Day 113: The Four Seasons – Sherry & 11 Others
It’s another day when I don’t really know what I want to listen to, so I thought I’d go for something semi-topical. I’ve seen memes about singer Frankie Valli of the Four Seasons still performing at 91 with an appropriate amount of enthusiasm for a 91-year-old man, along with commentary about how maybe he owes money to the mob or something. I thought that’s a bit mean, maybe he would just rather stay on the go, doing what he loves. Who are we to judge? Let him do his thing, maybe it keeps him young.
Album cover courtesy of Vee-Jay Records
But with a little bit of googling I did also find that Frankie Valli very much did have deep connections to the mob. To be fair, he and the Four Seasons were young Italian-American guys from Jersey making music in the ‘60s, so I should have assummed. Apparently the mob connections is a key part of the musical Jersey Boys, which was written about them. The script to the musical even had to get vetted by the mob.
So, you know. The touring could be a touching story about wanting to persevere at doing something you love at any age, or it could be a harrowing tale about elder abuse. I’ll just say I don’t know and leave it at that.
Before they became the Four Seasons, the band originally performed with something described as a Latin Lover-gimmick, which I frankly don’t want to know more about, we’re already pushing it with the mob connections. They pivoted to being a doo-wop style rock’n’roll group in 1960 who became known for their harmonies and singer Frankie Valli’s iconic falsetto. They also ended up becoming one of the bestselling vocal groups of all time.
Their debut album, Sherry & 11 Others, was released in 1960. It featured their breakout hit “Sherry”, which was the group’s first song to reach the top of the charts and stay there for five weeks. The second single, “Big Girls Don’t Cry” similarly went number one on the Billboard 100.
It’s impossible not to be charmed by the Four Seasons, it’s the sort of songs that just make you want to lay on your stomach kicking your feet and twirling your hair. The lyrics are mostly about semi-mindless bubblegum pop topics, focusing on women and relationships and innocent stuff like wanting to hold a woman’s hand and saying she’s the apple of your eye. It’s escapist pop with a real sweetness to it.
The punchy drums in “Big Girls Don’t Cry” paired with the beautiful vocals makes for such impressive listening that it’s no wonder that song has lived on. Frankie Valli’s ability to seamlessly switch from his voice to the almost impossible-sounding falsetto makes for impressive listening, but the most remarkable aspect of the record is just how syrupy it is, which is fun to listen to. There’s a time and a place where you just want to listen to something that’s mindless and cute.
The Four Seasons is good escapist music where you can hear from every note that it’s from a time when no one had uttered the words “sigma grindset” yet, I’ll whack it on again when I want to hear some real yearners. 7.5/10.