Why girl groups? Why girl groups indeed. While looking up info for “Out In The Streets,” I came across this somewhat mysterious post about Pitchfork’s 200 Greatest Songs of the 60s list. I say the post is mysterious because it’s hard to pin down the credentials of the writer. We know what Pitchfork writers are like; is this guy just as young but far more knowledgable about motown and the British invasion, or was he (as is implied once or twice) an older person who actually listened to a bunch of these records when they first came out? Anyways, he remarks that the list is quite heavy on girl groups, and that in general we’ve suddenly become very good at digging up old classics from the period. Probably a lot of this has to do with Rhino’s giant compendium of all things girl group, a four disc box set compiling a huge amount of classics from the era. The author of the mysterious post approves of the girl group renaissance, though he does wonder about certain aspects of it:
more to the point: what the hell is up with the shangri-las? three songs!? “out in the streets” in the top 20!? not to mention the kinks’ “shangri-la” (#135), a mystifying selection that i really suspect might be the result of some kind of weird crossover sweep effect…. i guess i just don’t like the shangri-las as much as some people. or they’re somehow a lot more significant than i realized.
Nothing like using the words of a guy who’s probably much smarter than you to undercut your own post before you’ve even started. I happen to like “Out In The Streets,” though maybe it’s just because it’s one of the few songs whose lyrics I’ve actually paid attention to. “Out In The Streets” is basically the musical equivalent of “The Wild One,” the 1950s teen pulp classic with Marlon Brando as the leader of a biker gang who tears up a small town and almost hooks up with the innocent girl but drives off in the end. But on top of that, the Shangri-Las take the story of a guy who doesn’t belong in his girl’s world and turns it into a titanic (no pun intended) story of unrequited love and teenage heartbreak. When those strings kick in and Mary Weiss sings “I wish I didn’t care, I wish I never met him, they’re waiting out there, so I gotta set him free,” it’s like a tragedy for the ages. You wish your life was so deliciously melodramatic. Brilliant.
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[...] The other two “Shangri-La”s are covers of songs by Electric Light Orchestra and the Kinks. And of course “Out In The Streets” is a Shangri-Las original. It’s the sort of concept that appeals almost exclusively to record nerds with a weakness for sychronicity, except that now that Versus has done it, the Shangri-Las angle is no longer available for mix tape fodder. [...]
angels twenty » Versus - Out In The Streets, September 17th, 2006 at 8:56 pmhi. coming to this rather late, obviously, but i’m the author of that mysterious post. my credentials are mysterious to me as well - i’m not older than the average pitchfork writer (i’m 24, well 23 when i wrote this.) i did grow up listening to oldies radio.
anyway, “out in the streets” is a fine song, but i still think it’s weird to be in the top 20.
ross, December 15th, 2006 at 3:29 pmIn NO way am I surprised that “Out In The Streets” is in the top 20, nor am I shaking my head in disbelief that The Shangri-Las merited having THREE of their classics making the list.
Shirley, January 2nd, 2007 at 6:28 pmAsk a good cross section of reputable music critics past and PRESENT about the group, and I will wager my last dollar ALL would agree this group created a catalog SOOO FINE it would be exceedingly HARD to find ANY female artist TODAY who could even come close! I’ve maintained for YEARS that Mary was one of THE BEST singers in popular music-a VERY underrated singer indeed! Combine her IMPRESSIVE vocal chops with the INCREDIBLE talents of Shadow Morton, and they were simply SUBLIME in the studio! Even PHIL SCEPTOR was in AWE of the MAGIC they were able to create!
Re: Greatest Songs of the 1960s
Someone mentioned that the list included 3 songs of The Shangri-Las! Only 3? It should have been 5. Besides “Remember”, “Leader” and “Streets”, how about 2 of their other big memorable hits: “Give Him A Great Big Kiss” and “I Can Never Go Home Anymore”!
Williamson, March 29th, 2007 at 11:04 pmMy favourite Shangri-Las song (But only just - so many to choose from), this may well be the saddest break-up song ever. To be dumped is sad, to walk away from a doomed affair is hard, to lose a lover must be crushing, but there’s something particularly poignant about the teenage girl forced to show foresight and wisdom beyond her years and realise that she and her beau’s destinies lie along seperate paths. I can’t listen to the line ‘they’re waiting in the streets’ without getting goosebumps.
Tommy Mack, July 21st, 2007 at 4:47 pm