February 4, 1963 (3 weeks)
I had never heard of such a thing. I knew of kids who'd failed and had to repeat a grade but I never knew anyone who managed to pull off the reverse. As if not content to be so far ahead of everyone her own age, she instantly proved to be just about the best student in our class too. She fit in instantly from what I can recall. There was only one problem as far as I was concerned: her name was Paula. Other boys in my class teased me about our near identical names but fortunately for me they had obviously never heard "Hey Paula" by Paul & Paula because I surely would have petitioned my parents for a name change if they had.
Paula was and probably still is a very nice person but "Hey Paula" is vile, a skid mark of bland and vapid pop. While Tom Breihan savages it in his review, if anything he doesn't go far enough. Sure, it is indeed a prime example of early sixties pop's reputation for being a "sanitized wasteland" and that it "sounds like nothing" but he neglected to mention that it's remarkably free of passion. These two young people are supposed to be absolutely crazy about each other but you'd never know it by listening to their vocals. Paul (real name Ray Hildebrand) in particular sounds completely lifeless in his delivery. I don't know if he was going for a laid back vibe but his opening "hey Paula" is so unconvincing and so brushed off
Paula (aka Jill Jackson: I suppose 'Jack & Jill" would've been too predicable a name for the duo; what about 'Ray & May'? 'Arnie & Marnie'?) is more tolerable than her partner but even then that could be more down to the wistful looks she gives her partner in a TV clip. That glance of hers sells the song better than the two of them singing to one another ever could. Hildebrand's awful lyrics certainly don't help either. Rather than sharing their own perspectives, he has the two of them repeating the same trite slush back-and-forth to each other. Just to give it an added touch of tackiness, the whole thing is backed by a Hammond organ straight out of an old soap opera.
Paul & Paula represented a segment of American kids who grew up just before hippie free love began to take off. The sort of young couple who'd rush to get married just so that they could get laid and not feel pangs of guilt that they might have made the Baby Jesus cry or that God might have slaughtered a kitten as punishment for their sinful ways. I'm probably giving them more credit than they deserve but maybe that's why their vocals are so devoid of feelings of love — because they don't have any. That said, I'm not hearing any lust either. In short, "Hey Paula" should make everyone happy that the Sexual Revolution was right around the corner. While it's impossible to imagine Paul & Paula playing at Woodstock six years later, it would've done the pair of them a world of good had they been in attendance.
Score: 2
~~~~~
Can Con
He may have been known as 'Canada's Country Gentleman' but to me Tommy Hunter was always that old man who'd come on TV directly after Hockey Night in Canada which was a signal for me to (a) change the channel, (b) turn off the TV or (c) get my ass out of the TV room as swiftly as possible, quite often with my hands covering my ears. Being in my late forties now, I wouldn't be quite so quick to bolt at the sound of old Tommy but I wouldn't be rushing to watch and/or listen to him either. Officially listed as a double A side of "Poor Little Bullfrog" / "Penny Wishes", the latter is all that is listed on the CHUM chart for the week of February 18, 1963 and with good reason. While it is merely a serviceable C&W ballad, it outstrips its rather silly flip side — a song that is apparently so unloved that they only bothered to include its first ninety seconds on YouTube. Who could possibly need to hear the rest?
No comments:
Post a Comment