I Can Hear Music
"I Can Hear Music" is a song written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich and Phil Spector[2] for American girl group the Ronettes (credited as The Ronettes Featuring Veronica) in 1966. This version spent one week on the Billboard Pop chart at number 100.[3] In early 1969, the Beach Boys released a cover version as a single from their album 20/20 (1969), peaking at number 24 in the US.
| "I Can Hear Music" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by the Ronettes | ||||
| B-side | "When I Saw You" | |||
| Released | October 1966[1] | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 3:00 | |||
| Label | Philles | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Jeff Barry | |||
| The Ronettes singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "I Can Hear Music" on YouTube | ||||
Cash Box said that "Ronnie sings a strong lead throughout the teen-oriented, emotion filled tune which is effectively backed by throbbing sounds."[4] Record World described it as a "slow but torrid goodie."[5]
The Beach Boys version edit
| "I Can Hear Music" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by the Beach Boys | ||||
| from the album 20/20 | ||||
| B-side | "All I Want to Do" | |||
| Released | March 3, 1969[6] | |||
| Recorded | October 1, 1968 | |||
| Length | 2:36 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Carl Wilson | |||
| The Beach Boys singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "I Can Hear Music" on YouTube | ||||
"I Can Hear Music" was covered by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released on their 1969 album 20/20 with Carl Wilson on lead vocals. This version peaked at No. 24 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song did best in Europe, reaching number 10 in the United Kingdom.[7]
Within the US and Canada, it peaked on playlists in the top 5 in Boston, Houston and Dallas; No. 7 in New York and Chicago (WCFL); No. 8 in Toronto and San Diego, No. 9 in Seattle; No. 10 in Vancouver and Indianapolis; No. 11 in Los Angeles, Louisville, Providence, and Chicago (WLS); No. 12 in Milwaukee and Columbus.[8][citation needed]
Personnel edit
Credits from Craig Slowinski.[9][10][11]
The Beach Boys
- Al Jardine – backing vocals, guitar, handclaps
- Mike Love – backing vocals, handclaps
- Carl Wilson – lead vocals, guitar, handclaps, producer, tambourine?
- Dennis Wilson — drums, piano, handclaps
- Bruce Johnston – backing vocals, bass, Fender Rhodes electric piano, handclaps
Session musicians
- Mike Kowalski – snare drum, sleigh bells
Chart history edit
Larry Lurex version edit
| "I Can Hear Music" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Larry Lurex | |
| B-side | "Goin' Back" |
| Released | 29 June 1973 (US) |
| Studio | Trident, London |
| Genre | |
| Length | 3:22 |
| Label | EMI |
| Songwriter(s) | |
| Producer(s) | Robin Geoffrey Cable |
| Official Lyric Video | |
| "I Can Hear Music" on YouTube | |
In 1973, Larry Lurex, the solo stage name of Freddie Mercury, recorded "I Can Hear Music" on the EMI label.[16] His version peaked at #115 on the U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart.[17]
Kathy Troccoli version edit
In 1996, the Beach Boys rerecorded the song, with contemporary Christian singer Kathy Troccoli on lead vocals, for their country album Stars and Stripes Vol. 1.
References edit
- ^ Rodriguez, Robert (2012). Revolver: How the Beatles Re-Imagined Rock 'n' Roll. Montclair: Backbeat Books. p. 252. ISBN 978-1-61713-009-0.
- ^ "I Can Hear Music – The Ronettes". Allmusic. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
- ^ "The Ronettes". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
- ^ "CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. October 1, 1966. p. 30. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
- ^ "Singles Reviews" (PDF). Record World. October 8, 1966. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-07-11.
- ^ Badman, Keith. The Beach Boys. The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band: On Stage and in the Studio Backbeat Books, San Francisco, California, 2004. ISBN 0-87930-818-4 p. 29
- ^ a b "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. 1969-04-03. Retrieved 2022-01-13.
- ^ Arsa Surveys, las-solanas.com
- ^ "I Can Hear Music". smileysmile.net.
- ^ "What Music is Being Made in This Video?".
- ^ Slowinski, Craig (Spring 2019). Beard, David (ed.). "20/20: 50 Year Anniversary Special Edition". Endless Summer Quarterly Magazine. Charlotte, North Carolina.
- ^ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1969-04-21. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – I Can Hear Music". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
- ^ "Flavour of New Zealand, 19 May 1969".
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 – ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ "Larry Lurex - I Can Hear Music". June 1, 1973 – via www.discogs.com.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Bubbling Under the Billboard Hot 100 1959–2004
External links edit