Hey Paula (song)
| "Hey Paula" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Paul & Paula | ||||
| B-side | "Bobby Is the One" | |||
| Released | 1962 | |||
| Recorded | 1962 | |||
| Genre | Pop, pop rock | |||
| Length | 2:27 | |||
| Label | Le Cam, Philips (US) Sparton (Canada) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Ray Hildebrand | |||
| Producer(s) | Major Bill Smith, Marvin "Smokey" Montgomery | |||
| Paul & Paula singles chronology | ||||
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"Hey Paula" is an American pop standard love song recorded by the singing duo Paul & Paula. It hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week ending February 9, 1963, and also made it to number one on the Hot R&B Singles chart.[1] "Paul" was the song's writer, Ray Hildebrand,[2] a student at Texas' Howard Payne University, a Baptist institution in the city of Brownwood. "Paula" was Jill Jackson, the niece of the owner of the boarding house where Ray lived.
Writing and recording[]
Hildebrand wrote the song, originally titled "Paul and Paula", taking inspiration from the Annette Funicello hit "Tall Paul".[3] Hildebrand and Jackson performed the song on a local radio station[4] and the song soon became popular enough for the duo to try to make a professional recording. They went to a studio in Fort Worth, Texas, and were fortunate enough to find a producer, Major Bill Smith, with studio time and musicians booked and a missing lead vocalist. He recorded their version of the song and released it on his Le Cam Records label, changing the name to "Hey Paula", credited to "Jill & Ray". When the record became a success, it was picked up by the larger Philips Records, which changed the billing to Paul and Paula.[3] Musicians on the recording included Marvin Montgomery on guitar, Guy Parnell on bass, Hargus Robbins on organ, Little Caesar on piano, and Ronnie Dawson on drums.
Success[]
When the song was released on Philips, it hit the national charts in late 1962, reaching number one on both the pop and R&B charts in 1963. It spawned a follow-up top ten hit, "Young Lovers", and a series of other hits for the duo.[5]
Chart performance[]
All-time charts[]
| Chart (1958–2018) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100[6] | 528 |
Cover versions[]
- Australian personalities Ernie Sigley and Denise Drysdale scored a hit with the song in 1974.[7]
Popular culture[]
- Boon (Peter Riegert) and Katy (Karen Allen) sang it to each other while high in the movie, National Lampoon's Animal House from 1978.
- Eric Forman (Topher Grace) sang the song to his girlfriend Donna Pinciotti (Laura Prepon) during a friend's party in That 70s Show.
References[]
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 453.
- ^ "Ray Hildebrand - Hey Paula Official Site". rayhildebrand.com. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Shannon, Bob; John Javna (1986). Behind The Hits:Inside Stories of Classic Pop and Rock and Roll. New York: Warner Books. pp. 112–113. ISBN 0-446-38171-3.
- ^ James, Gary. "Interview With Ray Hildebrand of Paul and Paula". Classicbands.com. Retrieved Nov 17, 2009.
- ^ Joel Whitburn, Top Pop Singles 1955-1999 (Menomonee Falls, WI: Record Research, 2000), 491.
- ^ "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
- ^ "Hey Paula - Ernie Sigley & Denise Drysdale (1974)". www.poparchives.com.au. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
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- 1963 singles
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