had met at his church and community events, and had developed a crush on.
"Sherry" is a song written by Bob Gaudio and recorded by The Four Seasons.
"Rockin' Robin" is a song written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas, and recorded by American singer Bobby Day in 1958. It was Day's biggest hit single, becoming a number two hit on the Billboard Hot 100, and spent one week at the top of the R&B sales chart. Michael Jackson recorded his own version of the song in 1972, which also achieved success.
"You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You" is a popular song written by Russ Morgan, Larry Stock, and James Cavanaugh and published in 1944. The song was first recorded by Morgan and was a hit for him in 1946, reaching the No. 14 spot in the charts. The best known version was Dean Martin's, which was released in 1960 and reissued in 1964.
"Go Away Little Girl" is a popular song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. It was first recorded by Bobby Vee for Liberty Records on March 28, 1962. The lyrics consist of a young man asking a young attractive woman to stay away from him, so that he will not be tempted to betray his steady girlfriend by kissing her. The song is notable for making the American Top 20 three times: for Steve Lawrence in 1963, for The Happenings in 1966, and for Donny Osmond in 1971. It is also the first song, and one of only nine, to reach US number 1 by two different artists. Also notable in each of the solo versions is the similar double-tracked treatment of the singer's voice.
"Over and Over" is a song written by Robert James Byrd and recorded by him using the stage name Bobby Day. Day's version entered the Billboard Hot 100 in 1958, the same week a version of the same song by Thurston Harris entered the chart. Day's version reached #41, and was the B-side to "Rockin' Robin". Thurston Harris' version peaked at #96. In the song, the singer describes going to a party with misgivings of having a good time, until he sees a pretty girl. The singer attempts to ask her out, but she is waiting for her date to arrive. He vows to try "over and over".
"A Little Bitty Tear" is a song written by the American country songwriter Hank Cochran. It has been recorded by many musical acts, the first being American recording artist Burl Ives. It has since been recorded by others, including Wanda Jackson, Bing Crosby, Chet Atkins, The Shadows and Cochran himself.
"Wild One" is a song written by Dave Appell, Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe, and performed by Bobby Rydell. Session drummer Gary Chester played on the recording, which was released as a single in 1960.
Thurston Harris was an American singer and songwriter, best known for his 1957 hit "Little Bitty Pretty One".
"There! I've Said It Again" is a popular song written and published by Redd Evans and David Mann in 1941. In early 1945, Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra released Victor 20-1637, which reached the number one position on the Billboard's National Radio Airplay chart for five straight weeks, then no.2 for six more weeks, and a total run of 29 weeks. It finished 1945 as the no. 4 record of the year.
"England Swings" is a 1965 country music song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Roger Miller. The single was Miller's eleventh hit on the US country chart where it peaked at number three. On the Billboard Hot 100, it peaked at number eight and was Miller's second number one on the Easy Listening chart. Petula Clark and Pat Boone both released cover versions in 1967.
"Hurt" is a 1954 song by Jimmie Crane and Al Jacobs. "Hurt" was originally performed by Roy Hamilton, whose version peaked at number eight on the R&B Best Seller chart and spent a total of seven weeks on the chart. A version by Ricky Denell also received considerable radio airplay in 1954 on pop radio stations. The song is considered to be the signature hit of Timi Yuro, whose version went to number four on the Billboard pop chart in 1961. Elvis Presley’s 1976 version reached the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top 10 on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart. Juice Newton's 1985 version scored number one on Billboard's Country chart.
"I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" is a song written and originally recorded by Hank Williams on MGM Records. It hit number two on the Billboard country singles chart in 1951. In his autobiography, George Jones printed the first six lines of the song and stated, "Its lyrics couldn't be more simple - or profound."
"Buzz-Buzz-Buzz" is a song written by John Gray and Bobby Day and performed by The Hollywood Flames. The lead vocals were by Earl Nelson, and later by Bob & Earl. It reached number 5 on the US R&B chart and number 11 on the Billboard pop chart in 1957.