Fallin' (Connie Francis song)
Encyclopedia
Fallin' is a song written by Neil Sedaka
and Howard Greenfield
that was recorded by Connie Francis
on 2 September 1958 at Metropolitan Studio (NYC) in a session produced by Morton "Morty" Kraft who also conducted. The same team had been responsible for Francis' precedent single "Stupid Cupid" which had returned Francis to the Top 20 after the disappointing #36 peak of "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry" the followup to her breakout hit "Who's Sorry Now?
".
"Fallin'" was an upbeat rock and roll
song in the same vein as "Stupid Cupid" but failed to approach its success peaking at #30.
Francis recalls Bobby Darin
telling her "on 'Stupid Cupid' you were yourself - now [on "Fallin'"] you're imitating me and it's not going to make it big. It's not a Top Ten hit." Francis adds: "And the lyrics were too sexy for then."
http://www.freewebs.com/conniefrancis/connie8.htm
The B-side of "Fallin'" was "Happy Days and Lonely Nights
", a signature song of torch song
legend Ruth Etting. Francis' version received enough airplay to reach #88 on the Cash Box Best Selling Singles chart.
In the UK
, "Fallin'" was released with a different standard: "I'll Get By
" as the B-side with both tracks charting at #20 for "Fallin'" and #19 for "I'll Get By".
"Fallin'" can be heard in the 1996 film The Craft
in which the Helen Shaver
character uses the insurance windfall she receives after her abusive husband is dispatched by her daughter's witchcraft to purchase a jukebox
stocked with Connie Francis singles. In 1999 Francis sued Universal Music Group - who by then held the MGM catalog - over "Fallin'"'s appearance in The Craft as well as the appearance of her songs in two other films (Postcards From America and Jawbreaker
). The suit was dismissed.
In 2008 "Fallin'" was used in the UK in a television commercial for Special K
.
Wanda Jackson
, who also recorded "Stupid Cupid", has recorded "Fallin'". Meanwhile, the song's composer, Neil Sedaka, cut his own version for his 1959 debut album Rock With Sedaka; Sedaka's version served as B-side for his RCA Italiana single "All I Need Is You".
Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
and Howard Greenfield
Howard Greenfield
Howard Greenfield was an American lyricist and songwriter, who for several years in the 1960s worked out of the famous Brill Building...
that was recorded by Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
on 2 September 1958 at Metropolitan Studio (NYC) in a session produced by Morton "Morty" Kraft who also conducted. The same team had been responsible for Francis' precedent single "Stupid Cupid" which had returned Francis to the Top 20 after the disappointing #36 peak of "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry" the followup to her breakout hit "Who's Sorry Now?
Who's Sorry Now?
"Who's Sorry Now?" is a popular song with music written by Ted Snyder and lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. It was published in 1923."Who's Sorry Now?" was featured in the Marx Brothers film A Night in Casablanca , directed by Archie Mayo and released by United Artists.The song has been...
".
"Fallin'" was an upbeat rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
song in the same vein as "Stupid Cupid" but failed to approach its success peaking at #30.
Francis recalls Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin , born Walden Robert Cassotto, was an American singer, actor and musician.Darin performed in a range of music genres, including pop, rock, jazz, folk and country...
telling her "on 'Stupid Cupid' you were yourself - now [on "Fallin'"] you're imitating me and it's not going to make it big. It's not a Top Ten hit." Francis adds: "And the lyrics were too sexy for then."
http://www.freewebs.com/conniefrancis/connie8.htm
The B-side of "Fallin'" was "Happy Days and Lonely Nights
Happy Days and Lonely Nights
Happy Days and Lonely Nights is a torch song written by Billy Rose and Fred Fisher which Ruth Etting introduced in 1928. The song was successfully revived in the 1950s in the US by the Fontane Sisters and in the UK most successfully by Ruby Murray....
", a signature song of torch song
Torch song
A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affected the relationship...
legend Ruth Etting. Francis' version received enough airplay to reach #88 on the Cash Box Best Selling Singles chart.
In the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, "Fallin'" was released with a different standard: "I'll Get By
I'll Get By (as Long as I Have You)
"I'll Get By " is a popular song with music by Fred E. Ahlert and lyrics by Roy Turk. It was published in 1928 and originally sung by Aileen Stanley. The song was revived to even greater success in 1944, when the 1940 recording by Harry James was re-released...
" as the B-side with both tracks charting at #20 for "Fallin'" and #19 for "I'll Get By".
"Fallin'" can be heard in the 1996 film The Craft
The Craft (film)
The Craft is a 1996 American supernatural teen horror film directed by Andrew Fleming and starring Robin Tunney, Rachel True, Fairuza Balk and Neve Campbell. The film's plot centers on a group of four teenage girls who pursue witchcraft and use it for their own gain...
in which the Helen Shaver
Helen Shaver
Helen Shaver is a Canadian actress and film and television director.-Early life:Shaver was born and raised in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, a small city located near London, Ontario, with five sisters...
character uses the insurance windfall she receives after her abusive husband is dispatched by her daughter's witchcraft to purchase a jukebox
Jukebox
A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media...
stocked with Connie Francis singles. In 1999 Francis sued Universal Music Group - who by then held the MGM catalog - over "Fallin'"'s appearance in The Craft as well as the appearance of her songs in two other films (Postcards From America and Jawbreaker
Jawbreaker (film)
Jawbreaker is an American black comedy satire film, directed by Darren Stein. It was released February 19, 1999. The film stars Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz, and Judy Greer as girls in an exclusive clique in their high school. Charlotte Ayanna has a non-speaking cameo role as a...
). The suit was dismissed.
In 2008 "Fallin'" was used in the UK in a television commercial for Special K
Special K
Special K is a lightly toasted breakfast cereal manufactured by the Kellogg Company. The cereal was introduced to the United States in 1956. It is made primarily from rice and wheat....
.
Wanda Jackson
Wanda Jackson
Wanda Lavonne Jackson is an American singer, songwriter, pianist and guitarist who had success in the mid-1950s and 60s as one of the first popular female rockabilly singers and a pioneering rock and roll artist...
, who also recorded "Stupid Cupid", has recorded "Fallin'". Meanwhile, the song's composer, Neil Sedaka, cut his own version for his 1959 debut album Rock With Sedaka; Sedaka's version served as B-side for his RCA Italiana single "All I Need Is You".