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Bobby's Girl (song)

"Bobby's Girl" is a song and single written by Gary Klein and Henry Hoffman. The original was performed by American teenage singer Marcie Blane, and became a No. 3 hit on the US charts. A version by British singer Susan Maughan was released in the UK less than a month later, coincidentally also reaching No. 3 on the UK charts. Both Blane and Maughan are one-hit wonders; for both these artists, "Bobby's Girl" marked their only appearance on a national top 40 chart.

Marcie Blane version

Blane's version of the song was released in the United States in August 1962. It has a spoken introduction and a backing refrain of "You're not a kid anymore" and was popular with the American teenage audience. It entered the charts in October and made the Top 10 within a month, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 by December, where it stayed for four weeks. It reached No. 2 on the Cash Box chart, staying on the charts for nineteen weeks, and made Blane (very briefly) the top-selling female singer in the US.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Susan Maughan version

Susan Maughan's cover version was released in the UK, also in 1962. It featured Wally Stott and his orchestra and chorus. Substantially re-arranged from Blane's original, Maughan's version dropped the spoken word intro, and had a more sophisticated, less 'teen-age' sound. It spent nineteen weeks on the UK's Record Retailer chart, peaking at No. 3.

Chart history

Other versions

Tracey Ullman version

In 1983 Tracey Ullman released a version of "Bobby's Girl" on the album You Broke My Heart in 17 Places and as a single. Ullman's version reached No. 45 in West Germany.

The Copstars version

In 2001, members of the West Midlands Police force released a version in aid of the John Taylor Hospice in Birmingham. Lead vocals on the song was by Hayley Evetts and comedian Joe Pasquale.

Foreign-language versions

  • 1963 : Swedish artist Lil Malmkvist did a version in German (Ariola AT 10 106). It reached No. 16 at the Musikmarkt Top 50-list.
  • 1963 : French singer Arielle performed the French-language version Je n'aime que Bobby (I only love Bobby).
  • 1972 : Canadian singer Mimi Hétu performed the French-language version Pardonne-moi (Forgive me).
  • 1984 : French singer Douchka performed the French-language version Mon p'tit cœur (My little heart).

References

External links