Raindrops (Dee Clark song)

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"Raindrops"
Raindrops - Dee Clark.jpg
Single by Dee Clark
from the album Hold On...It's Dee Clark
B-side "I Want to Love You"
ReleasedApril 1961
Recorded1961
Studio Universal Recording Corp. (Chicago)
Genre R&B
Length2:51
Label Vee-Jay 383
Songwriter(s) Dee Clark
Dee Clark singles chronology
"Your Friends"
(1961)
"Raindrops"
(1961)
"I'm Going Back to School"
(1962)

"Raindrops" is a popular song written and recorded by American R&B singer Dee Clark, released in April 1961.

Contents

Background

The ballad is about a man who tries to convince himself that the tears he is crying since his lover's departure are raindrops since "a man ain't supposed to cry." Clark was reportedly inspired to write the song after a late night drive through a heavy rainstorm. Accordingly, the opening and closing of the song both feature heavy rain and thunder sound effects, with the closing augmented by Clark's powerful, swooping falsetto.

Musicians on the record included Al Duncan on drums, Quinn Wilson on bass, Earl Skarritt on electric guitar and Phil Upchurch on acoustic guitar, plus a string section. The song was recorded in a three-hour session at Universal Recording Corporation in Chicago, with Bruce Swedien as engineer.

Chart performance

The song peaked at No.2 on the Hot 100 (held back from No.1 by Gary U.S. Bond's "Quarter To Three"). [1] On other US charts, "Raindrops" peaked at No. 3 on the R&B chart. Billboard ranked it as the ninth most popular song of the year for 1961.

Chart (1961)Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [2] 2
U.S. R&B Singles Chart [3] 3

Cover versions

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References

  1. "The Hot 100". Billboard . 2 January 2013.
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2007). Top Pop Singles: 1955–2006. Record Research.
  3. Whitburn, Joel (2005). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research.