Fact #107713
When:
Short story:
Leader Of The Pack by The Shangri-Las, written by Shadow Morton, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, reaches No1 in the USA and in Australia.
Full article:
Shadow Morton : Leader Of The Pack was not written for The Shangri-Las. It was written for another Long Island group called the Goodies. They never had a lot of success. I have no answer as to why. Four girls ... good singers. I found them during the time "Remember" was out. It just seemed natural to me. I liked them. They liked me. They sang good. I simply wanted to make a record with them. And then the company came to me and said, "No dice! You give everything you've got to one group." Of course, nowadays that's all changed. But not then - I got shot down. That was it for me... I was ready to quit.
The Shangri-Las ended up with that song, but Jerry Leiber didn't know what it was until just before we went into the studio. Leiber came to me, as was the way in the business, and said, "Remember is falling off the charts. Do you have anything?" And I said, "Sure, it's called Leader Of The Pack, and I tell him what it's about; it's been floating around in my head for a couple of months; and I really didn't have the song yet. And he says, "No."
And that's when I went out looking for a group to sing the song. Again, I did a con job. I recorded the song secretly. I snuck out to Ultrasonic and cut it. I had a wonderful relationship with Billy Stahl, who owned Ultrasonic - the studio really was his vision - he let me have free rein. So, I called musicians as if everything was okey-dokey and we recorded it privately, with no interference. And it worked! In fact, it sounded great! Leiber had to accept it! In fact, I don't think Ellie heard the song until it was on the radio!
Ellie Greenwich : In those days, if you made a little money, the first thing you did was get a motorcycle. Jeff had one, Shadow had one, and we decided to write a song about them and make it tongue in cheek, with all the dramatic stops pulled out.
Shadow Morton : I repeat, I don't think Ellie ever heard that song until the radio played it. A lot of things went down and even today, there are hard feelings between many of those involved. These memories are difficult... I'd rather let it go at that.
Ellie Greenwich : I find that amazing, mind-boggling that he would say that. It's unfortunate that his memory has dimmed to such a point. How can I even respond to something like that?
?Shadow Morton : Look, I was young. I was the 'new kid on the block.' I gave them credits because I thought it was the right thing to do... I felt I owed them something for bringing me into the business. I gave them a piece of the action... but just a piece, mind you. I still retain majority rights. But, as I say, a lot of things went down...?
Ellie Greenwich : The Shangri-Las were perfect for this kind of record. They had the looks and, most of all, that nasal twang. They were also pretty dumb and thought we were crazy. See, we'd sit around in the studio messing with a motorcycle effects take and shouting, 'Look out! Look out!'
Tweet this Fact
The Shangri-Las ended up with that song, but Jerry Leiber didn't know what it was until just before we went into the studio. Leiber came to me, as was the way in the business, and said, "Remember is falling off the charts. Do you have anything?" And I said, "Sure, it's called Leader Of The Pack, and I tell him what it's about; it's been floating around in my head for a couple of months; and I really didn't have the song yet. And he says, "No."
And that's when I went out looking for a group to sing the song. Again, I did a con job. I recorded the song secretly. I snuck out to Ultrasonic and cut it. I had a wonderful relationship with Billy Stahl, who owned Ultrasonic - the studio really was his vision - he let me have free rein. So, I called musicians as if everything was okey-dokey and we recorded it privately, with no interference. And it worked! In fact, it sounded great! Leiber had to accept it! In fact, I don't think Ellie heard the song until it was on the radio!
Ellie Greenwich : In those days, if you made a little money, the first thing you did was get a motorcycle. Jeff had one, Shadow had one, and we decided to write a song about them and make it tongue in cheek, with all the dramatic stops pulled out.
Shadow Morton : I repeat, I don't think Ellie ever heard that song until the radio played it. A lot of things went down and even today, there are hard feelings between many of those involved. These memories are difficult... I'd rather let it go at that.
Ellie Greenwich : I find that amazing, mind-boggling that he would say that. It's unfortunate that his memory has dimmed to such a point. How can I even respond to something like that?
?Shadow Morton : Look, I was young. I was the 'new kid on the block.' I gave them credits because I thought it was the right thing to do... I felt I owed them something for bringing me into the business. I gave them a piece of the action... but just a piece, mind you. I still retain majority rights. But, as I say, a lot of things went down...?
Ellie Greenwich : The Shangri-Las were perfect for this kind of record. They had the looks and, most of all, that nasal twang. They were also pretty dumb and thought we were crazy. See, we'd sit around in the studio messing with a motorcycle effects take and shouting, 'Look out! Look out!'