"Walking in the Rain" is a song written by Barry Mann, Phil Spector, and Cynthia Weil. It was originally recorded by the girl group the Ronettes in 1964 who had a charting hit with their version. Jay and the Americans released a charting hit cover of the song in 1969. The song has since been recorded by many other artists over the years, including the Walker Brothers.
| "Walking in the Rain" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by the Ronettes | ||||
| from the album Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica | ||||
| B-side | "How Does It Feel?" | |||
| Released | October 1964[1] | |||
| Genre | R&B | |||
| Length | 3:15 | |||
| Label | Philles | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Barry Mann, Phil Spector, Cynthia Weil | |||
| Producer(s) | Phil Spector | |||
| The Ronettes singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The Ronettes version
editThe Ronettes were the first to release "Walking in the Rain". Their single reached number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1964.[2] The song also reached number three on the R&B Singles Chart in 1965.[3] The single contains sound effects of thunder and lightning, which earned audio engineer Larry Levine a Grammy nomination. Phil Spector produced the record.[4]
In 2004, the Ronettes' version was ranked at No. 266 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time,[5] while being moved down to No. 269 in the 2010 update.[6] The song didn't get into the 2021 list.[7]
Jay and the Americans version
edit| "Walkin in the Rain" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Jay and the Americans | ||||
| from the album Wax Museum, Vol. 1 | ||||
| B-side | "For the Love of a Lady" | |||
| Released | November 1969 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 2:50 | |||
| Label | United Artists | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Barry Mann, Phil Spector, Cynthia Weil | |||
| Producer(s) | Jay and the Americans, Thomas Kaye | |||
| Jay and the Americans singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The pop group Jay and the Americans released a cover of "Walkin' in the Rain" in 1969 on their album Wax Museum, Vol. 1. Their version of the song reached number 19 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number 14 on Cash Box. It also hit number 8 on the Adult Contemporary chart, it was the last top-40 hit for the group.[8]
Chart history
edit- The Ronettes
| Chart (1964) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada RPM Top Singles[9] | 16 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[10] | 23 |
| U.S. Billboard R&B | 8 |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100 | 20 |
- The Walker Brothers
| Chart (1967) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles (OCC)[11] | 26 |
- Jay & the Americans
| Chart (1969) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada RPM Top Singles[9] | 17 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[10] | 19 |
| U.S. Billboard Easy Listening | 8 |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100 | 14 |
- The Partridge Family starring David Cassidy
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles (OCC)[12] | 10 |
- Cheetah
| Chart (1978) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart[13] | 10 |
Other versions
edit- 1967 – The Walker Brothers, single backed with the original b-side "Baby Make It Last the Time". This version alters the gender of the lyrics for a heterosexual male perspective. It reached number 26 in the UK Singles Chart.[11] It was the group's final UK single before their first split.[citation needed]
- 1973 - featured on the television show The Partridge Family, single released in Canada, England, and other parts of Europe backed with "Together We're Better"; also with gender-altered lyrics, reached number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.
- 1978 - non-album single by the female-led Australian rock group Cheetah, reaching number 10 on the Australian Singles Chart.
- 1990 - The Party (from The Mickey Mouse Club) covered this song on their debut album. Deedee Magno sang lead vocals.
- 2003 – the English electropop duo Erasure included a cover version of "Walking in the Rain" on their tenth studio album Other People's Songs. Singer Andy Bell, an out gay man, does not alter the original lyrics sung by the Ronettes.
References
edit- ^ Billboard Review Panel (October 17, 1964). "Singles Reviews: Hot Pop Spotlights". Billboard. p. 18.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 722.
- ^ Leszczak, Bob (10 October 2013). Who Did It First?: Great Rhythm and Blues Cover Songs and Their Original Artists. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810888678.
- ^ Walking in the Rain song review at AllMusic
- ^ "The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 2004-12-09. Archived from the original on 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
- ^ "500 Greatest Songs of All Time: The Ronettes, 'Walking in the Rain'". Rolling Stone. 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-06-10. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
- ^ Crawford, Steve (2021-09-16). "Rolling Stone's Latest Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time List - Bye Bye, Boomer, Bye Bye". Rock NYC. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
- ^ Jay and the Americans singles
- ^ a b "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|url=(help) - ^ a b Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 589/590. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Rice, Jonathan (1991). British Hit Singles (8th ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Publishing. p. 207. ISBN 0-85112-941-2.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book Ltd. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) created their own charts in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.