Doo Wah Diddy – Today’s classic song including its demo, an original and a hilarious movie scene. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JeffBarry #EllieGreenwich #TheExciters #ManfredMann #Stripes

Doo Wah Diddy

Who hasn’t sung along with ‘Doo Wah Diddy? It is a fun song that tells the story of the evolution of a happy couple’s relationship, told from the perspective of an elated lover. I purposely led with the most famous version of today’s feature song, but as is so often the case, that is not the original, and the story behind the original is a fascinating look into the trials and tribulations of the songwriting process. It is not easy, but if you hit on something, the result is pure gold.

In the early 60’s Da Doo Ron Ron was a huge hit for The Crystals. It was written by the songwriting team of Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, and produced by the legendary Phil Spector and an up and coming protégé named Sonny Bono. As a result of the massive success of Da Doo Ron Ron the pressure was on for Barry and Greenwich to write another hit. They swiftly found out that slotting in a line of gibberish was not necessarily an easy thing. Coincidentally they focused on another ‘doo’ passage and before they knew it ‘Doo Wah Diddy’ emerged. Barry and Greenwich were determined to give the song to another girl band because that formula had also proven to be successful. Enter The Exciters who had just come off a hit song called ‘Tell Him’. First, I will share the original demo of ‘Doo Wah Diddy’ and then the high energy version by The Exciters.

Ellie’s demo is sped up a little and you’ve gotta love the unapologetic New York accent in the chorus. This is a very honest delivery that speaks to the times. I could see The Go Gos doing this in the 1980s and no one would skip a beat. It just speaks to the timelessness of certain sounds. Further to Ellie Greenwich, if you are interested in the songwriting process and one of the early songwriting success stories check her out. She wrote several amazing songs and the demos are on Youtube. It is really impressive.

From this demo we move onto the ‘original’ recording of Doo Wah Diddy by The Exciters.

Obviously, the added support surrounding the full studio treatment creates a fuller sound. The Exciters do a commendable job on this recording. The horns and the ‘wedding bells’ are a nice production touch. Surprisingly, it only went to #78 on the charts. Truthfully, by the time Manfred Mann got it a year later they just had to add the male perspective. It is not hard to tell why it ultimately became a classic when recorded by the up and coming British Invasion artists. Manfred Mann had recognized the success The Beatles had in covering American girl groups, so they settled on ‘Doo Wah Diddy’. You may have noticed that they added a ‘diddy’ to their delivery and song title.

Back to the original songwriters, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry. They were in the studio in 1964 all set to record their own version. They were a little disillusioned that The Exciters version did not chart well. It was a rare case where a song produced by the legendary tandem of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller did not produce a hit, but this stuff can be unpredictable as the story so often goes. As they were preparing their presentation behind their pseudonym The Raindrops, word came down that Manfred Mann had recorded the song and it was on its way over to the United States. This rendered their version pointless. Initially they were incredulous that a male group would sing the song. That is just not how they envisioned the song and its presentation. According to Greenwich, she came around pretty fast when she heard Manfred Mann’s version.

“With the British Invasion, maybe this is the luck charm, and it sure was.”

‘Doo Wah Diddy’ hit #1 in October of 1964. It became a worldwide hit and it is one of those instantly recognizable tunes that just makes you smile. It all emanated from the vision of a songwriting team who needed a nonsense hook and the right method of delivery. Another great story. So, all you need to do to write a hit song as add ‘doo’ to the chorus. Good luck to you.

Speaking of the right delivery, here is a memorable scene from the classic 1981 Bill Murray, John Candy and Harold Ramis movie, Stripes.

It is sad to note that two of these hilarious actors are no longer with us.