#12 - Guy Mitchell - Look At That Girl

When? 8th September - 19th October 1953
Number of Weeks? 6
What else was going on? Sugar rationing ends in the UK, the first computer to use RAM goes on sale, Narcotics Anonymous holds its first meeting, UNICEF is permanently enshrined as part of the United Nations

Youtube link

Spotify link

Download Look At That Girl from amazon.com

After a breathtaking 18 weeks at number 1, Guy Mitchell is the man to finally break Frankie Laine's tenure at the top for longer than one week. Guy's second number 1 single is a slightly more serious effort than "She Wears Red Feathers". Sadly I think this song has not aged well. It's a fun but somewhat throwaway ode to the object of Guy's infatuation, and to the song's credit, the orchestration works very well to create a very jaunty, light-hearted atmosphere around the song. There is also a glimmer of brilliant guitar work in the middle 8, and the choir accompaniment at the end of the song is handled well. Guy's voice is clear and expressive but there's very little to warrant more than a couple of listens to this song. Don't get me wrong, it's pleasant enough, but at the same time it feels very disposable and there is no real "hook" to get stuck in your head and keep you listening. Clearly the Britich public of 1953 didn't quite agree, however, as they kept it on the top spot for 6 weeks.

What happened next? After scoring two number ones this year, Guy takes a hiatus from this blog. His next number 1 single is a whole 4 years away. In the interim, however, Guy kept himself busy by starring in the musical Western spoof movie "Red Garters".

#6 - Guy Williams - She Wears Red Feathers

When? 10th March 1953 - 6th April 1953
Number of Weeks? 4
What else was going on? Nikita Khrushchev becomes first secretary of the Communist Party after Stalin's death, 1953 Western Turkey Earthquake, Jonas Salk announces Polio vaccine

Spotify Link

Youtube link

Download She Wears Red Feathers from amazon.com

Well... this is a strange one. A song which tells the story of an English banker falling in love and marrying a hula girl. It certainly qualifies as one of the more unique number ones (and not only of these first 6!). To this extent, we probably have here the first "novelty" hit to get to the top spot. Mitchell was no stranger to the chart before his first number 1, as he had already scored a number 2 hit in these fledgling chart days with Feet Up (at the end of the Youtube video).

The song is... well... I found it pretty awful sadly. For a start, the lyrics are at best anachronistic but at worst uncomfortable in these modern times. The song itself is fairly bouncy and trundles along quite well, and once again, Guy's voice is very strong and has a nice tone to it. Sadly, the whole package fails to come together, and when compared to what it knocked off the number one spot, it falls fairly flat for these ears. But having said that, if it's one thing that a lot of these songwriters were able to do is create a catchy hook. The chorus is surprisingly addictive, even if it's perhaps not up to much musically.

What happened next? We'll see Guy a few more times on this journey, as he would go on to top the charts three more times (once with a song which simply hung on and clawed its way to the top spot with alarming fervour). In contrast to Perry Como, however, Guy's charting career will be contained entirely within the 1950s.